PHOENIX -- Saturday's matchup between the Arizona Rattlers and Cleveland Gladiators is all about one thing: Retribution.
The Rattlers are coming off their first loss of the season, which they suffered last week at the hands or expansion team the Las Vegas Outlaws. This looks to be the biggest upset of the young season, and was a result of poor special teams play, dropped passes, an absence of a pass rush and an uninspired red-zone offense.
There were some bright spots, however. Newly acquired defensive back AJ Cruz ran two kickoff returns for touchdowns (one was called back), and showed a lot of promise at Jack Linebacker. Fullback Mykel Benson also showed why he earned All-Arena honors last season with 2 catches for 29 yards, and a 29 yard touchdown run, the longest run for a Rattler since 2008.
Cleveland (2-0) is once again starting the season hot. They have won their first two games, and lead the league in both scoring offense (130) and point differential (+44).
Unfortunately for Cleveland, the last time they were this hot, they ran into the Arizona Rattlers at ArenaBowl XXVII, where the Rattlers defeated the Gladiators by 40 points (72-32), the largest margin of victory in the history of the ArenaBowl. This happened in front of over 18,000 Cleveland fans.
Both teams will go into Saturday's game with retribution in mind, but only one team will earn it.
This will be the first time the Rattlers will face the Gladiators since Arizona's 72-32 victory at ArenaBowl XXVII. The 4 p.m. game can be watched online via ESPN3 or on the WatchESPN app.
