The fourth week of the 2023 season is in the books. Clear-cut wins and thrilling fourth-quarter endings were all part of Week 4. But what are the major takeaways after another week of the regular season is behind us?

Number of injuries to top players in Week 4

Week 4 in the European League of Football was great in many ways. But where you play American football, there are also injuries. Over this weekend in particular, a lot of star-caliber players suffered major blows to their health. The presumably best team in Rhein Fire lost linebacker Martin Pinter for the rest of the season due to an Achilles injury. Their American wide receiver Nathaniel Robitaille also got injured. But the severity of his injury is not yet known.

Berlin Thunder offensive lineman Felix Lepper also suffered a major injury to the head and neck area which required medical staff to transport him off the field. The Thunder also played the majority of the game without their starting quarterback Donovan Isom who got injured in the first quarter. Backup quarterback Paul Stubbe took over for the German franchise for the rest of the game.

The Tirol Raiders lost already injured running back Sandro Platzgummer for the rest of their game due to a gruesome-looking knee injury. His status for the reminder of the season has yet to be determined by the team. In the same game, Surge defensive lineman Ville Valasti tore his biceps tendon and is forced to miss the rest of the 2023 season.

All roster moves are made official on Thursdays on the European League of Football website!

Stuttgart Surge enter new era  

The Stuttgart Surge are 3-0 and have now won more games in 2023 than in 2021 and 2022 combined (2). After their win over the 3-1 Tirol Raiders, head coach Jordan Neuman put his excitement into words. “This is a new era. We have arrived in this league!”

Besides having won more games in 2023 than in the last two years combined, the Surge home game against the Raiders also proved to be the lowest scoring game in European League of Football history. With a final score of 6 – 3, there was no game since 2021 with less points scored.  

Hamburg Sea Devils finally feed WR Malik Stanley

The Hamburg Sea Devils finally did what they are supposed to do which is getting American wide receiver Malik Stanly the ball over and over again. Against the Thunder in Week 4, Stanley totaled nine catches for 116 yards and four receiving touchdowns. Prior to this game, Stanley averaged nine targets and 0.33 touchdowns per game

The Sea Devils also made use of clear mismatches as Stanley was often left alone with only one defender covering him in the red zone. This is what the Hanseatic franchise has to do more of as there is nothing to little defenses can do to stop the 190cm tall and 102kg wide receiver made to win 50/50 balls. 

New franchises with rough start in 2023

A total of six franchises joined the European League of Football for the 2023 season. The Munich Ravens, Helvetic Guards, Paris Musketeers, Fehérvár Enthroners, Prague Lions, and the Milano Seamen are now all part of the best American football league in Europe. But being new in such a competitive league proves to be tough. All six of the new franchises combine for only four wins out of 22 games over the first four weeks of the regular season. Only the Munich Ravens managed to have positive record (2-1) after their first three games. It will be interesting to see how the new franchises develop over the course of the season. But if nothing else, this proves that playing in the European League of Football is no walk in the park.