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SALT LAKE CITY — Thirty-four points.

That’s the total margin of difference that besets the Salt Lake Stallions in their five losses in their inaugural season.

One of the most snakebit teams in the first-year Alliance of American Football, the Stallions (2-5) are a total of 34 points away from rating as well as league-leading Orlando Apollos (6-1), to say the least.

Take away a 16-point loss at Arizona in the opening week of the season and Salt Lake’s losses have come by an average of 4.5 points.

A two-point conversion here. A missed field goal there.

One bad connection, or faulty snap, or a tackle that pulled to hard to one side and didn’t allow a running back to gain a first down. It can be the difference in a close win — or another loss, like Salt Lake has experienced in losing three of its last four games.

That’s how close the Stallions are, if not to an unbeaten season, to having a better shot at the league’s inaugural four-team playoff.

“It’s the tiny, tiny details,” Salt Lake wide receiver Brian Tyms said. “A lot of people think that football is just putting on pads and going to play. But you’ve got to focus on the tiny details.

“It’s something that you really have to be in the meeting room to understand.”

Salt Lake Stallions quarterback Josh Woodrum (6) hands the ball off to running back Joel Bouagnon, right, during the first half of an AAF football game against the Orlando Apollos, Saturday, March 2, 2019, at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City. (Photo: Kim Raff, AP)

Study the film, don’t just watch it; that’s how defensive coordinator Ronnie Lee tells it to his players.

“Keep rowing the boat until you hit land. Just keep going,” Lee said. “You have to decide the outcome; don’t wait for someone else.

“We’re just going to keep going. But at the end of the game, we’ve got to finish.”

But for the Stallions, the time for learning may be over. They need results — wins, specifically — with only three games left in the regular season, beginning Saturday against the San Diego Fleet (6 p.m. MT, NFL Network).

“The thing is that there is nothing more than we can control,” Salt Lake quarterback Josh Woodrum said. “We have to go 5-5 if we want any sort of chance of making the playoffs, and hope things fall out with the other teams. That’s what we are focused on right now — get this first one, then get the second one, and the third one.”

The Fleet (3-4) are an interesting starting point, too.

Salt Lake wants to win out. But the Stallions are especially motivated to beat the Fleet — if for no other reason than the way they lost in San Diego.

Woodrum threw for 380 yards and a touchdown in that game, connecting with tight end Nick Truesdell on a 6-yard strike with 57 seconds left that gave the visitors a one-point lead at SDCCU Stadium in San Diego.

That was before the Fleet finished the game with a 44-yard field goal from Danny Hageman that helped San Diego walk off with a 27-25 win as time expired.

“We did it to ourselves. We waited too long,” said Tyms, whose team had five turnovers in the loss. “I learned that we have to jump down on a team immediately and can’t just sit there. But the guys are getting better every week. The guys who didn’t know then know now — including myself.

“It’s going to be a good game.”

The Stallions feel like they’ve let a lot of games get away. But that one stands out as much or more than any other road trip.

“We had that game won,” Woodrum said. “But we scored with 52 seconds left, and we really felt like even though we played so bad — we had five turnovers — we clawed our way back into it and had a chance to try to steal.

“We’re definitely excited. We’re excited for any game.”