The XFL has had another successful week of football, and see to only improve this week. One team will find their first win this weekend, while one of the three best teams will be knocked down a peg. The games are exciting and packed with action, and it has the potential to be the best week of the season.
Roughnecks Travel to Sea Dragons
The Houston Roughnecks are making long trip up to Seattle where they take on the Sea Dragons. This is a great matchup, as the Roughnecks offense had the most touchdowns scored last week while the Sea Dragons gave up zero touchdowns on defense.
The Sea Dragons may have dominated on defense last week, but they are no slackers on offense. Both their passing and rushing game are incredible, with Ben DiNucci at quarterback and Morgan Ellison in the backfield. DiNucci leads the league in passing yards, throwing for 1119 yards and 8 touchdowns on 68.9% efficiency. He also has a 2:1 touchdown to interception ratio, a decent mark for the position. Ellison has 239 yards on the ground with a touchdown, with 5.2 yards per carry.
The Roughnecks are also incredible on offense, with quarterback Brandon Silvers leading the charge. His 962 yards is second in the league behind DiNucci. He leads the XFL in passing touchdowns, the only player with double digits at ten. The rushing game is much less prominent, but starter Max Borghi tied for second in the league in rushing touchdowns with 2.
Defenders Match Up With Battlehawks
In a battle between two giants, the undefeated Defenders travel to St. Louis to take on the Battlehawks. Although the Defenders are very strong competition, the Battlehawks are very consistent and have the best home environment in the XFL.
The Defenders are the best rushing team in the league, and it is not close. They have rushed for 622 yards and 7 touchdowns, 244 yards more than the next best team. They also have 7 rushing touchdowns which also tops the league. However, the Battlehawks are tremendous at passing and are serviceable on the ground. AJ McCarron is third in passing yards with 850 and a league-second 9 passing touchdowns.
What makes the Defenders and Battlehawks so dominant is their defenses. The Battlehawks are second in the league in total tackles with 187 and first in forced fumbles with 7. The Defenders are second in the league in sacks with 12, and tied for first in interceptions and pick-sixes with 5 and 2 respectively.
Guardians Battle Vipers
This game between the Orlando Guardians and Las Vegas Vipers will absolutely shake up the standings. Both teams are winless on the season, sitting at 0-4. The two teams get a bad shake for their records despite the fact that both teams are full of talent.
The quarterback room of Luis Perez and Brett Hundley one of the best in the league, with both being serviceable starters when given the opportunity. The team has a total of 873 passing yards with 7 touchdowns and 3 interceptions, with the yard mark being the third best in the league.
Guardians quarterback Paxton Lynch has also played well, going for 690 yards and 4 touchdowns. He ranks 4th of all quarterbacks in passing yards, a respectable number. Although both offenses play well at times, their defenses is what holds them back. Both teams rank in the bottom half of the league in interceptions, and do not rank in the top 3 in any defensive category.
Renegades Face Brahmas
In a defensive battle, the Renegades will take their talent to San Antonio to battle the Brahmas. What makes this game so unique is the lack of offensive prowess, as both teams are ranked at the absolute bottom in passing yards and in the bottom half of the league in rushing. The only redeeming quality either team has on offense is the Brahmas having the most amount of one-point conversions in the league with 4.
Both teams best qualities are their defenses. The Brahmas rank third in total tackles with 170, and are third in sacks with 10. The Renegades also tie for first in interception return touchdowns with two, only one of two teams to score that way this season. This should be a low scoring battle, but one worth watching.
