XFL - Game Day Thread - Week 3 Sunday

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CGI_Ram

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XFL - Week 3

SATURDAY
Sat., Feb. 22 – Houston Roughnecks at Tampa Bay Vipers, 2 p.m. ET (ABC)

Sat., Feb. 22 – Dallas Renegades at Seattle Dragons, 5 p.m. ET (FOX)

SUNDAY
Sun., Feb. 23 – New York Guardians at St. Louis BattleHawks, 3 p.m. ET (ESPN)

Sun., Feb. 23 – DC Defenders at Los Angeles Wildcats, 6 p.m. ET (FS1)
 

CGI_Ram

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New York Guardians vs. St. Louis BattleHawks

Week 3 of the 2020 XFL season will continue on Sunday with one of the more anticipated games of the season. The St. Louis BattleHawks (1-1) will finally make their home debut against the New York Guardians (1-1), who are playing their second straight road game.

Both teams are coming off losses from last week. The BattleHawks fell short against Houston last week despite outscoring the Roughnecks 18-7 in the second half. As for the Guardians, they fell flat in DC last week and suffered a 27-0 shutout.

Both teams need a win in order to keep pace with the undefeated Defenders (2-0) in the XFL East standings.

New York at St. Louis

Kickoff: Sunday, Feb. 23 at 3 p.m. ET
Where: The Dome at America's Center (St. Louis, Mo.)
TV: ESPN
Spread: Battlehawks -10

Three Things to Watch

1. Dome Sweet Dome

For the first time since 2015, a professional football game will be played at the Dome in downtown St. Louis. And while this will be the home debut for the BattleHawks, the St. Louis fans have already taken notice of the team. The BattleHawks' opener at Dallas drew a local television rating of 7.4, while last week's close call in Houston drew a 6.0. But despite the decrease from Week 1 to Week 2, the BattleHawks drew a higher rating than the NHL's St. Louis Blues did in the same time slot last Sunday. The fans are certainly glad to have football back under the Arch.

And it'll be interesting to see what attendance looks like at the Dome come Sunday. The official capacity of the Dome at America's Center is 66,965. But only the first level of seating will be made available for BattleHawks games. Reports out of St. Louis this week say that those seats have already sold out and that the operators of the dome are considering whether or not to open more seats. If that first level is indeed sold out, then it would give the league a nice boost.

2. The Jordan Ta'amu show

The former Ole Miss signal-caller has already established himself as one of the XFL's top players over these last two weeks. He leads the XFL in pass completions (50), ranks second in passing yards (493), is tied for second in touchdown passes (4), and leads all QB's in both rushing yards (109) and total yards (602). Ta'amu has displayed poise, consistency, efficiency, accuracy, mobility, arm strength, and determination. Those are all qualities that the NFL looks for in quarterbacks.

In the season-opening win at Dallas, Ta'amu's efficiency kept the Renegades offense on the bench for most of the game, especially in the second half. In last week's loss at Houston, Ta'amu's never-say-die attitude almost led the BattleHawks to a comeback victory. The Guardians will have their hands full trying to defend Ta'amu. And backing him up will be a defense that has registered five sacks and 11 tackles for a loss, while holding their opponents to just seven second-half points.

3. Which version of the Guardians will we see?

That's the burning question, as we've seen two different versions of Kevin Gilbride's team after two weeks. In their home opener two weeks ago, the Guardians made short work of the Tampa Bay Vipers by holding them to just a field goal. But last week in DC, the Defenders held the Guardians scoreless and had their way with them from start to finish. Quarterback Matt McGloin (23-of-48, 224 yards, 1 touchdown, 2 interceptions) did just enough to win in Week 1 but was benched during Week 2. New York needs to find an identity and fast if they want to get back into the win column.

Final Analysis

Even if the Guardians can put it together for Sunday, the BattleHawks have too much talent to contend with. And with a rowdy St. Louis crowd backing them up, the BattleHawks will send the fans home happy as they restore pro football in the Gateway to the West.

Prediction: BattleHawks 28, Guardians 17
 

CGI_Ram

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DC Defenders vs. Los Angeles Wildcats

It's been a heck of a start for the DC Defenders as they head out west to take on the reeling Los Angeles Wildcats at Dignity Health Sports Park on Sunday. The undefeated Defenders (2-0) will be looking to separate themselves from the rest of the XFL East. Meanwhile, the Wildcats (0-2) simply need a win to gain some momentum and salvage their season.

DC took it to the New York Guardians in a 27-0 blowout win last Saturday afternoon. Cardale Jones continued to take care of business at quarterback, completing 23 of 37 attempts for 276 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception. The offensive line was able to help generate enough space for the Defenders to rush for 108 tough yards, while the defense played lights out and caused New York quarterback Matt McGloin to have a halftime meltdown when interviewed by ESPN's Dianna Russini. Head coach Pep Hamilton has this DC team playing very well after two games. It will be interesting to see how the Defenders respond during this first road trip of the season.

Los Angeles showed that the decision to fire defensive coordinator Pepper Johnson was right after three quarters when the Wildcats held Dallas to three points. However, football is a 60-minute game, and the defense didn’t finish the job in a 25-18 loss on Sunday. Quarterback Josh Johnson showed some rust but did show flashes of potential as well in the fourth quarter. Turnovers ended up costing the Wildcats dearly — they were minus two in that department. If Los Angeles can build off of the good things, they did in the second half, they will have a chance to recover from the 0-2 start.

DC at Los Angeles

Kickoff: Sunday, Feb. 23 at 6 p.m. ET
Where: Dignity Health Sports Park (Carson, Calif.)
TV: FS1
Spread: Defenders -9

Three Things to Watch

1. Cardale Jones

Jones is right on the heels of Houston quarterback P.J. Walker in the MVP race after two games. The ability to avoid the catastrophic turnover, which is critical for quarterbacks at any level has been a huge plus. Also, Jones has done a good job of operating Pep Hamilton’s offensive scheme, which should help his future NFL aspirations. Looking ahead to Sunday, it will be up to Jones to hit the ground running and connect on some high percentage passes right away. Once the offense gets into a rhythm, look for Jones to take some deep shots down the field. Rashad Ross, DeAndre Thompkins, and Eli Rogers are the primary wide receiver targets for Jones. This trio of receivers caught 15 passes for 246 yards and a touchdown last week against New York. Bottom line, Jones does not lack for quality offensive skill players to spread the ball around to, which makes them very tough to stop.

2. Los Angeles offensive balance

Josh Johnson should play better this week after having another full week of practice with the starting unit. The best offensive weapon for Johnson right now is wide receiver Nelson Spruce, the XFL's leading pass catcher. In the loss to the Renegades, Spruce caught six passes for 89 yards and two touchdowns to build off of an outstanding first game in Houston where he caught 11 passes for 103 yards. Running the football with consistency has been an issue for the Wildcats — they are only averaging 72.5 rushing yards per game on the year. The offensive line needs to find a way to hold their own against the DC defensive front and open a few holes for Elijah Hood. The benefit of an effective running game this week will be the chance to play keep away from Cardale Jones and limit the time on the field for their defense.

3. Controlling the line of scrimmage

DC has done a nice job after two weeks of winning the all-important battle of the line of scrimmage. The Defenders had the New York offense out of sync and unable to sustain drives all afternoon long. Jonathan Celestin led DC with four combined tackles and one tackle for a loss. Anthony Johnson had 1.5 sacks and two tackles for a loss, fired up after Los Angeles traded him to the Defenders prior to last Saturday’s game. Johnson should have plenty of motivation this week against his former team and he'll have plenty of knowledge about the Wildcats offensive scheme. Look for defensive coordinator Louie Cioffi to turn Johnson and the rest of the defensive line loose this week to put Los Angeles under siege with different blitzes all afternoon long.

Final Analysis

Playing on the road is always a bit of a challenge at any level of football. DC will need to survive that early wave of energy from Los Angeles and their crowd. Cardale Jones is the best quarterback in this matchup, and the Defenders have better personnel on both sides of the ball. In the end, DC will methodically wear down the Wildcats in the second half and pull away for a two-score victory and improve to 3-0 on the year.

Prediction: Defenders 27, Wildcats 15
 

CGI_Ram

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ROD SportsBook:



For the BattleHawk fans:

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CGI_Ram

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XFL Salaries: How Much Money Do Players Make Compared to NFL Contracts?

The majority of XFL players’ salaries are not close to the minimum NFL contract with a few exceptions. Pro Football Talk reported the average XFL salary is $55,000, much less than last season’s minimum NFL salary of $495,000.

Prior to the season, XFL commissioner Oliver Luck noted that the top players in the league would make $250,000 while the head coaches are paid an estimated $500,000. Yahoo Sports reported that the XFL quarterbacks are making an estimated $500,000.

“Each roster will have roughly 25 people on the football side and 25 people on the business side,” Luck noted, per XFL Newsroom. “Salary for coaches will be around $500,000 and salary for the top players around $250,000. Players will also be drug tested for performance-enhancing substances.”

XFL Players Are Paid a Base Salary, Roster Bonus & Another Bonus for Each Win

XFL contracts are structured so players can earn money in three primary ways: base salary, active roster bonus and a bonus for wins. Players are guaranteed money with their base salary but can earn bonuses for wins as well as being part of the active roster each week. Yahoo Sports detailed the XFL’s salary structure for the average player which centers around a base pay of $2,080 every two weeks.

Base pay? $2,080 every two weeks, or $27,040.

Players will earn an additional $1,685 for each game they’re active – each of the league’s eight teams will have 52-player roster, but only 46 will be active for games – meaning a starter will make another $16,850.

And players also get bonuses for a win, $2,222 per win.

So if a player is a starter and is on a team that goes .500 over the 10-game regular season, he’ll earn $55,000.


The Highest-Paid NFL Player Earns $35 Million Compared to $250,000 to $500,000 for the Top XFL Player

As expected, the highest-paid XFL player is not even close to the top earners in the NFL. Russell Wilson was the highest-paid NFL player in 2019 with a $35 million salary, and the league had six players making at least $30 million last season, per NFL.com. By comparison, the highest-paid XFL player makes between $250,000 to $500,000 depending on the accuracy of the current estimates. Cardale Jones and other starting XFL quarterbacks are likely the only players in the league making this top-tiered money.

The XFL has shied away from the developmental league label, something the AAF leaned into but failed to make it through its inaugural season. That said, for many of the XFL players the league is an opportunity to either get back into the NFL, or get their first opportunity to make it onto one of the 32 teams’ rosters. XFL players are not permitted to sign with a team during the season, but every contract allows for them to join an NFL team after the championship game.

“Once you’re under contract with the XFL, you’re under contract, regardless of position,” Luck explained to Tampa Bay Times. “We’re not trying to be a development league for the NFL. That’s not our raison d’être. Having said that, I hope that every one of the Vipers players has a chance to go to the NFL after our season because that means we’ve done our job in terms of playing good football. Bust your butt, play hard, have a chance to get great game tape and you’ll get a shot in the NFL. We are a league of opportunity.”
 

den-the-coach

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Let’s go La-Guardians

Well, both of those teams are going down because you can't stop the BattleHawks, you can only hope to contain them. The LA Wildcats stink, they might just be worse than the Tampa Bay Vipers....Wildcats Coach Winston Moss wanted to be a Head Coach in the worst way and he has.
 

CGI_Ram

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I am looking forward to the BattleHawks game. Starts shortly.

I even made a pot of chili.
 

CGI_Ram

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BOOM!
 

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Wish the crowd would shut up so I can hear the play calls!