XFL - Game Thread - Week 1 Saturday

[CGI_Ram]

Anyone watching today?

XFL Football Games on TV Today (Saturday, Feb. 8)

After months of anticipation, the XFL will finally kick things off with its first two games on Saturday, Feb. 8. The relaunched version of the professional

athlonsports.com

XFL Football Games on TV Today (Saturday, Feb. 8)

After months of anticipation, the XFL will finally kick things off with its first two games on Saturday, Feb. 8. The relaunched version of the professional football league owned by Vince McMahon will have all eight teams in action this weekend.
The opening game pits the Seattle Dragons against the DC Defenders followed by the Los Angeles Wildcats matching up against the Houston Roughnecks. Plenty of questions surround the teams as they haven't been together very long, not to mention the quality of football that will be displayed in the XFL's first week of action.

So if you're wondering, "What football games are on today?" know this: There are two scheduled for today, Saturday, Feb. 8;

XFL Games on TV Today
Seattle Dragons at DC Defenders
2 p.m. ET on ABC – Audi Field in Washington, D.C.

The Dragons make the cross-country trek to our nation's capital to kick off the XFL season against the Defenders. Seattle head coach Jim Zorn has plenty of questions about his offense, starting with quarterback Brandon Silvers. On the other side, DC head coach Pep Hamilton is hoping to put his own stamp on an offense that has Cardale Jones at quarterback and a potentially potent running back duo in Donnel Pumphrey and Jhurell Pressley.

Los Angeles Wildcats at Houston Roughnecks
5 p.m. ET on FOX – TDECU Stadium (Houston)

The XFL will make its Texas debut when the Wildcats take on the Roughnecks in Houston in the second game of the season-opening doubleheader. Los Angeles has some uncertainty at quarterback entering this game due to an injury to expected starter Josh Johnson, while P.J. Walker beat out Connor Cook for the No. 1 spot on Houston's depth chart. With the questions under center, Wildcats head coach Winston Moss may have to lean more on his running game and call on his defensive background as the focal points of his game plan against June Jones' Roughnecks.

 

[CGI_Ram]

Seattle Dragons vs. DC Defenders Prediction and Preview (XFL Football)

The XFL will take the field on Saturday for the second edition of the league under the direction of Vince McMahon and Oliver Luck. One of the opening games on

athlonsports.com

Seattle Dragons vs. DC Defenders

The XFL will take the field on Saturday for the second edition of the league under the direction of Vince McMahon and Oliver Luck. One of the opening games on Saturday will have the Seattle Dragonshitting the road to the nation’s capital to take on the DC Defenders. Audi Field, the home of Major League Soccer's DC United, will host the XFL's kickoff game.

Seattle will be led by former Seahawks quarterback Jim Zorn at head coach who has a big challenge ahead of him as the oddsmakers in Vegas view the Dragons as the longest shot to win the XFL title. However, those long odds shouldn’t intimidate as he was the first starting quarterback for the Seahawks when they were an expansion team back in 1976. There are six guys on the Dragons' 52-man roster with Seahawk ties — wide receivers Kasen Williams and Keenan Reynolds, quarterback B.J. Daniels, cornerback Mohamed Seisay, tackle Isaiah Battle, and defensive tackle Tani Tupou.

Pep Hamilton is the head coach of the DC Defenders and he will have an aggressive offensive mentality that should be highly entertaining to watch. Former Ohio State Buckeye Cardale Jones will be the starting quarterback and his previous NFL experience should help him hit the ground running in the new XFL and see some early success. There is also the motivation for Jones to put together some quality tape as he looks to get another shot in the NFL. The defense has some familiar names to college football fans as Scooby Wright (Arizona) and A.J. Tarpley (Stanford) will lead a linebacking core that has the potential to cause havoc for the rest of the XFL.

Seattle at DC

Kickoff: Saturday, Feb. 8 at 2 p.m. ET
Where: Audi Field (Washington, D.C.)
TV: ABC
Spread: Defenders -7

Three Things to Watch

1. Dragons offense

Brandon Silvers has previous experience playing in the short-lived AAF, getting in a few games for the Memphis Express last spring. Silvers completed 64 percent of his passes while throwing for 799 yards, four touchdowns, and two interceptions in those contests. He also spent about a month with the New York Jets after the AAF ceased operations, and this experience will be needed as he leads Seattle's offense. Dragons offensive coordinator Mike Riley has a proven track record of developing quarterbacks from his time as the head coach at Oregon State so look for him to give Silvers a bit of a longer leash early on to see what he is made of. Seattle also has B.J. Daniels as an option at quarterback. Kenneth Farrow and Trey Williams will be counted on along with Ja’Quan Gardner to provide a consistent running game that will keep opposing defenses off balance. Wide receiver will be interesting to watch as Williams and Reynolds will be familiar faces to Seahawks fans. These guys will need to get separation and give Silvers the opportunity to hit on a couple of deep balls to put the Defenders secondary on their heels.

2. Offensive line play

This part of the game is going to be very interesting to watch across the XFL. If this league is going to have any sort of staying power, it will need every team's offensive line to at least provide adequate protection in order to keep the quarterbacks healthy. The Dragons used their first pick in the offensive line phase of October's draft on tackle Isaiah Battle, who bounced around with several NFL teams (never saw any regular-season game action), including the Seahawks in 2018. Battle and guard Cyril Richardson (appeared in 12 games for Buffalo in 2014) are expected to anchor the Dragons' offensive line. How quickly this group comes together collectively will likely determine how successful Riley's offense fares this season.

The Defenders are going to have a similar challenge as their offensive line will be taking their first snaps together as a unit so things like pre-snap penalties are something to watch. Neither offense wants to get behind the sticks early and a lot of pre-snap penalties could also bog this game down, something the XFL doesn't want to see in its first game.

3. DC’s running game

The best friend of a quarterback is a good running game and the Defenders are set in that area with the running back duo of Donnel Pumphrey and Jhurell Pressley. Pumphrey is the all-time leader in FBS history with 6,405 rushing yards in four seasons at San Diego State while Pressley impressed during his stint with AAF's Arizona Hotshots, leading the way with 431 rushing yards. was a big-time player at San Diego State as rushed for 6,405 yards and 62 touchdowns in his time with the Aztecs. It may take a couple of possessions for the running game to get in a rhythm for DC but if Hamilton and his coaching staff can stay patient, they should see some big plays on the ground in the second half.

Final Analysis

There are a lot of unknowns when you head into an initial game of a new league so this matchup will probably feature some twists and turns (along with some ugly-looking football at times), as both teams try to figure each other out. The home crowd along with Cardale Jones should be enough to propel DC past Seattle, as the Defenders have the advantage of not having to fly nearly 3,000 miles and across multiple time zones. Those intangibles along with Jones' experience will give Pep Hamilton win number one and give DC some early-season momentum.

Prediction: Defenders 29, Dragons 23

 

[CGI_Ram]

Los Angeles Wildcats vs. Houston Roughnecks Prediction and Preview (XFL Football)

We've finally made it to kickoff of the XFL's 2020 relaunch! In the nightcap on Saturday's schedule, we'll see the Houston Roughnecks host the Los Angeles

athlonsports.com

Los Angeles Wildcats vs. Houston Roughnecks

We've finally made it to kickoff of the XFL's 2020 relaunch! In the nightcap on Saturday's schedule, we'll see the Houston Roughneckshost the Los Angeles Wildcats in what could be an interesting matchup.

This will be the first XFL game ever to be played in Texas. The 2001 version of the XFL didn't have any Texas teams, but you can bet that the fans in Houston are excited about having another team to cheer for. But in Los Angeles, this is the second time that the XFL has set up shop in Southern California.

The champions of the 2001 XFL were the Los Angeles Xtreme. And the Wildcats would love to bring the 2020 XFL title home, especially now that L.A. is once again a thriving football market. But we're a long way from crowning a champion so let's just focus on Week 1 for now. It's a battle of two football-crazy cities who now have an additional team to cheer for.

Los Angeles at Houston

Kickoff: Saturday, Feb. 8 at 5 p.m. ET
Where: TDECU Stadium (Houston)
TV: FOX
Spread: Roughnecks -5.5

Three Things to Watch

1. Quarterbacks in the spotlight

The Roughnecks have announced this week that P.J. Walker will start under center for June Jones against Los Angeles. After throwing for over 10,000 yards and 70-plus touchdowns during his four seasons at Temple (2013-16), Walker spent some time on the Indianapolis Colts practice squad before the XFL came calling. This will be his first pass in a regular-season game since his college days, and it'll be interesting to see how he runs coach Jones' offense under the XFL's rules, which advocate for a fast pace of play. But Walker can't get himself lost in the moment, and he'll be facing a team which should be solid on defense.
The Wildcats have Josh Johnson listed as QB1 on the depth chart but he hasn't practiced this week due to a thigh injury according to the official injury report. Johnson was signed after the XFL Draft, and it was believed that he would be the starter after the Wildcats tradedLuis Perez to New York. Should Johnson be unable to go, then the Wildcats will have to turn to either Jalan McClendon or Chad Kanoff.
Kanoff was the player that the Guardians sent in exchange for Perez. He was a three-year starter at Princeton and bounced around a few NFL practice squads before joining the XFL. Kanoff is a California native, so getting the start would be a huge opportunity for him. McClendon threw for 715 yards and three touchdowns in nine games for Baylor in 2018. He played for Washington Redskins during the 2019 NFL preseason but didn't make the final roster. But Johnson is the most experienced out of all three Wildcat quarterbacks.

2. Offense vs. defense

We could be in for quite the chess match once these head coaches take the field against one another. Houston's June Jones is known for his high-scoring, fast-paced, wide-open offenses that can easily score 30 points any given week. L.A.'s Winston Moss is the only defensive-minded head coach currently in the XFL and has a strong defensive acumen. From 2007 to 2018, Moss was the assistant head coach and linebackers coach for the Green Bay Packers under Mike McCarthy. It was there that Moss worked with the likes of Clay Matthews, A.J. Hawk, B.J. Raji, and Charles Woodson, among others.

During Moss' time in Wisconsin, the Packers posted nine winning seasons, collected six NFC North division titles, won the 2010 NFC championship, and took home the Lombardi Trophy at Super Bowl XLV. Moss will employ an aggressive defense that focuses on pressuring the quarterback.

3. It just may come down to one or two defensive stops

Houston will need to show up on defense if they want to win this game. To this end, coach Jones hired veteran defensive coordinator Ted Cottrell, whose extensive background covers nearly 50 years of experience at the collegiate level as well as the NFL, USFL, UFL, and AAF. While we all know that Moss will have his defense prepared, you can't count out his offense either as play-calling guru Norm Chow is his offensive coordinator. Like Cottrell, Chow also possesses 40-plus years of play-calling experience. And this will be the third time that Chow will call the plays for a Southern California team.

Chow is best remembered for his days as the offensive coordinator for the USC Trojans (won two national championships and three straight Pac-12 titles from 2001-04) and the UCLA Bruins (2008-10). While Chow isn't exactly a spread offense guy, his West Coast/pro-style hybrid playbook is known for a combination of both big and quick-strike plays that can wear defenses down.

Final Analysis

While I don't expect this to be a huge high-scoring affair, it will certainly be a back and forth matchup that will come down to the wire. But I think that in the end Los Angeles does just enough on defense to take home a close win on the road.

Prediction: Wildcats 28, Roughnecks 25

 

[CGI_Ram]

ROD SportsBook:

2020 Week 1 Seattle Dragons @ DC Defenders

Sat, Feb 8 2020, 14:00 EST, ABC

ramsondemand.com

2020 Week 1 Los Angeles Wildcats @ Houston Roughnecks

Sat, Feb 8 2020, 17:00 EST, FOX

ramsondemand.com

 

[den-the-coach]

St. Louis BattleHawks vs. Dallas Renegades Prediction and Preview (XFL Football)

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By Scott Whittum, 2/7/20, 5:00 PM EST

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BattleHawks and Renegades wrap up Week 1 of XFL action

The Dallas Renegades head into the 2020 XFL season as one of the favorites to win it all, and their road to a championship will begin on Sunday against the St. Louis BattleHawks. Globe Life Park will be the home field for the Renegades, as it begins its life as the former stadium of the Texas Rangers.

Bob Stoops will be back on the sidelines as the head coach of the Renegades. Stoops was the longtime coach of the Oklahoma Sooners had a tremendous level of success during his 18-year stint in Norman, where he won 10 Big 12 titles and a national championship. Stoops stepped down prior to the 2017 season to spend more time with his family and to recharge the coaching batteries, so to speak. The setup of the XFL with a 10-game season — in addition to not having to recruit players 24/7 like you have to in college football — should fit his situation like a glove.

It will be a mini University of Oklahoma coaching staff reunion on Sunday for BattleHawks head coach Jonathan Hayes and offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Chuck Long. Hayes and Long both coached under Stoops at Oklahoma. Hayes was the tight ends coach and special teams coordinator for Stoops from 1999-2002 before heading off to the NFL to coach for 16 years. Long was the offensive coordinator for the Sooners when they won the 2000 BCS National Championship and should be able to help develop dual-threat quarterback Jordan Ta'amu, who will be the starter this week for the BattleHawks.

St. Louis at Dallas

Kickoff: Sunday, Feb. 9 at 5 p.m. ET
Where: Globe Life Park (Arlington, Texas)
TV: ESPN
Spread: Renegades -9.5

Three Things to Watch

1. Dallas offense
Landry Jones is the starting quarterback for the Renegades, although a knee injury suffered in training camp in January has put his availability on Sunday into question. Jones has had his share of experience in the NFL with most of his success coming in Pittsburgh. He is very familiar with Bob Stoops and his offensive mindset after playing four years under his tutelage at Oklahoma. Running back should be another position of strength for Dallas, as Cameron Artis-Payne and Lance Dunbar lead a pretty deep group. Their ability to wear down the St. Louis defense will be crucial in this season-opening contest. Former Sooners receivers Jeff Badet and Jazz Ferguson will also bring more continuity to the offense. Badet can run a 4.27 40-yard dash, which should set him up nicely to stretch opposing defenses all year long. Ferguson has the height (6-5) and speed that will cause matchup problems for opposing defensive backs too. His development is going to be an underrated key to success for the Renegades passing attack this season.

2. St. Louis secondary
The BattleHawks look to be well-rounded defensive football. Jonathan Hayes and his staff did a really good job of prioritizing the defensive line and secondary when putting this group together. This week, the secondary will be under the gun against the Air Raid offense of Dallas offensive coordinator Hal Mumme. Robert Nelson and Kenny Robinson will need to have huge games at cornerback and safety, respectively; Nelson has the ability to play at an NFL-caliber level and has previous spring football experience from playing for the Arizona Hotshots in the AAF. Robinson will be using this opportunity to create some impressive game tape since he is eligible to be selected in the 2020 NFL draft after leaving West Virginia at the end of last season. This will be a very unique situation with Robinson, and if he can play well and the XFL has lasting power, it will be interesting to see if other college athletes go this same route.

3. Dallas defense
The ability to play sound, disciplined football will be crucial for the Renegades defense this week because they will have to find a way to keep Jordan Ta’amu in the pocket. Dallas’s defense will face a tough test to play consistently for four quarters since their Air Raid offense can put their defense in harm’s way if they score too quickly or have too many three-and-outs. Hau'oli Kikaha had 19 sacks during his final year at the University of Washington. That performance led the Saints to select him in the second round of the 2015 NFL Draft. When Kikaha is completely healthy, he can cause plenty of headaches for opposing offenses. Gelen Robinson will be expected to be a disruptive force at defensive tackle, which will set the tone for the rest of the defensive line to go to work against opposing quarterbacks. The secondary has plenty of experience; Josh Hawkins has three NFL starts in 32 games across three seasons. His experience and speed should be very valuable assets for the Dallas secondary. Josh Thornton is another cornerback who has spent time in multiple NFL camps and has pretty good speed, which should fit help him a lot this week against the St. Louis passing attack.

Stoops was known as "Big Game Bob" back at Oklahoma and should have his guys ready to go in Week 1 to play a pretty crisp, clean game. There won't be a ton of mystery as to what these two teams are going to try to do schematically since each staff is going to have a strong read on the other's primary tendencies. Home-field advantage should be the difference, as the Renegades will find a way to execute a couple of two- or three-point PATs to pick up their first win of the season.

Prediction: Renegades 30, BattleHawks 22

St. Louis BattleHawks vs. Dallas Renegades Prediction and Preview (XFL Football)

The Dallas Renegades head into the 2020 XFL season as one of the favorites to win it all, and their road to a championship will begin on Sunday against the St.

athlonsports.com

 

[bubbaramfan]

I'll watch just because I love football. Isaih Battle of the Dragons was at Rams TC. Kid had good feet but very raw. Lacked technique.

I'm wondering if an XFL player stands out, how quickly will NFL teams try and snap them up? Especially OLinemen. I expect they will have to wait til the XFL season is over.

 

[den-the-coach]

I made a commitment when the teams were announced several weeks ago along with @LoyalRam to root for the St. Louis BattleHawks and I will honor that commitment. Seems of the teams around the league under Head Coach Jonathan Hayes St. Louis has focused on defense and I look for them to wrap up Hal Mumme's offense as IMO, Landry Jones stinks and BattleHawk signal caller Jordan Ta'amu offers a dual threat and I look forward to the BattleHawks upending the overrated Bob Stoops and sending a message to the XFL that defense is going to win it's first championship even though this is the second stint of the XFL.

 

[OldSchool]

I'll have it on the TV.

 

[den-the-coach]

Hawks at the bottom
According to BetOnline, the Tampa Bay Vipers open the season as XFL favorites as the over-under betting line for the number of games they win this season is 7½.

The BattleHawks and Seattle Dragons are at the bottom, predicted with he over-under at 3½ games. Dallas and Houston are at six games each, followed by the DC Defenders (5½), LA Wildcats (four) and New York Guardians (four).

“Like coach said, opinions don’t matter,” quarterback Ta’Amu said. “All we can control is going out and playing to our abilities and our standards.”

Hayes said he did not see the line. And that he didn’t care about it.
“First of all, how did they determine it?” the coach asked. “I have no idea who they surveyed; I can’t worry myself about those things. I have too much other stuff to concern myself with. That’s been our focus since we started and that will continue to be our focus throughout the season.”
LOCAL LINE
The BattleHawks’ roster has a definite St. Louis flavor, including a pair of offensive linemen from Florissant — Brian Folkerts (Washburn) and Brian Wallace (Arkansas).

Folkerts, the starter at center, is a Hazelwood Central High grad and a veteran of 28 NFL games, including a pair with the St. Louis Rams in 2015. Wallace, a right tackle from CBC, was acquired in a late January trade with the New York Guardians.
“When I first got the call, I thought I was being cut; my heart just dropped,” Wallace recalled. “At first, I was kind of sad because I’d gotten to know some of the guys in New York. But then, I was pretty excited about going back home. Here, I feel there’s been more focus on technique and that’ll help make me a better all-around player.”

BattleHawks 'need to be road warriors' before making St. Louis debut

XFL club kicks off its season Sunday in Dallas and plays the following weekend in Houston before game at the Dome on Feb. 23.

www.stltoday.com

 

[den-the-coach]

Ahhh....The St. Louis Post-Dispatch brings back some great memories, getting my desktop computer back in 1995 and logging into the Post-Dispatch message board and stuff...Reading every word of Barry Waller A.K.A., Ramhog as the team moved to St. Louis...Being highly upset with the hiring of Richie (no grown man should be called Richie) Brooks, his coordinators Jack Reilly (Offense) & Willie Shaw (Defense) and thinking Rams had no chance in hell in winning and shocked as they began the season 5-1 only to be crushed by the 49ers the following week 44-10.

Those were the days my friend
We thought they'd never end
We'd sing and dance forever and a day
We'd live the life we choose
We'd fight and never lose
For we were young and sure to have our way

 

[den-the-coach]

Well, I'm already a seasoned fan of the BattleHawks and ready to complain...You look around the league and Jonathan Hayes is the most underwhelming Head Coach hire....Bob Stoops in Dallas, June Jones in Houston and even Pep Hamilton in DC, however, I feel much better about Hayes then Kevin Gilbride in New York, Jim Zorn in Seattle and Marc Trestman in Tampa, although Trestman won in Canada so maybe outside of the NFL, he does well.

Winston Moss in Los Angeles will be interesting as for years, he was always the Assistant Coach interviewed because of the Rooney Rule, but never was close to being hired.

 

[Young Ram]

Even though their colors are hideous, gotta root for the home team. Go Wildcats!

 

[Q729]

The crowd seems to be having fun so far. 10 more weeks of football sounds good to me. Hope it lasts.

 

[IowaRam]

Even though their colors are hideous, gotta root for the home team. Go Wildcats!

I don't mind their colors all so much , but that helmet logo leaves a little to be desired

 

[Q729]

Hopefully if this thing takes off they can sink more money into the logos and unis. lol.

 

[Mister Sin]

I'll be watching the Battlehawks for sure. May even try to get out to a game

 

[Kevin]

Love the live tv interviews with players during the game. Just heard the f bomb!

 

[Q729]

Love the live tv interviews with players during the game. Just heard the f bomb!

I could've sworn they were accidentally broadcasting the DC playcall over the PA earlier in the game.