If anybody thought week one of the XFL was exciting to watch, there was even more action on the field in week two. Speaking of fields, did anyone see the playing surface and how muddy it was at Cashman field during the DC Defenders vs. Vegas Vipers game on Saturday?
Yuck. It was rainy, muddy, and gross on that field and I felt really bad for the players who had to endure that toxic environment. To make matters even worse, the stadium was built in 1947 and it’s so old that the last NFL game played at Cashman field was back when the Oakland Raiders played the Houston Oilers in 1964.
Luckily, Lumen field in Seattle, Washington wasn’t as muddy, as my first former NFL player you may have remembered played their.
Thursday, Feb 23, 2023
St. Louis BattleHawks-20 @ Seattle Sea Dragons-18
BattleHawks Wide Receiver Austin Proehl had a so-so day catching the ball for the BattleHawks. The former seventh-round draft pick in the 2018 NFL draft by the Buffalo Bills only had 37-yards receiving on four receptions and did not have a touchdown. Last week, he had a better outing where he had 49-yards on four receptions and a game winning TD against a Hines Ward coached San Antonio Brahmas.
Although he was a key factor in the BattleHawks game winning drive, he also reeled in a nine-yard catch for a huge first down with :05 remaining in the game. It then set up a field goal as time expired on the next play.
His father (Ricky) is also a former NFL player who coaches Austin and the other Wide Receivers on the team as the teams Wide Receivers Coach. He played for the St. Louis Rams with Kurt Warner as his QB.
Saturday, Feb 25, 2023
D. C. Defenders-18 @ Vegas Vipers- 6
Vipers Quarterback Brett Hundley played in his first professional football game since 2019. The former fifth- round pick of the Green Bay Packers in the 2015 NFL draft started nine games in 2017 for the Packers replacing Aaron Rodgers who had a collarbone injury.
He split time with fellow Vipers quarterback Luis Perez and played bad when his name was called. Hundley was only 11-18 for 98-yards and no touchdowns. He has a lot of work to do if he wants to be respected as a pro football player again and have a NFL team call him for another opportunity.
On the opposite side of the ball, Line Backer Vic Beasley played pretty well for the Vipers on defense. The former first-round draft pick had 3 total tackles and a fumble recovery that set up a field goal with :06 left in the first half. Unfortunately, the kick was no good.
The Vipers defense kept the team in the game, but unfortunately they could not stop D’Eriq King and the Defenders running game in the second half. Also, the offense only had one touchdown drive which was almost three-minutes into the game.
For the Defenders, Cornerback Michael Joseph looked to repeat the success of his spectacular week 1 debut. Against Ben DiNucci and the Seattle Sea Dragons, the former Chicago Bear had two-picks and one he returned for a touchdown where he did a flip in the end zone for his celebration.
This week, he could only muster three total tackles and no picks in the game against the Vegas Vipers, but congratulations goes out to Joseph for being the lone player who intercepted two passes last week.
Michael Joseph flips into end zone after D.C. pick-six https://t.co/LeyAkosE92
— Jamie Malloy, The Unbiased Journalist (@djdawgtagz) February 27, 2023
Sunday, Feb 26, 2023
San Antonio Brahmas- 30 @ Orlando Guardians- 12
Guardians Wide Receiver Cody Latimer has been the lone bright spot of an otherwise dismal 0-2 start to the season for head coach Terrell Buckley. The former New York Giants wide receiver has caught two touchdown passes in two games played so far and the Guardians have only averaged 24-points in those two blowout defeats.
— sports (@ilikesportsvids) February 26, 2023
The season has started out so bad that Coach Buckley couldn’t think of one positive development in the loss yesterday to San Antonio. Wait until he gets a hold of his team today.
Stand-Out’s
Here are my picks for the Offensive and Defensive Stand Outs:
Offense
A.J. McCarron (QB)- St. Louis BattleHawks
Once again, number 10 for the St. Louis BattleHawks channels his NFL experience as a veteran and leads another come from behind win in week two. In week one, the former 2-time national champion at Alabama came back from a 15-3 deficit on the road and won 18-15 over Hines Ward’s coached San Antonio Brahmas. He capped the comeback off with a game winning td pass to wide receiver Austin Proehl.
This week, McCarron and Proehl led another comeback win at the Seattle Sea Dragons led by Ben DiNucci. On 3rd down and 3 from the Seattle 25-yard line McCarron hit Proehl for nine-yards and a huge first down setting up a game winning 44- yard field goal with :05 remaining in the game. Then, the kick was good as McCarron once again channeled his inner Tom Brady and was clutch in the fourth-quarter with the game on-the-line.
McCarron and his team have shown to be one of the most exciting teams to watch in the league so far. Let’s see what McCarron brings next week?
Defense
Houston Roughnecks’ Defense
My choice this week has to be the Houston Roughnecks’ Defense. Head Coach Wade Phillips is arguably one of the best defensive minds in professional football. It’s no secret that because he is their head coach, that the Roughnecks have one of the leagues best and nastiest defenses in the XFL.
After sacking the Orlando Guardians in week 1, Houston’s defense pass rushed the living poop out of Renegades starting quarterback Drew Plitt in week 2. Plitt was held to only 120-yards and was 15-of-30 throwing the pigskin. Their run defense one upped their tenacious pass rush and held Arlington’s running game to only 43-yards on the ground on 19-rushes.
With McCarron and the Houston Roughneck’s entertaining us this week in the XFL, I’m looking forward to see what is in store for us next week. For a look at all the teams and when they are playing, check out the schedule here: Week #3:
Also, I gave you my picks for the Offensive/Defensive Standouts, please let me know who yours would be?
For another XFL story, please check out:
https://gridironheroics.com/2023-xfl-rules-better-or-worse-than-the-nfl/
For more XFL and Twitter Content, please follow me:
For More Great Football Content
Follow us on Twitter at @GridironHeroics for more great content. We appreciate you taking time to read our articles. To interact more with our community and keep up to date on the latest in Football news, JOIN OUR FREE FACEBOOK GROUP by CLICKING HERE
