Hey, Arn here. It’s week three in the XFL and @realPhillipDohm has done a write up. Check it out and join me for the XFL Power Rankings and Week 4 picks at the bottom.

 

XFL Week 3 – Review

 

Hello and welcome to this Review of the XFL’s third week of Action. Can Houston and D.C. stay undefeated? Will Los Angeles and Tampa find their winning ways? Let’s find out.

Houston Roughnecks @ Tampa Bay Vipers

Here we have the first Match-Up between an undefeated Team and a team without a single win. For Tampa Bay it’s even worse so far, they do not even have an offensive Touchdown, their Touchdown last week was a Pick-Six. But it was Tampa Bay starting to score in the first quarter by getting a decent drive for a 48-Yard Field-Goal by Andrew Franks. Tampa Bay 3. Houston 0.

 

After that both teams do not get a good drive together but with more than three and a half minutes left in the first quarter, P.J. Walker found Cam Phillips for an 84-Yard Touchdown pass. The following Three-Point Conversion was successful as well, as P.J. threw another Ten-Yard Pass to Sam Mobley. Tampa Bay 3. Houston 9.

 

But surprisingly Tampa Bay stayed in the game so they scored in the second quarter their first offensive Touchdown when Quarterback Quinton Flowers ran for a seven-Yard Touchdown himself. The following one-point conversion with a two-Yard Rush by Jalen Tolliver gave Tampa Bay the lead again in this Football game. Tampa Bay 10. Houston 9.

 

But Houston wouldn’t be Houston if they couldn’t handle this. After a solid Drive where they established the run, they got into the red zone. In an act that looked like it belongs more on a Comedy Movie about Football, P.J. Walker fumbled the Snap, picked-up the ball himself and ran for an eight-Yard Touchdown. The following three-Point Conversion was unsuccessful, but it’s good to see Houston go for it a lot. Tampa Bay 10. Houston 15.

 

Tampa Bay couldn’t convert their next drive, other than Houston who got themselves in Field Goal Range and with a Minute left on the Game Clock Sergio Castillo drills a 28-Yard Field Goal to extend the Houston lead.

 

But Tampa showed a lot of heart in this game and got another drive which finished in a One-Yard Touchdown by Quarterback Taylor Cornelius, while the clock ran down to zero. The following two-point conversion was a successful pass to Daniel Williams and finished the first half of this very tense, close and exciting Football game.

 

The third quarter started off with a good Houston drive which resulted in another P.J. Walker pass to Cam Phillips who really showed his entire class here by breaking two tackles for the 24-Yard Touchdown-Pass. The following two-point conversion was a success with a five-Yard Rush by James Butler.

 

Now Houston showed all their class, and held Tampa Bay on a Turnover on downs and drove down the field, just for Sergio Castillo to miss a 49-Yard Field Goal attempt to extend their lead. This kept Tampa Bay in this game and Taylor Cornelius found Daniel Williams for a 20-Yard Touchdown pass and the following 2-Point Conversion was unsuccessful. Tampa Bay was surprisingly not just in this game, they were getting Houston on the Edge.

 

The next score was also a Tampa Bay score. They got the Ball back and drove down for a 43-Yard Field Goal to get the lead back. Tampa Bay 27. Houston 26.

 

Would this be the day where Houston would Fall? Now after beating a solid Los Angeles Team and a Good St. Louis team to the 0-2 Vipers? The Combination of P.J. Walker and Cam Phillips said no, as they scored another Combination Touchdown Pass, this time a 17-Yard Touchdown pass. On the two-point conversion, Nick Holley got the Ball for an Eight-Point Play. Tampa Bay 27. Houston 34.

 

On the next Tampa Drive, they couldn’t get two more Yard for a Touchdown and Turned the Ball over on downs with roundabout four Minutes left on the clock. Their defense now needs a quick stop. And their defense got a Quick Stop, but with 01:20 left on the clock, Taylor Cornelius threw the game deciding Interception into the arms of DeMarquis Gates. Houston stays undefeated. 3-0 BABY! And damn the P.J. Walker-Cam Phillips combination is Lethal the past two games.

 

Tampa Bay 27. Houston 34.

 

Dallas Renegades @ Seattle Dragons

This was the game of two 1-1 Teams facing off. And the game started off with a Dallas drive that absolutely went for nothing. One the other side, Seattle Drove down the field and Brandon Silvers found Austin Proehl for a 21-Yard Touchdown pass. The following two-point conversion was unsuccessful. Seattle 6. Dallas 0.

 

On the other side, Landry Jones found Flynn Nagel for a twelve-Yard Touchdown pass to equalize. Their two-point conversion was just as unsuccessful as the one of Seattle.

 

Now Brandon Silvers wouldn’t be Brandon Silvers without at least one Interception on the day, and in the second quarter he threw that Interception to Josh Hawkins. Landry Jones followed that up with some slapstick by throwing the ball into the line of scrimmage, catching it again and throwing it for a first down. Landry Jones, you are incredible. And with that I mean that he followed that up with an Interception, caught by Godwin Igwebuike. Seattle thank them that with a good drive and a 19-Yard Touchdown Pass by Brandon Silvers to Kenneth Farrow. The two-point conversion was unsuccessful.

 

Landry Jones, trying to at least tie the game, threw a god-awful Interception following that into a defender solid five-yards Infront of the intended receiver. That defender was Channing Stribling. James probably wishes at this point that Philip Nelson would still be playing, as he is at least better looking, or how I said: “I’m straight but he doesn’t look like a snack, but a whole five-course meal!”. But Landry Jones got another Chance to show what he can do and in the third quarter he pushed Dallas for a really nice drive and finished it off with a ten-yard Touchdown pass to Donald Parham. The two-point conversion was unsuccessful, so that Touchdown tied the game.

 

In the fourth Quarter, Landry Jones lead another good drive for Dallas which ended in a 19-Yard Field Goal by Austin MacGinnis and Dallas took the lead for the first time this game. Seattle 12. Dallas 15.

 

Seattle offense had to get back in the game, but couldn’t so Landry Jones threw a 65-Yard Touchdown Pass to Donald Parham to extend their lead even more. The two-point attempt was unsuccessful.

 

But again, it was Dallas who continued to get the Ball, this time Landry Jones fumbled to give Seattle the chance. But Seattle offense were no excitant in the second half and in the end, it was Dallas who finished the game with a 33-Yard Field Goal by Austin MacGinnis.

 

Seattle 12. Dallas 24.

 

New York Guardians @ St. Louis Battlehawks

Even though both teams have a 1-1 Record, St. Louis looks like a potential Championship team, while New York couldn’t score a single Point last week. And St. Louis started the game strong with a 14-Yard Touchdown run by Christine Michael, but the two-point conversion was unsuccessful. St. Louis 6. New York 0.

 

The only thing New York started off with, was collecting Penalties left, right and center. But in the end, Matt McCrane got them three points with a 53-Yard Field goal.

 

St. Louis answered with a Kick-Off Return Touchdown from Keith Mumphery directly after it. That was the first Kick-Off return Touchdown in this league’s history. The two-point conversion was unsuccessful.

 

Following that, St. Louis continued to dominate with a 39-Yard Field Goal by Taylor Russolino.

 

St. Louis held New York following that to a Punt and blocked that punt. They hadn’t much ground to go anymore after that and Matt Jones scored the one-Yard Rushing Touchdown and with a trick play and a Running Back Pass they found Alonzo Russell for the two-point conversion.

 

New York desperately needs a Touchdown here at the end of the second quarter. Matt McGloin throws an Interception into the waiting arms of Kenny Robinson. A brawl starts happening. That’s XTREME! Taylor Russolino extends the lead with a 58-Yard Field Goal.

 

New York couldn’t get anything together and in the fourth quarter, third string quarterback Luis Perez scored an Eight-Yard Touchdown pass to Austin Duke. They first Touchdown after one hours, 56 Minutes, and 32 seconds of XFL Football. And that was a Fumble Recovery, not an Offensive Touchdown, but I’m too lazy to make it more depressing for New York Fans.

 

In the end, Taylor Russolino finishes the game with a 36-Yard Field Goal in a game where St. Louis looked like they didn’t even need Jordan Ta’amu to win this against a very weak New York Team.

 

St. Louis 29. New York 9.

 

D.C. Defenders @ Los Angeles Wildcats

Let’s wrap up this review with the last game. D.C. Defenders against the Los Angeles Wildcats, 2-0 against 0-2. And at this point I want to quote Arn: “Goddamn it, I need to get some sleep. I look forward to waking up to the news that LA lost by 30 points.”. Keep this in mind throughout reading this review about this game. Los Angeles started off with the Ball and “Journeyman” Josh Johnson lead the Wildcats down the field and threw a 40-Yard Touchdown Pass to Tre McBride. The following two-point conversion was unsuccessful. Los Angeles 6. D.C. 0.

 

But now D.C. has the ball and MVP candidate Cardale Jones enters the field and OH MY GOD HE THROWS AN INTERCEPTION INTO THE WAITING ARMS OF ARRION SPRINGS WHAT IS GOING ON. Los Angeles couldn’t score through that so Cardale Jones gets another chance of redemption and… throws his second Interception of the day… we are still in the first quarter. This gives LA the perfect opportunity for a good drive and Larry Rose scores a one-yard Touchdown, followed by a successful pass to Martez Carter for a two-point conversion.

 

And instead of D.C. finally turning up, Cardale Jones gets sacked and D.C. has to Punt. Los Angeles drives down the field and Triple J finds Tre McBride for another 28-Yard Touchdown Pass. The one-point conversion was unsuccessful. This is brutal so far.

 

Now, surely, D.C. will turn up. Nope. They fumble a Punt attempt. LA got the ball back pretty quickly. The following one-yard Touchdown by Martez Carter was no problem anymore and the one-point conversion works as well with a Larry Rose Rush.

 

To make things less Painful, shortly before the break, Tyler Rausa scores a 32-Yard Field Goal to get them on the board. Halftime.

 

But for D.C. the second half starts off like the first half did. With a Cardale Jones Interception. What happened to the MVP Candidate in this game? This is the third Interception he had so far in this game alone. Los Angeles gets the ball and Josh Johnson find Martez Carter for an 18-Yard Touchdown, where Carter flips into the Endzone. The one-point conversion is unsuccessful.

 

Following that, Cardale Jones starts his run for the Ryan Fitzpatrick Interception Award by throwing another one into four Los Angeles defenders. Most of D.C. Team didn’t even try to tackle them on the recovery. This gives Martez Carter the chance for a 20-Yard Touchdown Rush which was followed by a nice athletic flic-flak in the endzone, for the home fans.

 

Now at least Nick Brossette gets D.C. a 38-Yard Rushing Touchdown seven minutes before the end, but this was pretty much Garbage Time Already. The three-point conversion was unsuccessful.

 

Nothing happened anymore, Los Angeles wins their first game decisively by 30 Points against a 2-0 D.C. who might not be that powerhouse of the XFL that we thought, as they lost their Eastern Conference lead to St. Louis with that.

 

Los Angeles 39. D.C. 9

 

That’s it from me for this week. We’ll hear from each other next week when we find out if the Houston Roughnecks can stay undefeated and if the Tampa Bay Vipers can get their first win. Have a nice day.

 

Arn here to finish up. Here are the Power Rankings!

 

XFL Power Rankings Week 3

 

1. Houston Roughnecks (1) [3-0]. Houston came up against a Tampa team determined to record their first victory, and in a thrilling game, just about saw off the Vipers. Every quarter had excitement and plenty of PJ Walker magic. Three more touchdowns for Cam Phillips!
2. St Louis Battlehawks (3) [2-1]. The win over NY was only tainted by how bad NY played. The Battlehawks established a good rushing game though and scored two touchdowns on the ground. Jordan Ta’amu had an easy day at the office.
3. DC Defenders (2) [2-1]. One of the two perfect records fell when DC went to LA. The usually exciting Cardale Jones threw four, count ‘em FOUR, interceptions and they even had a punt blocked. DC’s two wins have come over Tampa and NY, the two worst teams in the league. Time to start doubting their credentials?
4. Dallas Renegades (4) [2-1]. I don’t think Dallas in convincing anyone in the group chat. Landry Jones has been casually inconsistent but he does remain the calmest quarterback in the league, whether he’s playing well or not.
5. LA Wildcats (7) [1-2]. What a weekend for the Wildcats! Easily the best performance of any team this week. They’ve been steadily improving but here was a massive jump. Triple J had them moving, they established a rushing game and the defence was incredible. The caused five turnovers. Four interceptions and a punt blocked. Plus in Marvez Carter they may have found the best running back in the XFL. Two TD’s for Carter. Triple J threw to McBride for two more. A thirty point win over a fancied Defenders and LA is Here.
6. Seattle Dragons (5) [1-2]. The Dragons lost this week but there are positives. Brandon Silvers looked better and threw two touchdown passes. Austin Proehl looks like one of the best wide receivers in the XFL.
7. Tampa Bay Vipers (8) [0-3]. Tampa might have lost every game but at least they’re looking competitive. If they could decide what they’re doing at QB they might even be a threat in this league. Both quarterbacks (Flowers and Cornelius) got in the end zone this week and Dan Williams caught a touchdown pass. For a team that had zero offensive touchdowns that’s quite the improvement. If they’d played like that in the first two weeks they’d be 2-1.
8. NY Guardians (7) [1-2]. Over the past two weeks New York has been a car crash in slow motion. The team has completely fallen apart. McGloin had another nightmare. They got completely outplayed by St Louis. Awful team.

 

Week 4:

 

LA Wildcats @ NY Guardians. Wildcats are on the rise. NY can’t play any worse so surely they’ll at least turn up for a home game. I fancy LA to win here but Marquise should get the Guardians offence going. Wildcats by a score.

 

Seattle @ St Louis. The Battlehawks have looked steadily consistent and reliable. They look like the most complete unit. Seattle are ok and should make a fight of this but St Louis is winning. Battlehawks by ten.

 

Houston Roughnecks @ Dallas Renegades. The Battle of Texas! Pre-season the winner of this looked heavily fancied to take the West. That’s still the case but only because I think Houston is winning. The big concern is whether PJ Walker can stay fit. If he can the Roughnecks are championship favourites. Houston by seven.

 

DC Defenders @ Tampa Bay Vipers. This is going to be the closest game in week four. DC needs to bounce back and Cardale must be shitting it after throwing so many picks in W3. Tampa looked much better against Houston and could pick up the surprise win here. Tampa in an upset.