XFL Arlington Renegades running back De’Veon Smith (Twitter)
Arlington Renegades
Starting LG Jake Stetz missed Sunday’s game against the Brahmas due to injury, which led to shuffling along the rest of the line. Willie Beavers started at left tackle, Mike Horton moved from right to left guard, Brian Folkerts manned the pivot, Cameron Hunt moved from center to right guard, and Garrett McGhin was at right tackle. Only McGhin started in the same spot he was listed on the depth chart…After registering the lowest grade on the team offensively by PFF against St. Louis in week four, LT Geore Moore was replaced by Beavers against San Antonio. Moore was active but saw no snaps on offense. He’s still listed as the starter there on the week six depth chart…Punter Marqutte King made one of the most unique playes in the league on Sunday night when he downed his own punt at the 10 yard-line with 19 seconds left in the game. It’s rare, but not unprecedented: In 2014, Duke’s Will Monday did the same in a game against North Carolina.
Backup RB Kenneth Farrow went down with an injury on Sunday night and was subsequently placed on injured reserve. The Renegades signed RB Brian Herrien to take his place. Herrien was a Supplemental Draft pick of the DC Defenders but was waived in training camp. Arlington now has two relatively new backup running backs behind starter De’Veon Smith, neither of whom has taken a snap yet this season…The Renegades also signed WR Victor Bolden and released WR Jordan Smallwood. Bolden was an All-USFL player in 2022 who was signed by the Denver Broncos to a futures contract at the end of the NFL season. He was released just last week. Smallwood was a starter on the team’s week one depth chart, though his offensive snaps have decreased every game since week two. He played just 13 snaps on Sunday…Arlington is hosting an on-field networking event for women in football on Sunday in conjunction with their game against San Antonio.
DC flipped its tackles last weekend, starting Kyle Murphy at RT and D’Marcus Hayes at LT despite them being listed opposite on the depth chart…With an injury to Ryquell Armstead, DC had just one RB active vs. St. Louis (Abram Smith)…Raymond Calais, signed last week, performed as the backup RB and didn’t get his first touch until seven minutes left in the fourth. It was the only snap he played on offense…Starting safety Kentrell Brice was carted off early in the game. Montae Nicholson subbed in for him…Abram Smith’s 62-yard TD run was the longest touchdown run in the XFL this season; then he topped it with a 70-yd TD run later in the game..Third-string QB Eric Dungey played on kick coverage, making a tackle in the second quarter. He played 10 special teams snaps, his most of the season, and had the highest special teams grade on DC per PFF…
The Defenders added DE Fadol Brown and LB Francis Bernard back to the active roster from the reserve list. Bernard had been suspended two games for his role in the fracas with St. Louis a few weeks ago. LB Terrill Hanks and WR KD Cannon were released. Hanks lasted just 12 days on DC’s squad and was inactive last week. Cannon had been placed on IR in early February…RB Abram Smith leads the XFL in rushing attempts and yards, and he’s second in rushing touchdowns to fellow Defender D’Eriq King. Smith and Jordan Ta’amu are the only two players to have two or more 20+ yard rushes. Michael Joseph is tied for the league lead with four interceptions and paces the league with two interceptions returned for touchdowns. Punter Daniel Whelan is tied for first with eight punts placed inside the 20…Head Coach Reggie Barlow was on ESPN’s First Take this week to discuss the team’s 5-0 start and the fans at Audi Field.
Houston’s top receiver, Jontre Kirklin, was placed on IR with a season-ending chest injury. They supplemented their receiver room by adding Tavonn Salter and Jaquarii Roberson this week. Salter was in camp with the Roughnecks, while Roberson was signed by the LA Rams to a futures deal after the NFL season, but was released on March 10…Reserve OL Desmond Noel was also placed on IR this week. LB Drew Lewis was acquired to take his spot on the roster. Lewis came over from San Antonio in exchange for QB Kurt Benkert, who did not report to camp when he was assigned in December. Houston now has ten linebackers on its roster…
Ajene Harris, who is tied for the league lead in interceptions, has moved into a starting role on Houston’s depth chart at CB opposite Raleigh Texada. He replaces Kary Vincent, who is now listed as a backup…Taking Kirklin’s spot in the starting lineup per the same depth chart is Justin Smith. He’ll be backed up by the newly-acquried Salter…
Through five games, Houston has several players near the top of the league’s stat sheet. Ajene Harris is tied for the XFL lead with four interceptions. Deontay Burnett, Travell Harris, and Kirklin all have two 40+ yard receptions, the only three to have more than one. Trent Harris is first with eight tackles for loss, while teammate Tim Ward is tied for second with seven. Punter Race Porter has the most punts with 24, and is tied with the most punts landing inside the 20-yard line with eight. Will Likely leads in punt return yardage with 148.
#12 quarterback Quinten Dormady leads the Orlando Guardians, March 18, 2023
Orlando Guardians
Per the Orlando Sentinel, QB Quinten Dormady will start for the Guardians this Saturday against the Sea Dragons. It will be his first start of the season. He replaced a struggling Paxton Lynch with about 4:30 left in the second quarter against hte Vipers…A recent article from The Athletic revealed more details about the Dormady situation and investigation…Though no official announcement was made, it appeared that QB coach Shane Matthews was calling plays on Saturday night. Offensive coordinator Robert Ford was still coaching on the sidelines with Matthews up in the booth…Jordan Ighofose earned his first start of the season, at left guard, against Vegas. It was his first game action since week one, and all he did was garner the second-highest grade of the game for Orlando and is the league’s highest-graded run blocker among offensive linemen…
With Ighofose starting, Abdul Beecham moved to right tackle, replacing TJ Storment, who was inactive. This was the fifth starting offensive line combination in five games…Quinton Flowers made his 2023 debut on the first drive with the ball at two-yard line, playing Orlando’s version of D’Eriq King. He ended up rushing for a TD, but played just four snaps…Orlando added a long snapper to its roster, signing Cameron Kaye. Kaye, out of Troy University, tried out with the Green Bay Packers during rookie minicamp last May, and had a number of other workouts throughout the summer and fall. The team’s previous snapper, Ryan Becker, remains on the team as a backup tight end. Kaye is Orlando’s third long snapper since the start of training camp…Becker was featured in the XFL’s “Know My Name” video segment on YouTube…
To make room for Kaye, DT Keonte Schad was released. He was inactive in week five and had played 59 snaps on defense across three games…DE/OLB Josh Harvey-Clemons was placed on IR. He was a core special teamer who on the season had four tackles in that phase…Orlando has one open spot on its roster….TE Cody Latimer is tied for the league lead with six catches of 20+ yards…The team recently held a meet-and-greet event with fans at Miracle Toyota.
Quarterback Kurt Benkert works out wit the San Antonio Brahmas (@KurtBenkert)
San Antonio Brahmas
San Antonio started Reid Sinnett at quarterback against Arlington, but Sinnett went down with a foot injury that will sideline him for the rest of the year. In need of a new starter, the team acquired QB Kurt Benkert from Houston for backup LB Drew Lewis. Benkert had been on Houston’s reserve list since opting not to report to camp in January. Lewis is the son of Will Lewis, San Antonio’s Director of Player Personnel…The injury bug continued to bite, as QB Jack Coan and RB Kalen Ballage were injured on back-to-back plays in practice on Thursday. Coan will be out one-to-two weeks, while an Achilles injury will sideline Ballage for the season. On Friday, the Brahmas signed RB Kevin Marks, Jr. to replace him. Marks was a final cut of the LA Chargers in 20222…
All of this will lead to Jawon Pass likely getting the start against Arlington. Benkert will play as well, mere days after being acquired…RT Norman Price was also injured against the Renegades. Roubbens Joseph shifted from LT to RT, while Chidi Okeke was inserted into LT…San Antonio continued to remake their struggling offense, activating WRs Landen Akers and Calvin Turner from IR. Turner has already been inserted into the starting lineup per the team’s week six depth chart, though he is listed as “out” on the team’s week six injury report with a foot issue. WR Darece Roberson was released. Roberson had returned punts with a 10.4 average; Akers may take over those duties as he returned punts in the one game he played…
LB Terrill Hanks was claimed off waivers from DC and LB Riko Jeffers was put on IR. Jeffers started two games, including most recently against Arlington, where he earned an 89.7 grade from PFF on 34 snaps. He was also a key contributor on special teams…LB Jordan Williams leads to the league in tackles with 40. Punter Brad Wing has the highest gross punting average in the league through five weeks…Brahmas fans will get to watch their team take on Arlington from The Friendly Spot Ice House in San Antonio, as an official team event will be held there during the game.
With LT Liam Jimmons injured against Houston, Barry Wesley has moved into the starting lineup according to the team’s week six depth chart. Wesley has played just 14 offensive snaps on the season, none since week two…Seattle will also be without RB Morgan Ellison and LB Jordan Evans against Orlando on Saturday, two key starters on both sides of the ball. Darius Bradwell and TJ Hammods will tote the rock in Ellison’s stead. Emmanuel Smith is expected to draw the start at inside linebacker for Evans…
QB Ben DiNucci leads the XFL in completions, passing yards, and interceptions. Despite losing his grip on the rushing lead, Ellison is still atop the league in runs of 10+ yards. Jahcour Pearson paces all receivers in receptions, yards, and targets. Defensively, LB Tuzar Skipper has three forced fumbles to sit atop that leaderboard…Flatstick Pub in Seattle has a watch party for the Sea Dragons Saturday morning pacific time.
— St. Louis Battlehawks (@XFLBattlehawks) March 24, 2023
St. Louis Battlehawks
S Chris Cooper was hurt after getting run over by Abram Smith near the sidelines last weekend. He was diagnosed with a concussion, but is listed as “probable” on the team’s injury report…Another safety, Ben DeLuca, was placed on injured reserve with a knee injury this week. DeLuca had started all five games and made 25 tackles. He’ll likely be replaced by either Nate Meadors or Lukas Denis…Starting CB Mike Hampton is also out for the upcoming game against Vegas…
The Battlehawks released RB Pooka Williams this week after claiming him off waivers from DC earlier in the month. They also activated OT Jarryd Jones-Smith from the reserve list. He was suspended for two games after the first DC game for his involvement in the on-field brawl…AJ McCarron is tied for the league lead in touchdown passes with 11. There are four defenders who have two fumble recoveries and three of them are Battlehawks: Kevin Atkins, DeLuca, and Travis Feeney. Darrius Shepherd has the most kick returns, kick return yardage, and the highest return average among qualifiers…St. Louis is advertising a number of watch parties as they are on the road in Vegas Saturday night…
Heading into the Orlando vs. Vegas game, it was unclear who would start for the Vipers. Rod Woodson and company settled on Luis Perez. Brett Hundley was number one on the depth chart and healthy. But this week, Perez is back to number one on the depth chart…Also against Orlando, Jamil Demby started at LG for Isaiah Williams, who was out…Two players are questionable on the injury report this week: S Deontay Anderson and DT Robert Windsor. Six others are probable. Windsor and Anderson have been moved from the starting lineup to backup roles on the depth chart indicating they may not play this week…
S Mister Harriel was released with G Isaiah Williams being added back to the active list. Harriel was a third-string safety but saw 68 snaps of action on defense as recently as week three against Seattle. He graded out poorly on the year per PFF, with a 41.8 overall score…WR Jeff Badet is the XFL’s touchdown receptions leader with five at the halfway point of the season…The Vipers coaches and players met with some season ticket holders on Friday.
