The Dallas Renegades, like the rest of the XFL, completed their 52-man rosters Monday as they now focus on their first game February 9th against the St. Louis BattleHawks.
Here is the complete breakdown of the Renegades’ roster:
Dallas Renegades Roster
Offense:
Quarterbacks – Landry Jones, Philip Nelson, Eric Dungey
No surprise that nothing has changed with the quarterback position. Landry Jones is expected to be the starter once he recovers from his knee injury. Philip Nelson has been taking the starter snaps in Jones’ place and his performance in the scrimmage against the BattleHawks shows indications that he can command the offense. Despite his hamstring injury, Eric Dungey has looked good in practice with great arm strength, but his lack of work in the offense puts Nelson in the driver seat for backup quarterback.
Running Back – Cameron Artis-Payne, Lance Dunbar, Austin Walter, Marquis Young
Cuts – Darnell Holland
The running back position should be Cameron Artis-Payne’s job as he has been the most consistent, hard-hitting runner on the team. Catching the ball out of the field should work in favor for Lance Dunbar and Austin Walter as their athleticism should help on third down.Marquis Young has caught the attention of the coaching staff during training camp and should provide good depth at the position.
Wide Receiver – Jeff Badet, Jazz Ferguson, Flynn Nagel, Freddie Martino, Jerrod Heard, Joshua Crockett
Cuts – Simmie Cobbs (Waiver Assignment to DC), Floyd Allen, James Quick, Carl Whitely
Fans knew this would be the most competitive and the position who suffered the most turnover. Jeff Badet and Jazz Ferguson have been dominate since coming onto the team and should get significant playing time. Flynn Nagel is perfect as the slot receiver for the Renegades as he has shown to have great hands. Freddie Martino caught the attention of offensive coordinator Hal Mumme since he was traded to Dallas and could play a big role in the offense. Jerrod Heard has strong hands and could be used for some trick plays since he was a former quarterback in college. Joshua Crockett has impressed since mini-camp for his route running and hands.
Tight Ends – Donald Parham, Sean Price, Julian Allen
Cuts – Romello Brooker
Donald Parham and Sean Price has been fighting for the top spot on the depth chart as both have looked good as receivers and blockers. The battle for the starter will be going on until before the first game of the season. Julian Allen also has played well at tight end and should be able to find some playing time in the rotation.
Offensive Line – Pace Murphy, Alex Balducci, Maurquice Shakir, Justin Evans, Willie Beavers, Josh Allen, Salesi Uhatafe, Darius James, John Keenoy
Cuts – Derrick Puni, Oni Omoile, Patrick Lawrence
Pace Murphy and Alex Balducci has been in the starting lineups and have been great in pass protection. Maurquice Shakir and Justin Evans have also shown great blocking ability as we have seen the guards play well in camp. The strength of this offensive line is their athleticism and versatility in run blocking.
Defense:
Defensive Line – Frank Alexander, Winston Craig, Gelen Robinson, Tony Guerad, Tomasi Laulile
Frank Alexander was an early favorite to make the team and start with his experience in the defense and his NFL experience. He should start and be one of the best pass rushers in the XFL. Winston Craig is another great pass rusher who should be the other starter along with Gelen Robinson providing good depth at defensive end. Tony Guerad and Tomasi Laulile are both big men who can shut down the the running game in the middle.
Linebackers – Ray Ray Davison, Greer Martini, Johnathan Calvin, Tre Watson, Asantay Brown, James Folston, Reshard Cliett, Tobenna Okeke, Tegray Scales, Hau’oli Kikaha, Christian Kuntz
Cuts – Jonathan Massaquoi (Waiver Assignment to DC)
This linebacker core is deep and has a ton of speed at outside linebacker. Johnathan Calvin had a great scrimmage against the BattleHawks where he provided a lot of pressure on the quarterbacks and recorded an interception. Ray Ray Davison and Greer Martini have impressed defensive coordinator Chris Woods with their speed on the outside and coverage skills. Tre Watson has also played up to par and should get some playing time.
Josh Hawkins has the most experience from the NFL and has done well to be a shut down receivers in camp. Dashaun Phillips has also been impressive in camp as well in coverage skills and should get playing time. Treston Decoud and Donatello Brown played well enough that they will get playing time as well.
It was a surprise to see Marwin Evans and Ryan Moeller get cut from the team, but the deep safety position made it hard for them to make the team. Derron Smith will be one of the leaders on the team and is considered one of the best hawking safeties in the XFL. Micah Abernathy possesses great tackling skills and should be key in using him in blitzing situations.
Special Teams:
(K) Austin MacGinnis, (P) Drew Galitz, (LS) Christian Kuntz
Austin MacGinnis has a strong leg and showed pin point accuracy on his field goals at training camp. Drew Galitz is accurate with where he positions the ball and will have to continue that success with the rule changes to punting. Owen Gilbert was cut in favor of Christian Kuntz to take over the position as he has long snapper experience.
Final Thoughts
The offensive coaching staff made some tough decisions at receiver, but found guys that will make big plays with Ferguson and Badet. Jones should have plenty of weapons at receiver and running back to open up the offense. The offensive line is athletic and will be tasked with protecting pocket passer Jones to prevent anymore injuries.
The Renegades showed the importance of having linebackers for not only on the outside, but find tacklers that can help out in special teams in kickoff coverage. Derron Smith will have to lead the secondary and provide great coverage as the league has shown to have playmaking receivers. Led by Frank Alexander, the defensive line, while light on players, should be able to pressure the quarterback and the tackles will be able to plug the middle of the line to force runners to the outside.
