Alex Mollette #55 of the San Antonio Brahmas catches a pass and runs it in for a touchdown during the second quarter against the DC Defenders at Alamodome on March 31, 2024 in San Antonio, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Cortes/UFL/Getty Images)
Each year, in every sport and in every professional league, there always seems to be at least one team snakebitten by injuries. Last year in the XFL, that team was the San Antonio Brahmas. In the first year of the UFL, after just two games, the Brahmas seem to be in that position once again. They’re joined by the Houston Roughnecks as teams that have dealt with more serious injuries to more key contributors than any other.
It started for the Roughnecks before the season even began. RB Mark Thompson, the 2023 USFL Offensive Player of the Year and league leader in rushing touchdowns, sprained his knee in training camp. For a squad that was expected to lean heavily on the run game, that injury was particularly debilitating.
Thompson missed the first two games of the season, but indicated recently on Twitter/X that he may be nearing a return. Through the first two weeks, Houston’s leading rusher is T.J. Pledger with just 61 yards and a 3.6 yards per carry average.
Another former All-USFL player got a late start to the season: DE Chris Odom, the league’s Defensive Player of the Year in 2022, suffered an injury that kept him out for week one against Memphis. He was back for week two, however.
Houston currently has two players on injured reserve, both of whom were placed there prior to the start of the regular season. DE Reggie Walker, who had four sacks for the team last year, and S Jamari Brown, a true rookie out of Gardner-Webb.
The Roughnecks added injury to insult in last weekend’s loss to the D.C. Defenders. They were the first team in the league to lose their starting QB to a serious injury. Jarrett Guarantano suffered a chest injury and is expected to miss multiple weeks. Luckily for the team, Reid Sinnett replaced Guarantano and didn’t miss a beat. Third-down back Kirk Merritt injured his wrist in particularly gruesome fashion. He had to be carted off. He is also expected to be out for some time. Merritt currently sits as Houston’s leading receiver.
Though not as serious, star LB Reuben Foster has been banged up in both of the first two games. He does not appear on the injury report this week. Currently sitting at 0-2, the Roughnecks can’t afford any more injuries to its key players if they want to have a chance at making the playoffs.
On the flip side, San Antonio is 2-0 despite encountering several key injuries of their own. Former NFL second-round draft pick CB Quincy Wilson was expected to play a role on the Brahmas’ defense this year. Instead, he was the first injury domino to fall, as he was placed on injured reserve on March 18.
In the aftermath of week one, LB Nate Wieland, who saw 12 snaps on defense in that game, was felled by injury and landed on IR. Following the second week, two more key contributors were ruled out for some time in K Donald De La Haye and C Alex Mollette. Though De La Haye had yet to attempt a field goal, his deep kickoffs allowed the Brahmas’ defense to begin drives with favorable field position. Mollette, best known as being on the receiving end of Brad Wing’s fake punt that went for a touchdown, is arguably the best center in the league. His absence will be felt as the anchor of the offensive line.
But that’s not all. As we approach week three, San Antonio’s injury report is the lengthiest of any team in the league. Starting LB Delontae Scott may not play this week because of a shoulder injury. Also ailing are CB BoPete Keyes, who missed the first two weeks of the season; starting RB Anthony McFarland; starting CB Darius Phillips; and starting OT Derrick Kelly (who sat out last week with an injury).
No team is immune to injuries; every team deals with them. The teams left standing at the end are usually the teams that have had the fewest key injuries throughout the season. There are a couple of teams each year, however, that just can’t seem to shake the injury bug. Right now, it appears as if the injury gods have San Antonio and Houston in their cross-hairs. It’s led, in part, to Houston starting off 0-2; we’ll see if San Antonio can buck conventional wisdom and keep on trucking along even with these absences.
