Week 2 of the XFL continues this weekend with a matchup between unbeaten and winless teams.
The Eastern Conference dominated Week 1 with three of its team emerging victorious on opening week. The Houston Roughnecks displayed the best offense in Week 1, scoring five touchdowns with quarterback PJ Walker delivering the best QB performance with four TD passes. Early favorites Dallas was a disappointment as the Renegades struggled to put up points against the St.Louis BattleHawks. Dallas was a 9.5 point favorites but scored fewer than that the entire game. Let’s take a look at the Week 2 matchups and pick our best bet for every game this weekend and don’t forget to check out our XFL betting sites to be part of the action.
These two teams came out victorious in Week 1. The Defenders got the “W” after Cardale Jones delivered the best grade by any quarterback in the opening week of the XFL. Jones threw for 16-26 for 235 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions. D.C. also lived up to its team name with big defensive players including two interceptions by Rahim Moore and Bradley Sylve. The D.C. Special Teams also returned a blocked punt for a touchdown.
New York delivered one of the best all-around efforts in Week 1. The Guardians scored a total of three touchdowns and didn’t allow a single TD. Offensively, Ney York QB Matt McGloin threw the fewest passing yards by a starting QB in Week 1 while running back Darius Victor rushed for only a total of 32 yards. On defense, the Guardians were impressive with five sacks, two picks, and a fumble recovery while holding Tampa Bay to only three points.
DC showed better offense last week and based on that, I don’t think that the Guardians can keep up. I think Jones will be a tough test for the New York defense and the Defenders are going to win this one. I like to bet on the under here because both teams allowed a combined 21 points last week.
Best Bet: Under 47
The Seattle Dragons lost their opening game to the Defenders but they looked good in defeat. The Dragons gave up four touchdowns overall but only two came on defense. Offensively, they scored three touchdowns in what was a good offensive effort. However, they turned the ball over three times – two on pass interceptions and one on a fumble. Had they protected the football better, they could easily have scored an upset on opening week.
Like the Dragons, the Tampa Bay Vipers are coming off a loss. But while the Dragons drew praise in defeat, the Vipers are coming off an ugly defeat. Tampa Bay scored only three points against the Guardians and QB Aaron Murray threw for 231 yards while completing only 47% of his passes with zero touchdowns and two interceptions.
The Vipers were one of the preseason favorites to win the XFL title this season while the Dragons were pegged as one of the worst teams in the league. However, based on what we saw in week 1, Seattle played better than Tampa Bay with both QBs having poor outings. I think Seattle can take better care of the ball here but I’m not sure about the Vipers being title favorites.
Best Bet: Seattle +2.5
The Renegades had a disappointing Week 1. They were one of two teams who failed to score a touchdown on opening week, the other being Tampa Bay. But to their credit, the Renegades scored nine points on three field goals and they gave up only two touchdowns in a 9-15 loss to the St. Louis Battlehawks. The Renegades played without QB Landry Jones last week and if he can play here, I think we’ll see much better offense from them.
The Wildcats were also without starting QB Josh Johnson last week and lost to the Houston Roughnecks. But more than missing Johnson, it was their defense that hurt them against Houston. Los Angeles allowed five touchdowns in week 1, the most by any team on opening week. That performance led to the firing of defensive coordinator Pepper Johnson.
Both starting quarterbacks may be available for this game and if that is the case, then we’re going to see a better offensive performance from both teams. When I look at these teams though, the Wildcats’ defensive woes looked very bad and I’m not sure the firing of their defensive coordinator solves it right away. I think the Renegades kill the Wildcats with their air offense.
Best Bet: Dallas -4.5
The St. Louis BattleHawks used a ground and pound attack to win their opening week assignment. Running back Matt Jones rushed for 85 yards on 21 carries while quarterback Jordan Ta’amu rushed for 77 yards on nine carries and was pinpoint with his passes as he completed 20 out of 27 passes. The BattleHawks defense shut down the heavily favored Dallas Renegades by not allowing them to score a single touchdown.
Houston was the biggest winner in Week 1 as they emerged as the new favorites to win the XFL after their 37-17 win over the Wildcats. Quarterback PJ Walker threw four touchdown passes and finished with 272 passing yards. Former Carolina Panthers defensive end Kony Ealy made his presence felt last week with half a sack, five quarterback hurries, and two tackles for a loss.
It will be interesting to see how the diminutive PJ Walker does against the St. Louis defense which shut Dallas down. Houston also needs Ealy to put the pressure on Ta’amu to disrupt the BattleHawks’ aerial assault. I think both will go Houston’s way here. This should be an exciting game and I expect Houston to come out victorious.
Prediction: Houston -8
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