Half of the XFL week 1 is in the books, this time the Houston Roughnecks pulling off a dominant performance by the defense, playing through two Orlando Guardians’ quarterbacks and ending the night with 7 sacks. The strong first half play of quarterback Brandon Silvers helped put Houston in an insurmountable lead, while the Wade Phillips defense absolutely dominated the Orlando offense.
NFL teams are absolutely watching these performances. With all of the NFL coaching, the vision that the XFL has with the NFL, and the purpose being to put players back into the NFL, the league is eyeing closely this league and keeping tabs on all of the outstanding players.
Let’s get into game two of the XFL week 1.
Orlando Guardians WR/TE Cody Latimer
5 receptions, 68 yards, 1 touchdown.
In his first stint in the NFL, Latimer struggled with substance abuse (alcohol) and partying. Now sixteen months sober, Latimer looks like a completely different player in the XFL, hauling in four catches for 62 yards and a controversial touchdown in the first quarter alone.
Latimer ended up with 5 catches for 68 yards and the touchdown, which helped bolster his stock a little bit. Latimer is listed as a tight end on the Guardians roster but showed all of the tools to be an effective big slot receiver
Houston Roughnecks RB Max Borghi
8 carries, 42 yards, 1 rushing touchdown, 4 receptions, 32 yards.
Max Borghi was a star of the Houston offense and showed a ton of valuable traits that are valuable in NFL running backs. That shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone who watched him at Washington State, where he dominated and set a school record for touchdowns. He picked his way through 24 yards of defenders on a run in the 2nd quarter, where Borghi showed contact balance and field vision on top of his quickness and shiftiness.
It’s a long shot because of the vast number of running backs that are available, but it’s shocking that Borghi isn’t in the NFL right now. His skill set as a receiver and slot receiver should make him a valuable asset on an NFL team.
Houston Roughnecks EDGE Trent Harris
4 sacks.
Trent Harris came into the night as one of the more anticipated defenders in the league, and he did not disappoint. Harris ended the night with 4 sacks, showing a variety of pass rushing moves. He toyed with the tackles last night for Orlando, going outside and inside both to dominate the backfield.
At 27 years old, Harris still has tread on his tires to be a rotational defender in the NFL. If Harris keeps playing like this, he won’t make it to the end of the XFL season before he’s picked up by an NFL team.
Orlando Guardians EDGE Jacoby Jones
3 total tackles, 2 sacks.
I scouted Jacoby Jones coming out of Texas last year and liked his potential upside. He showed out in this game, being one of the bright spots for the team. His two sacks both came at key points of the drives, and his prowess earned him extra attention as the game wore on.
Houston Roughnecks EDGE Tim Ward
4 total tackles, 3 TFL, 2 sacks.
Tim Ward is more of the contain defender on this defense, but the dominant performance of his teammate, Trent Harris, pushed a lot of the plays his way. He didn’t disappoint, showing run defense as well as his ability to make plays in the backfield when he needed to.
Tim Ward recently worked out for the New York Giants (on January 24th, to be exact) so there is definite NFL interest. Ward certainly strengthened his case in action on Sunday and at 25 years old certainly will have the interest of NFL teams piqued.
