Game two of the XFL week 2 is complete, with the DC Defenders scoring 18 unanswered points to put away the Vegas Vipers and ruin their debut. The XFL’s highest paid player, Brett Hundley, debuted in this game and was overall underwhelming – the Vipers only score coming off of a fumble recovery on the 1-yard-line.
This is the first of my criticisms of the XFL season – I’ve stayed fairly positive through the first week. That being said, the field that the Vegas Vipers will be playing their games at is dangerous. The field is patched all over the place, there’s almost no room to hold a crowd, and the grass was spray painted green. I believe it led to a couple of additional injuries.
On top of that, the audio issues, officiating errors, and everything else that they have going on to mess up with the rhythm of the game and the way it was practiced was awful. There has to be another field that they can play on. The XFL has to do something to get all of that fixed.
Let’s get into it.
Vegas Vipers DL Robert Windsor
5 tackles, 1 tackle-for-loss.
Robert Windsor is a nasty interior defender with some upside as a fierce pass rusher. He showed his run stuffing ability with his five tackles. Windsor was a project defensive tackle coming out with some athletic ability, running a 4.90 forty-yard dash at 6’4″ and 290 pounds at the NFL Combine in 2020. Windsor hasn’t been able to stick around the NFL, so now he’s trying to put it all together in the XFL.
DC Defenders RB Abram Smith
11 carries, 71 yards, 1 touchdown, 1 reception, 15 yards.
Abram Smith was the first pick of the XFL Draft this year, and I think it was because a lot of teams couldn’t believe that he was available. Smith was an undrafted free agent out of Baylor last year who didn’t stick around in New Orleans. His biggest concern coming out, I think, was his lack of usage as a receiver.
He did a good job last night, sharing a backfield with two running quarterbacks and Ryquell Armstead, who is a fine running back himself. However, he busted out big runs including a big touchdown run that pretty much put the game out of reach away from Vegas. He’s starting to show that he can be a receiver out of the backfield as well. Things are looking up for Smith at this point.
Vegas Vipers LB Max Roberts
4 tackles, 2 sacks, 1 forced fumble.
Former Boston College edge rusher Max Roberts was considered an undersized defensive end by the NFL when he came out in 2021, and he’s proving in the XFL that perhaps that was not entirely accurate. Roberts is just 6’1″ and 260 pounds, but he showed explosive ability. It shouldn’t surprise anyone either, as he scored a 36.5 inch vertical jump on his pro day.
Roberts size can create a mismatch advantage agianst 6’5″ tackles by simply bending under them. I like what he’s shown so far in the league, and this performance was nothing short of sensational.
DC Defenders LB Reggie Northrup
5 tackles, 1 sack.
Reggie Northrup is a heat seaking missile. He showed that Saturday night as he led the Defenders defense in tackles and showed good instincts and closing speed.
His biggest play was stopping Luis Perez as he rolled out trying to convert a two-point conversion. Northrup blasted Perez for a loss and prevented the try fropm converting.
