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Week Four XFL Power Rankings

by Fran Stuchbury
March 15, 2023 - XFL (XFL)


The XFL completed week four with three home teams earning victories for the second week in a row. The Seattle Sea Dragons edged the San Antonio Brahmas, the St. Louis Battlehawks defeated the Arlington Renegades, and the D.C. Defenders topped the Vegas Vipers. The only road team to win was the undefeated Houston Roughnecks which scored a convincing victory against the winless Orlando Guardians.

Week five starts Thursday with the undefeated Houston Roughnecks Roughnecks at the 2-2 Seattle Sea Dragons. On Saturday the 4-0 D.C Defenders travel to face the 3-1 St. Louis Battlehawks, and the battle of winless teams has the 0-4 Orlando Guardians taking on the 0-4 Vegas Vipers. Week five ends Sunday evening with the 2-2 Arlington Renegades at the 1-3 San Antonio Brahmas.

The Power Rankings after week two:

1. Houston Roughnecks 4-0

Houston scored the most points in the XFL this season in a 44-16 route over the Orlando Guardians. The Roughnecks' four victories have come against teams with a combined 3-9 record. Both the Houston offense and defense have been solid, but for the first time this season they will play against an opponent with a good offense in the Sea Dragons.

2. D.C. Defenders 4-0

The Defenders continue to be a run-heavy team, leading the XFL with 622 rushing yards. Starting quarterback Jordan Ta'Amu continues to improve, leading long drives, and the stellar play of backup quarterback D'Eriq King near the goal line makes D.C. hard to defend.

3. St. Louis Battlehawks 3-1

St. Louis drew an XFL attendance record 38,310 fans during its victory over the Arlington Renegades. The Battlehawks have the best home field advantage in the XFL. After losing on the road to the D.C. Defenders a couple weeks ago, a win over D.C. would keep them in a tie for first place with the Defenders in the North Division.

4. Seattle Sea Dragons 2-2

Seattle's defense did an outstanding job holding San Antonio to a combined 210 yards rushing and passing. Dragons offensive coordinator June Jones will look to get his run-and-shoot offense in high gear against the Houston Roughnecks who run the same offense. Jones coached the Roughnecks during the 2020 XFL season to a perfect 5-0 record before the league was shut down due to Covid-19.

5. San Antonio Brahmas 1-3

The Brahmas will see if a new offensive coordinator can establish a better running game. Two weeks ago they were not able to score a touchdown on four rushing attempts on the one-yard-line against Houston late in the game, and last week they managed just 21 rushing yards against the Sea Dragons. With a home and home against the Renegades, they face a must win this week.

6. Arlington Renegades 2-2

The Renegades' ground game also stumbled with only 49 yards rushing in their loss to the Battlehawks. They must be able to run the football better to put less pressure on Kyle Sloter passing the football. A road win this week would give the Renegades some breathing space for second place in the South Division.

7. Vegas Vipers 0-4

Brett Hundley didn't practice much last week, and he was pulled early for backup quarterback Luis Perez who played admirably in a loss to the Defenders. Poor clock management by Perez hurt the Vipers at the end of the first half. Vegas finally has a chance to get Rod Woodson his first XFL victory at home against the winless Orlando Guardians.

8. Orlando Guardians 0-4

Orlando once again made too many mistakes in their loss to the Roughnecks. The team had 13 penalties, and the offensive line gave up four sacks, while the defense surrendered a too many points before the half. Paxton Lynch avoided the interception bug and threw the longest passing touchdown in the XFL season, 81 yards to Charleston Rambo. A loss at the Vipers could put the Guardians in the driver's seat for the first pick in the 2024 XFL Draft.

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