XFL Week 2 Recap: You Always Remember Your First

My anticipation for the Week 2 of the 2023 XFL season began as soon as the last game of Week 1 ended. Again, even when the incoming pandemic resulted in the 2020 season being cut short and paused, I knew we'd see this league back again. After one week of the league's latest return, my good feeling about the XFL increased. The league definitely has staying power now, especially with The Rock and Dany Garcia running things.

So how did the second week go? Here's what happened:

So we received some Thursday Night Football this season, and it was on FX, under the ESPN banner. The Seattle Sea Dragons hosted the St. Louis BattleHawks, and regarding the latter, they were coming off a huge fourth quarter comeback victory over the San Antonio Brahmas, which was clearly the best game of the opening week. They had their backs to the wall again, as they had a short week between games, and they were still on the road. We see this in the NFL a lot, but Thursday games are new to the XFL.

Even so, the BattleHawks prevailed, winning 20-18 behind a last-second game winning field goal from Donny Hageman. Neither QB threw for many yards; A.J. McCaron threw for 184 and a score, but it was enough for St. Louis to win. Ben DiNucci did fare just a bit better: 196 and two TDs, and no turnovers. Even so, it's another loss for the Sea Dragons, though they have to be showing some promise this season.

Next up was a Saturday meeting between the DC Defenders and the Vegas Vipers, the latter having kicked off this season with loss to the Arlington Renegades. Already, the Vipers decided to a different route at QB, and it was a face I was very surprised to see: Brett Hundley. Why was I shocked? Simple. Hundley's an ex-Packer. He was one of the list of backups who watched Aaron Rodgers in action, yet he had to start some games for the Packers during the 2017 season, as that was the year that saw Rodgers injured and sidelined for many weeks. A game of Hundley's I remember vividly was an overtime win against a Cleveland Browns team who would go on to finish 0-16, which showed how messed up the Packers were without Rodgers at the helm.

So Hundley was behind the wheel, and...well...it was something. The Vipers led at the half, but it was 6-0 and that was on a DeAndre Torrey run. Hundley ended up throwing for 98 yards. No touchdowns, but no interceptions. Even so, that's a low QBR (75.7). And for the second straight week, the Vipers ended up losing a game after leading at halftime. A field goal in the third, followed by a 15-point fourth, and that results in an 18-6 win for the Defenders. The Vipers are 0-2, and that's not good in any football league, let alone one with only 10 games in it.

The Week 2 Sunday double dip began with the Orlando Guardians hosting the San Antonio Brahmas, the only brand-new team in this league. The Bramhas were coming off that tough loss in Week 1, and they definitely took that personally. It was 6-6 after the first quarter, but the Brahams exploded afterwards. They never looked back. They completely dominated the Guardians the rest of the way, and it resulted in a 30-12 win for San Antonio, their first of the season. I was very happy for the Brahmas, and the reason is summed up in two words: Hines Ward.

I was a big fan of Hines Ward when he played. A legend from the Pittsburgh Steelers, one of their best receivers, and was also the MVP of Super Bowl XL. I beamed when I saw his name among the octet of XFL head coaches this year, and he has former teammate Joey Porter as his linebackers coach. The two games that have come and gone were Ward's very first as head coach, and he's 1-1. Very excellent.

The week ended with a battle between two teams who won in Week 1: the Arlington Renegades and the Houston Roughnecks. Two teams with two legends coaching them: Bob Stoops (Renegades) and Wade Phillips (Roughnecks). The Roughnecks took an 11-0 lead into the fourth quarter, but the Renegades ended up taking a 14-11 lead at halftime. As I saw the score, I instantly thought, "Could Houston lose a game for the first time ever?" No. That would not happen. All the Roughnecks needed was a touchdown in the third, and one more in the fourth, resulting in a 23-14 win for the Roughnecks, who are still undefeated in their entire existence.

I know the season's only 20% finished, but it does look like the Roughnecks could win it all this season. They entered the season as the odds-on favorite to win it all, and it would be quite monumental if they actually fulfilled that goal. The city of Houston has been snake-bit so much when it comes to pro football. The Oilers won the first two AFL Championships, but that's the best they would ever do; they had never reached the Super Bowl in their entire tenure in Houston. The Texans are a mess; their playoff history consists of a number of Saturday Wild Card games and a failure to get past the Divisional Playoff. An XFL Championship would mark redemption for not only the city of Houston, but for Wade Phillips as well, as he and his father, the late, great Bum Phillips, are household names in Texas' largest city.

So here are the standings after two weeks. In the North Division, the DC Defenders and the St. Louis BattleHawks are 2-0, while the Seattle Sea Dragons and the Vegas Vipers are 0-2. In the South Division, the Houston Roughnecks are 2-0, the Arlington Renegades and the San Antonio Brahmas are both 1-1, and the Orlando Guardians are 0-2. Week 2 was terrific, just like the opening week, but now, things are about to get interesting.

Week 3 begins with a Saturday matchup between the Seattle Sea Dragons and the Vegas Vipers, where somebody has to win. The rest of the schedule occurs on a Sunday; first off, the DC Defenders host the St. Louis BattleHawks in a battle of unbeatens. Next up, the Arlington Renegades host the Orlando Guardians, and the week will conclude with the Houston Roughnecks hosting the San Antonio Brahmas.

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