Dallas Renegades vs. St. Louis Battlehawks | Week Two Preview

The United Football League (UFL) is trying out some new things this year. Some of those unchartered waters include Tuesday Night Football, which will feature the Dallas Renegades and St. Louis Battlehawks in the first of its kind.

It’s the final UFL matchup of week two, and interestingly enough, we’ve got the results from the other three games already. Both the Dallas Renegades and St. Louis Battlehawks are 1-0, but only one can remain undefeated alongside the Orlando Storm.

Let’s take a look at what we can expect from these two familiar foes tomorrow night.

Quarterback Play

Austin Reed burst onto the scene in week one, taking everyone by surprise with his record setting performance. Reed threw for over 370 yards and three touchdowns, dominating from the very first snap – which was a 59 yard bomb to Tyler Vaughns. Reed is the perfect quarterback for spring football. He’s got a cannon for an arm, with incredible accuracy even when letting it rip deep. That said, he’s a smart decision maker, and can also use his legs to extend plays. It’ll be a bit of a challenge for him this week, though, facing off against a stout St. Louis defense.

The St. Louis Battlehawks feature the veteran presence of Brandon Silvers, who re-united with OC A.J. Smith this year. Silvers is more of a traditional pocket passer, who’s got a knack for getting the ball out of his hands quickly. He’s a great fit for Smith’s offensive scheme, one that likes to spread the ball around. Brandon is still dusting off the cobwebs, starting for the first time in a couple of seasons. Look for St. Louis to take some shots down the field, as Silvers attempts to take advantage of Dallas’ opportunistic corners.

Standout Playmakers

St. Louis will receive a major boost this week: Hakeem Butler is back. Butler needs no introduction, having been one of the top wideouts in spring football the last few years. Pair him up with Gary Jennings, Jahcour Pearson, and Frank Darby – and you’ve got a strong core of receivers who can make plays at all three levels.

The Battlehawks backfield is also underrated. Kevon Latulas has flashed early, taking a short screen pass for 40+ yards on one of the Battlehawks’ scoring drives. Look for him to get the ball early and often in this affair.

Tyler Vaughns is, undoubtedly, one of the most dynamic receivers we’ve seen in this space. His All-UFL campaign last year carried over into week one, where he recorded seven receptions for 144 yards and a touchdown. His ability to expose defensive flaws will be put to the test, going up against a defense that has quite a bit of talent in the secondary.

It was refreshing to see production out of Greg Ward Jr., as well. He was hampered last year in San Antonio due to instability offensively, plus some of the injuries he was battling through. Ward will need to have another impactful performance if Dallas wants to stay ahead of St. Louis at home.

Depth Chart Notes

There isn’t any major movement for either of these teams looking at the depth chart. In fact, Dallas’ looks copied and pasted from a week ago – they’ve made essentially no changes, and for good reason. After a 36-17 win like that, there’s not much to adjust.

For St. Louis, there’s a couple notable differences defensively. With Kameron Kelly placed on IR, Tayler Hawkins has taken the reins as the team’s starting strong safety. Hawkins spent time with the DC Defenders last year. Also, there is still no sign of Luq Barcoo, likely inactive again. With that in mind, Keylon Kennedy is making his season debut, having re-signed to the team last week.

St. Louis Defense vs. Dallas Offense

This has the potential to be one of the most exciting games in the UFL’s young season, strictly due to the way these two units played in week one.

On one hand, the Dallas Renegades were an unstoppable force offensively. OC Noel Mazzone had this group rolling, posting 36 points – with fireworks from the beginning to the end. Noel had success with the New Orleans Breakers in 2022, and is carrying that torch high with Dallas so far.

However, the Battlehawks showed that they’re no slouch defensively. Corey Chamblin put together a masterful performance, shutting down the mighty DC Defenders to just 10 points. They had Jordan Ta’amu rattled all game long, as Pita Taumoepenu led the charge up front. St. Louis sacked Ta’amu seven times. In fact, they contained the highest scoring offense in the UFL in 2025 to just 153 total yards. DC was just 3-10 on 3rd downs (30%), and they committed 12 penalties for 61 yards.

If St. Louis can replicate, at all, anything that they did against DC – they should be in a position to steal one on the road in Dallas. The Renegades will have to prepare for a fierce pass rush, and Austin Reed has to avoid getting into turnover trouble early.

What the Renegades have going for themselves: a better O-Line. DC’s unit was a mess in week one, while the Renegades were a cohesive group. That alone should help prevent St. Louis from totaling seven sacks again. Alex Akingbulu may need some assistance vs. Pita, so look for Dallas to chip Taumoepenu coming off the edge this week.

Coaching Matchup

St. Louis Battlehawks, Ricky Proehl: Proehl is the perfect replacement for Anthony Becht in St. Louis. He’s got spunk, energy, and knows how to fire up a team. He’s still got plenty to learn about what it means to be a Head Coach, but the former Carolina Panthers’ coach and St. Louis Rams WR is off to a good start at 1-0.

Dallas Renegades, Rick Neuheisel: Rick hadn’t coached in seven years prior to Saturday, but it didn’t look like it. He didn’t miss a beat, as the Renegades were the smoothest operated team of anyone in week one. Clearly, Rick’s coaching experience, and quality staff, has given Dallas an edge early over some of the other teams who are simply trying to figure it out.

Final Thoughts

Whatever happens Tuesday night, it’s bound to be an exciting game. Both of these teams have plenty of firepower on both sides of the football. While Dallas is home, St. Louis has a history of winning on the road. That said, they’ve yet to beat the Renegades in Dallas the last two seasons, as Bob Stoops’ got the final say in both of those affairs.

With the home field advantage for Dallas, we predict that the Renegades will be positioned to come away with a closely contested win over St. Louis at Toyota Stadium. To secure your tickets for Tuesday night’s matchup in Dallas, click here.

Full roster breakdowns: Dallas, St. Louis

Which team do you think will be more prepared on Tuesday? Are there players between the Battlehawks and Renegades that you’re excited to watch? Let us know down in the comments below, or join the conversation on Discord!