DC Defenders Dismantle Dallas, Cruise to 24-6 Home Win

This weekend’s UFL Saturday matinee featured two teams trending in completely opposite directions as the DC Defenders hosted the Dallas Renegades at Audi Field in Washington, D.C..

The Defenders came in riding a four-game winning streak after dropping their week one matchup with St. Louis. They are coming off a blowout win over Birmingham on the road, 45-28, as QB Jordan Ta’amu continues to find his stride with much-improved play the last two weeks. Ta’amu earned the UFL Offensive Player of the Week award twice the past two weeks.

Meanwhile, Dallas is coming off their worst-performance of the season as they lost to Louisville in an embarrassing effort.

Let’s find out how this tantalizing-matchup in the nation’s capital played out.

First Quarter

Derick Roberson returned to the lineup this week after missing one game with an injury. Roberson and the DC front-seven immediately made their presence felt as Austin Reed was forced to exit the game after Joe Wallace committed a personal foul on a brutal roughing the passer penalty on third down. Luke Lehnen entered the game for Dallas and made an impact with a long-scramble to put the ball into DC territory. Reed quickly returned for Dallas, but was unable to sustain the drive after Tyler Vaughns dropped a potential first-down. Dallas then went on to miss the field goal attempt.

The Defenders wasted no time with their opening possession, as Jordan Ta’amu led DC into the red-zone and finished off the drive with a seven-yard touchdown pass to Erik Ezukanma to open the scoring.

After stopping Dallas once again, DC took over and marched down the field for their second-consecutive touchdown of the first quarter, as Ta’amu found tight end Mason Fairchild in the flats for a 13-yard touchdown.

Second Quarter

Following a Deandre Baker interception on Austin Reed, the Defenders aerial attack was once again on display as Ta’amu threw it up for Cornell Powell in the end-zone and Powell did the rest on a jaw-dropping one-handed grab over a Dallas defender.

With the Defenders out to a dominant 21-0 lead over Dallas, the Renegades were incapable of doing anything on offense as the Defenders defense was dominant at the line of scrimmage from the opening whistle. The DC secondary also played tremendously, holding Renegades wide receiver Tyler Vaughns to five catches on 11 targets for 39 yards.

Matthew McCrane added a 56-yard field goal before the half ended to pull the Defenders further away from Dallas, leading 24-0 at halftime.

Second Half

Not much changed for Dallas in the second half, but they were able to strike first in the third quarter as Reed found Vaughns on an extended play to put their first points on the board. Dallas failed to convert the two-point conversion.

Even with an 18-point lead for DC, in the UFL it is still a two-possession game with the ability to go for a three-point attempt following a touchdown.

DC was well aware of this and kept their foot on the gas, as they surprised Dallas with a fake punt play to linebacker Ferrod Gardner and converted the first-down with the extra-effort.

The Defenders had another trick up their sleeve on the same drive, as Ta’amu tried to find offensive lineman Johari Branch on a play-action pop-pass but was intercepted by Qwynnterrio Cole on the lofty attempt.

The Renegades were once again unable to do anything with the opportunity on offense and ultimately fell to the defending champions on the road, 24-6.

Final Thoughts

The Defenders remain as the hottest-team in the UFL and move to 5-1, as they look ahead to a matchup with the Louisville Kings next week at home.

Meanwhile, the Renegades must find a way to right the ship after now dropping their third game in a row. Austin Reed’s struggles continued this week and it is beginning to spread to the rest of the roster…

Dallas will continue their road trip next week as they take on the Birmingham Stallions at Protective Stadium.Did you enjoy this game between the DC Defenders and Dallas Renegades? Which players impressed you the most? Let us know down in the comments below, or join the conversation on Discord!