It all comes down to this for the DC Defenders and the St. Louis Battlehawks. Whoever hoists the XFL Conference Championship trophy at the end of the game will stamp their tickets to the UFL Championship.
The Battlehawks will receive the home advantage at The Dome, but DC has had their number on the road in the past. The Defenders comes into the game with a different kind of struggle. Over the weekend Kelvin Joseph was arrested and charged after a fatal accident in Richardson, TX.
These two teams met just last week, but it’s hardly an indicator of what we’ll see on the field today. Both teams let a good amount of their players rest. It was also a game plagued with rain and a messy turf for duration of the matchup. Today, we’ll see who is the best of the best in the XFL.
Whoever wins will take on the Michigan Panthers who took out the Stallions earlier today to move onto the UFL Championship.
First Quarter
Jordan Ta’amu and the DC Defenders would take the field first, giving them a shot to strike early. It wasn’t going to be an easy task. The Dome was loud and the Battlehawks defense came to play. A quick three and out forced them to punt it away.
A costly penalty on the return put St Louis in a bad spot to start out their drive, pinned against their own endzone. When it looked like the Battlehawks would need to punt it away, Max Duggan broke free with an explosive run to move the chains in a big way.
The next play showed how quickly momentum could swing. Duggan dropped the ball on the pass and it was nearly recovered by DC. This 10-yard loss was too much to overcome and they had to punt it off.
Chris Rowland knew the mission on the next drive. He came up clutch on a few occasions, ultimately moving them past mid-field. On the next play Seth Williams pulled in the long ball from Ta’amu to put the Defenders on the board.
DC couldn’t convert the extra-point, but they now held a 6-0 lead on the road.
St. Louis wasn’t going to take a beating easily. Jacob Saylors showcased his skills on this drive, securing a few first downs. Duggan also continued using his legs, both proving to be a successful mix to move the offense.
DC started applying more pressure on defense near mid-field and forced another scoreless drive for the Battlehawks.
Nobody ever said this game was going to be easy. The Battlehawks defense came out strong and it almost looked like they were going to stop DC from producing.
Ta’amu is on the shortlist for MVP and these are the exact scenarios that explain why. When pinned against the wall, he finds a way. He was able to sling the ball and get his team moving down the field to keep the drive alive.
Another quick pass moved the chains further ahead and rounded out the first quarter with DC on the hunt.
Second Quarter
Abram Smith started out the second quarter with a solid run to keep the chains moving.
DC was starting to find their rhythm on this drive, marching down the field one pass at a time. Deon Jackson had an impressive 20-yard rush to put the Defenders 2-yards from another score.
Nothing could stop Deon Jackson, including on the next play where he bulldozed his way to the endzone.
They opted for two, to make up the lost points on the earlier drive. Cornell Powell pulled it in near the back of the endzone to give them a 14-0 lead over the Battlehawks.
The Battlehawks we’re starting to fall behind, and if they wanted to dig themselves out of a hole they want to start now. Max Duggan came into this drive continuing to use his legs to the teams advantage.
Between Duggan and Jacob Saylors, they were responsible for most of the meaningful yards on the teams so far. They found themselves at midfield again, but they also stalled out and were forced to punt it away.
A penalty after the punt pinned the Defenders against the endzone, but it didn’t stop Ta’amu from getting them out of the hole.
It also didn’t take long for Deon Jackson to start making plays. He continued showing up for DC to keep the driving moving.
The Battlehawks weren’t giving up just yet. Myles Jones picked off Ta’amu for the first turnover of the game. This gave St. Louis great field position and a shot to get on the board.
The next play saw the Defenders commit pass interference and put St. Louis at 1st & Goal from the goal line. Max Duggan handed it off to Jacob Saylors for their first touchdown of the night.
Coach Becht opted for a 1-point conversion, but the Defenders would not allow them back in the endzone.
DC had the ball and 3:10 to respond before we head to halftime.
Seth Williams put in work to keep the Defenders moving and bring them to the 2-minute warning. DC found themselves at 4th & 2 with 1:10 on the clock and decided to go for three. Matt McCrane came out and knocked it in from 34-yards to make it 17-6 nearing the end of the half.
DC did not let up. With 30-seconds left the defense came up with a HUGE sack, resulting in a fumble recovery for the Defenders.
This put them in prime scoring position, but due to poor clock management they had to bring out the kicking unit. Matt McCrane came back out and secured three more points from 41-yards out.
St. Louis received the ball, but the kickoff ran out the clock and led us into the half.
Third Quarter
St. Louis received the kickoff to start out the second half and Brandon Silvers was tapped to takeover as QB to start things out. When Coach Becht was asked about the change he said the team needed a spark to get the offense going.
Although it was early, it definitely felt like a more optimised offense. Quickly Silvers was able to move the team to midfield, looking to keep them in this. They were stuck at 4th & 6, but with everything on the line Coach Becht decided to go for it.
Silvers couldn’t connect with his receiver, but Coach Becht didn’t like what he saw on the field. He decided to throw a Super Challenge stating there should have been pass interference.
Mike Pereira reviewed the play, but didn’t find anything out of sorts. DC now had the ball, and the Battlehawks lose the challenge and a timeout in the process.
Ta’amu and the Defenders were back in charge and were starting out with great field position. Deon Jackson continued where he left off in the first half, coming in clutch. Jaydon Micken also found some solid reps during the drive to keep the ball moving.
A flea flicker put the Defenders back at first and goal after a huge pass to Cornell Powell. Abrams Smith drove it into the endzone on the next play to extend the Defenders lead to 26-6.
DC couldn’t convert the extra point, but they were still pleased to have a 20-point lead with 7:18 to go in the third.
Silvers and the Battlehawks came back on the field, but they had to start getting more points if they wanted to come back. Jahcour Pearson came up with a big play, keeping their hopes aline near the 30.
Jacob Saylors stayed on the grind which allowed them to get even closer to striking distance. On 3rd down and 15-yards out, Silvers connected with Hakeem Butler with the one-handed catch to secure another Battlehawks touchdown.
St. Louis could not secure the 2-point conversion, but they were working in the right direction. Silvers took a big hit during the play and was later shown heading to the injury tent.
STL was back within 2 scores, but they may need to do it without Brandon Silvers. DC, on the other hand, was back on the field hoping to negate the Battlehawks previous score.
The Defenders heavily utilized the running game on this drive. It was effective in gaining yards, but was also great in running time off of the clock. Between Deon Jackson and Abrams Smith, it felt like the chains were moving on every other play.
They did so well that they found themselves at first and goal heading into the final quarter of the game.
Fourth Quarter
Deon Jackson wasted no time putting more points on the board. He found a gap and grabbed another Defenders touchdown to start things out.
Abrams Smith grabbed another on the 1-point conversion giving DC a solid 34-12 lead with one quarter to go.
Things were looking diar for the Battlehawks, it was now of never. Brandon Silvers was ruled out for the rest of the game with a shoulder injury, bringing Max Duggan back in the game.
They just couldn’t find their rhythm today, and this drive was no different. DC’s defense did not give them a break and forced another punt.
The Defenders were back on the field, and they were looking to close it out. They drew a lot of time, but didn’t leave without more points. Matt McCrane eventually came out for the 32-yard attempt to put three more on the board for DC.
There didn’t seem to be anything St. Louis could do. They wouldn’t go down without a fight, but DC was clearly leaving ac the victor. Frank Darby shined with a 37-yard reception to move the Battlehawks down the field. A costly DC penalty put STL at the goal line with a chance to grab a touchdown.
Max Duggan finally scored on 4th down, narrowing the lead, but they also ran a lot of time off the clock in the process.
The DC Defenders came into this game and didn’t look back as they marched towards the UFL Championship. The home team advantage at The Dome wasn’t a factor in the Battlehawks efforts against DC. St. Louis is heading back into the offseason in the same fashion as last year and DC will return to The Dome next weekend where they’ll take on the Michigan Panthers in the championship.
The championship is set looks to be a good one. It’s a showcase of the two quarterbacks on the shortlist for MVP, and we’re expecting both teams to put everything on the line in the biggest game of the season.
Are you picking the DC Defenders or the Michigan Panthers in the UFL Championship? Let us know down in the comments below or join the conversation on Discord.
