Saturday of Week 1 in the UFL begins with a fearsome rivalry, as the defending champion DC Defenders visit the St. Louis Battlehawks at The Dome at America’s Center to open up the season.
For as much change as we’ve seen this season across the league, this matchup features two rosters that have not seen a significant overhaul.
For some Defenders players like Matt McCrane, Abram Smith, and Jordan Ta’amu, this will be the eighth time they’ve faced the Battlehawks since 2023. This time, St. Louis is led by a new head coach, as Ricky Proehl has taken over the role since Anthony Becht left for Orlando this offseason.
Overall, the Defenders lead the all-time series over the Battlehawks, 5-3 dating back to XFL 2020.
Let’s take a look at how these two squads match up against each other.
Quarterback Play
For the fourth consecutive season, the DC Defenders will be led by former Ole Miss QB Jordan Ta’amu, who has been a stalwart for this entire Defenders organization since his arrival in 2023.
Coming off of an excellent 2025 campaign where he led the UFL in passing touchdowns by a wide margin of eight scores, Ta’amu is aiming to build off of his career-year with the Defenders alongside head coach Shannon Harris and offensive coordinator Fred Kaiss.
Fun fact, Jordan Ta’amu is only 19 passing touchdowns away from breaking Jim Kelly’s all-time spring football record. Will he surpass Kelly this season? Time will tell.
For St. Louis, spring league veteran Brandon Silvers won the quarterback job over Harrison Frost in training camp and will be under center to start the season. Silvers is a pure pocket-passer who has seen his fair share of ups and downs, even dating back to AAF 2019 with the Memphis Express.
Last year, Silvers spent most of the season on the bench for St. Louis as he backed up Manny Wilkins and Max Duggan, but did see action in spurts during the final portion of the year (including the XFL Championship game against DC).
Standout Playmakers
Is it possible to start this topic without highlighting the star-studded DC Defenders wide receivers corps? No chance.
The Defenders are led at wideout by Ty Scott along with Keke Coutee, Cornell Powell, Seth Williams, Braylon Sanders, and Erik Ezukanma. The Defenders coaching staff did a tremendous job this offseason of surrounding Ta’amu with a plethora of targets that provide the offense more versatility. Expect a lot of rotation amongst this group. One major loss for DC this offseason was losing Chris Rowland during the draft process. Rowland was an all-around threat who saw at least ten touches a game including special teams, his production will not be easy to replace.
At running back, DC remains the same for the most part, as Deon Jackson and Abram Smith return for another spring season. Along with Jackson and Smith, Xazavian Valladay arrives as the only newcomer to the RB’s room.
Rounding out DC’s skill group we have the tight ends, which include Briley Moore returning for his fourth season, Mason Fairchild, and Ben Bresnahan.
Switching gears to St. Louis, similarly to DC they have a majority of their 2025 skills group returning this season led by none other than wide receiver Hakeem Butler. Behind Butler, the Battlehawks also retained Jahcour Pearson, Blake Jackson, Gary Jennings, and Frank Darby. The Battlehawks also signed former Brahma Justin Smith, Steven McBride, and Rahjai Harris.
When it comes to running backs, Battlehawks RB Jarveon Howard is a personal early dark-horse candidate for the league rushing title this season. Howard returns after rushing for 310 yards on 68 attempts (4.56 YPC) in 2025. He should be in line for an even larger role this season.
The tight ends spot for St. Louis will be worth monitoring, as they have just two on the roster currently with James Bostic and Tyler Neville. Neither Bostic or Neville have significant post-college football experience, though Bostic did spend a couple of training camps with the Battlehawks in the past.
Depth Chart
Takeaways for DC:
- From left to right: Duncan, Doss, Maietti, Branch, and Tarquin make up the starting offensive line.
- Azizi Hearn slotted to start over Deandre Baker this week, following Baker’s recent return to the team.
- Brian Abraham is listed as a DE (formerly LB).
- Boogie Basham set to start opposite Roberson.
Takeaways for St. Louis:
- AJ Thomas is listed as a LB (formerly a safety).
- Former Defender Michael Ojemudia is starting at outside cornerback.
- Nevelle Clarke is starting over Luq Barcoo.
Final Thoughts
If you plan on being at The Dome this weekend for this highly anticipated rivalry matchup, make sure to stay in your seat for the UFL Kickoff Halftime Show featuring Nelly and the St. Lunatics.
For an even deeper breakdown, check out my recent CP’s Sports Talk Podcast episode, where we preview this matchup with St. Louis and review the recent final cuts made by DC.
Are you excited for this upcoming game between the DC Defenders and St. Louis Battlehawks? Who will win? Let us know down in the comments below, or join the conversation on Discord!
