Roughnecks, Renegades Win Again, Setting Up Week 4 Showdown

Published on 22-Feb-2020 by Sportbet Staff

Football - NFL    NFL Daily Update

Share this article


Roughnecks, Renegades Win Again, Setting Up Week 4 Showdown

The novelty of spring football, XFL Vanilla style, is holding steady after a mere two weeks.

Consider ratings for games featuring the two Texas franchises in Week 2:

  • The Dallas Renegades pulled in 2,397,000 viewers in their 25-18 victory over Los Angeles last Sunday on ABC, and
  • The Houston Roughnecks drew 1,359,000 viewers while beating St Louis in the late game on FS1.

 

They've done their bit again to heighten XFL interest around their parts of the country by scoring victories today in Week 3:

  • The Roughnecks handled a surprisingly feisty Tampa Bay Viper squad, 35-27, while
  • The Renegades topped those stagnant Seattle Dragons, 24-12.

The league needs to see more close games, and who knew the Vipers would be the side to oblige?

With expected star slinger Aaron Murray still sidelined by a foot injury, their tag-team QBs Quentin Flowers and Taylor Cornelius damn near matched budding XFL standout PJ Walker in moving their units up and down the field.

 

This means that, after 33.3% of the season, the XFL's still got an undefeated team, and Houston had to earn it.

The Renegades' path to victory on the road wasn't as challenging, but they provided the fireworks in Seattle because, with a second-straight turnstile count exceeding 20,000 at the home of the Seahawks, someone had to entertain the masses.

 

The Dragons offered a burst of hope in the early going, but Dallas responded by going on an 18-point tear that put them in control.

Landry Jones -- 30-41, 274 yards, 3 TDs, 2 INTs -- found 6-8 TE Donald Parham for two scores, one of which was a spiffy 65-yard connection. Dudes then turned the game and clock over to battering ram Cameron Artis-Payne to chew up 80 yards overland and 30 yards of catches to seal the deal:

 

The cities of Dallas and Houston are natural rivals of course -- just wait until the scandalout Astros meet the Rangers for the first time this season -- and while their clash next week won't be anywhere near a Cowboys-Texans confrontation, for a first-season spring football meeting, it'll do.

The XFL's overall ratings are comparing favorably to other sports programing, which cannot be ignored. Maybe Vince McMahon's gonna be the dude who's found a winning formula for spring football.

For that, he can bow in the direction of his commissioner, Oliver Luck, who nurtured the new rules that make the XFL unique.

 

Apparently so.