How ex-Jets players got on in week one of the XFL
This week represented the first week of the newly-rebooted XFL and, as was already documented, there were many ex-Jets players in action. Let's briefly recap how they got on.
DC Defenders 31 Seattle Dragons 19
Most of the the success from ex-Jets in this game came on the Seattle side, although Jon Toth started at center for the Defenders and Jonathan Celestin scored a touchdown on a blocked punt, while adding five tackles.
BLOCKED PUNT TD 💥😱 pic.twitter.com/Se8KiJDdnE
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) February 8, 2020
Brandon Silvers started at quarterback for Seattle, passing for 217 yards and two scores. However, he only completed 21 of 40 passes and had two interceptions including a pick-six.
69-yard pick six 🏡@xfl2020 getting exciting.pic.twitter.com/8HmaKN63Ll
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) February 8, 2020
Three defensive backs headlined Seattle's defensive contributions with Godwin Igwebuike racking up four tackles including two for loss and Jeremy Clark adding three tackles with one for loss. Santos Ramirez had a special teams tackle, which - in terms of NFL usefulness - might actually be more valuable for teams to see. Jacquies Smith's two tackles included a half sack.
L.A. Wildcats 17 Houston Roughnecks 37
Houston wide receivers Jalen Saunders and Jonah Trinnaman are on injured reserve so the ex-Jet who contributed the most to their win was Kony Ealy. The defensive end had five quarterback hits including half a sack and added three tackles with two for loss. Edmond Robinson had five tackles and a quarterback hit. De'Angelo Henderson lost six yards on his only offensive touch though.
For LA, defensive linemen Anthony Johnson and Trevon Sanders had two tackles each, with one of Sanders' tackles going for a loss. Linebacker Taiwan Jones added one tackle. On offense, tight end Brandon Barnes had a 27-yard catch and one other short catch. Nick Novak added a 35-yard field goal
NY Guardians 23 Tampa Bay Vipers 3
TJ Barnes was the player who contributed most to the Guardians' first win, making four tackles - all on runs that gained four yards or less.
A couple of ex-Jets made major contributions to the Vipers' passing game with Daniel Williams leading the way with 123 yards on six catches. Tight end Nick Trusdell caught three passes for 49 yards, including a juggling catch over the middle in traffic.
However, he lost a fumble that was returned for a touchdown and another pass to him was intercepted.
St Louis Battlehawks 15 Dallas Renegades 9
St Louis recently traded for two ex-Jets defensive backs - Robert Nelson and David Rivers - who combined for eight tackles in this game. Tight end Wes Saxton added a six yard catch.
Dallas recently waived Deon Simon, their highest profile ex-Jet. Cornerback Dashaun Phillips contributed three tackles for them.
We are not intending to do this every week, as we would anticipate a sharp drop-off in interest in the league soon, especially with week three coinciding with the scouting combine. However, we'll keep an eye on things and will at the very least update you on how these players performed at the end of the season.