XFL Week 2 Power Rankings 2020: Houston Roughnecks, DC Defenders Are Top Teams After Week 1

The 2020 XFL season got underway with a pair of games on Saturday and Sunday. It’s difficult to make any concrete judgments after Week 1, but some teams and players were certainly more impressive than others.

Here are power rankings for every team heading into Week 2 of the 2020 XFL season.

1) Houston Roughnecks (1-0)

Houston tied for the biggest margin of victory and led all teams with 37 points. P.J. Walker was the Week 1 breakout star, throwing for a league-high 272 yards and four touchdowns. The Roughnecks can rush the passer with former Carolina Panther Kony Ealy leading the way. Houston might have as much talent as any team in the entire league.

2) DC Defenders (1-0)

The Defenders were impressive in all three phases of the game. Cardale Jones led all quarterbacks with a 116.7 passer rating, throwing for 235 yards and two touchdowns without an interception. One of DC’s two interceptions was returned for a touchdown. The Defenders also blocked a punt for a score.

3) New York Guardians (1-0)

New York had the easiest win of Week 1, and they did it against a team that was considered to be one of the XFL’s best. The Guardians didn’t allow a touchdown in their 23-3 victory over the Vipers, leading by at least two scores for the game’s final 43 minutes and 29 seconds. Matt McGloin had a solid effort at quarterback.

4) St. Louis BattleHawks (1-0)

St. Louis was the only road team to win in Week 1. The BattleHawks had the most balanced offensive attack. Quarterback Jordan Ta’amu went 20-27 for 209 yards. He combined with Matt Jones to total 162 yards on the ground. All those yards only resulted in 15 points as St. Louis upset Dallas and its backup quarterback.

5) Dallas Renegades (0-1)

The Renegades started the season as the XFL favorites, in large part because of quarterback Landry Jones and former Oklahoma head coach Bob Stoops. Jones didn’t play in the opener because of a knee injury. Backup quarterback Philip Nelson led Dallas to just nine points. Lets see how the Renegades look in Week 2 with the former Pittsburgh Steelers’ signal caller under center.

6) Tampa Bay Vipers (0-1)

Aaron Murray had a discouraging performance, throwing two interceptions and completing less than half of his 34 attempts. The Vipers could have a viable backup option in Quinton Flowers, who saw some action against the Guardians. Tampa Bay outgained New York by 168 yards and averaged 5.0 yards per carry.

7) Los Angeles Wildcats (0-1)

Like Dallas, Los Angeles struggled without their starting quarterback. With Josh Johnson sidelined because of a knee injury, Charles Kanoff and Jalan McClendon went a combined 22-44 for 214 yards and two interceptions. Shawn Oakman was the only Wildcat that had a sack or a quarterback hit in a 37-17 loss.

8) Seattle Dragons (0-1)

Seattle didn’t do anything to change their preseason projection as the worst team in the XFL. Quarterback Brandon Silvers did manage to throw for three scores. He was also picked off twice and averaged 5.4 yards per attempt. The Dragons’ defense surrendered the highest passer rating.