The Birmingham Stallions continued their tradition of never losing 2 games in a row by bouncing back from a week 1 loss with a 21-12 win over Michigan, taking back the top spot of the USFL Conference. In the XFL Conference, the dynamic feels completely different than it did when San Antonio won the XFL Conference Title match. Now San Antonio is the only winless team in the conference, while all other XFL teams are undefeated after 2 weeks.
The Crown Holder and the Court Jester
Crown Holder 👑 – The DC Defenders retained the Crown by defeating the Memphis Showboats 17-12.
Court Jester 🃏 – The Houston Roughnecks remain the Court Jester after losing to the Arlington Renegades 11-9, extending their losing streak to 8 games.
If a team defeats the Crown Holder, they steal the Crown and become the new Crown Holder.
If a team loses to the Court Jester, they become the new Court Jester, thus freeing the previous team from being the Court Jester.
1. St. Louis Battlehawks (2-0, 465 JP)
- Previous rank: #1
- Week 2 Result: Defeated San Antonio 26-9 at home
- Week 2 Synopsis: St. Louis continued their strong start with a convincing 26-9 win over San Antonio. Manny Wilkins led the offense with 162 passing yards and 58 rushing yards, while the defense held the Brahmas to just 9 points.
- High Point: Jacob Saylors’ hat trick of rushing touchdowns was the icing on a very dominant win.
- Low Point: There were 4 rushing plays over 15 yards allowed from their opponent.
- UFL Week 2: UFLNH Team of the Week Honorees:
- 1st Team: QB Manny Wilkins, RB Jacob Saylors, LT Jaryd Jones-Smith, RG Abdul Beecham, RT Juwann Bushell-Beatty, DE Pita Taumoepenu, K Rodrigo Blankenship (7 players)
- 2nd Team: CB Chris Payton-Jones (1 player)
- Total Players Named: 8
- Jon Points Heading into Week 2: 390; Week 2 Impact: +75; After Week 2: 465
- St. Louis dominated San Antonio, gaining 25 Jon Points for the win and stealing an additional 30 JP from the Brahmas for their strong performance, plus 20 for being week 2’s most complete team.
2. Birmingham Stallions (1-1, 460 JP)
- Previous rank: #6
- Week 2 Result: Defeated Michigan 21-12 on the road
- Week 2 Synopsis: Birmingham rebounded from their Week 1 loss with a 21-12 win over Michigan. Matt Corral stepped in for the injured Alex McGough and threw for 198 yards and a touchdown with 2 interceptions.
- High Point: The defense kept Michigan off the scoreboard for the first 3 quarters, with the pinnacle being 4 run stops in a row when Michigan had a 1st and goal opportunity at the 2 yard line in the 3rd quarter.
- Low Point: Losing quarterback Alex McGough to injury and subsequently to IR is a big loss, although Birmingham does have a deep quarterback room.
- UFL Week 2: UFLNH Team of the Week Honorees:
- 1st Team: WR Deon Cain, DE Bradlee Anae, S A.J. Thomas (3 players)
- 2nd Team: DE Ronnie Perkins, LB DeMarquis Gates, Returner Deon Cain (3 players, noting Deon Cain appears twice)
- Total Players Named: 5 (counting Deon Cain once per category)
- Jon Points Heading into Week 2: 265; Week 2 Impact: +195; After Week 2: 460
- Birmingham gained 25 JP for the win and stole 20 JP from Michigan, plus 150 points from their temporary penalty of Jon Points being lifted with the offensive line now playing more cohesively.
3. Michigan Panthers (1-1, 340 JP)
- Previous rank: #2
- Week 2 Result: Lost to Birmingham 21-12 at home
- Week 2 Synopsis: Michigan fell to Birmingham 21-12 in a game where their offense struggled to find rhythm against Birmingham’s pass rush. Bryce Perkins threw for 132 yards but was intercepted once.
- High Point: Cornerback D.J. Miller saw 6 targets come his way, and only 1 resulted in a completion while he generated 2 interceptions.
- Low Point: Failing to score in the first three quarters.
- UFL Week 2: UFLNH Team of the Week Honorees:
- 1st Team: C Noah Johnson, CB D.J. Miller Jr., S Kai Nacua (3 players)
- 2nd Team: TE Gunnar Oakes, DE Kenny Willekes (2 players)
- Total Players Named: 5
- Jon Points Heading into Week 2: 385; Week 2 Impact: -45; After Week 2: 340
- Michigan lost 25 JP for the defeat and had 20 JP stolen by Birmingham.
4. Arlington Renegades (2-0, 325 JP)
- Previous rank: #3
- Week 2 Result: Defeated Houston 11-9 at home
- Week 2 Synopsis: Arlington edged out a narrow 11-9 victory over Houston in a low-scoring affair. Luis Perez’s 211 passing yards and a late touchdown to Deontay Burnett sealed the win.
- High Point: The defense held Houston to just 9 points, including a crucial stop in the fourth quarter.
- Low Point: Struggling to score, managing only 11 points against the league’s weakest team.
- UFL Week 2: UFLNH Team of the Week Honorees:
- 1st Team: TE Sal Cannella, CB Ajene Harris, P Marquette King (3 players)
- 2nd Team: QB Luis Perez, LG Marcus Minor, C Jake Johanning, LB Donald Payne (4 players)
- Total Players Named: 7
- Jon Points Heading into Week 2: 300; Week 2 Impact: +25; After Week 2: 325
- Arlington gained 25 JP for the win but stole 0 JP from Houston, who had no points to give.
5. DC Defenders (2-0, 320 JP) 👑
- Previous rank: #4
- Week 2 Result: Defeated Memphis 17-12 on the road
- Week 2 Synopsis: DC secured a hard-fought 17-12 win over Memphis, with Jordan Ta’amu throwing for 152 yards and a touchdown. The defense stepped up, limiting Memphis to 12 points.
- High Point: A late touchdown pass to Ben Bresnahan to take the lead in the fourth quarter.
- Low Point: Missed opportunities in the passing game such on a few deep passes with open receivers the accuracy was not there and on another play that looked to have touchdown potential the pass was dropped.
- UFL Week 2: UFLNH Team of the Week Honorees:
- 1st Team: DT Joe Wallace, DT Devonnsha Maxwell, LB Momo Sanogo (3 players)
- 2nd Team: WR Ty Scott, RG Johari Branch, LB Anthony Hines III, S Markel Roby, K Matt McCrane (5 players)
- Total Players Named: 8
- Jon Points Heading into Week 2: 290; Week 2 Impact: +30; After Week 2: 320
- DC gained 25 JP for the win and stole 5 JP from Memphis.
6. San Antonio Brahmas (0-2, 225 JP)
- Previous rank: #5
- Week 2 Result: Lost to St. Louis 26-9 on the road
- Week 2 Synopsis: San Antonio’s struggles continued with a 26-9 loss to St. Louis. Kellen Mond threw for 129 yards with 1 interception in a game in which the offense could not find the end zone.
- High Point: Tavente Beckett’s 8-tackle performance, including 6 run stops.
- Low Point: Failing to score a touchdown. San Antonio has scored exactly 9 points in each of their first 2 games.
- UFL Week 2: UFLNH Team of the Week Honorees:
- 1st Team: WR Jontre Kirklin, LB Tavante Beckett, Returner Anthony McFarland (3 players)
- 2nd Team: RB Anthony McFarland, WR Jacob Harris, S Jordan Mosley, P Brad Wing (4 players)
- Total Players Named: 6 (counting Anthony McFarland once per category)
- Jon Points Heading into Week 2: 280; Week 2 Impact: -55; After Week 2: 225
- San Antonio lost 25 JP for the defeat and had 30 JP stolen by St. Louis.
7. Memphis Showboats (0-2, 20 JP)
- Previous rank: #7
- Week 2 Result: Lost to DC 17-12 at home
- Week 2 Synopsis: Memphis put up a fight but ultimately fell 17-12 to DC. E.J. Perry threw for 205 yards, which was impressive considering the frequent pressure, although there was 1 interception. The defense played a great game until the Defenders had a late offensive surge.
- High Point: Jonathan Adams’s 128 receiving yards on 9 catches.
- Low Point: Inconsistent play in the run game. There were some successful plays on the ground, but the rate at which the Defenders were getting stops was high.
- UFL Week 2: UFLNH Team of the Week Honorees:
- 1st Team: WR Jonathan Adams, LB Zeke Vandenburgh (2 players)
- 2nd Team: LT James Tunstall, DT P.J. Hall, CB Lance Boykin (3 players)
- Total Players Named: 5
- Jon Points Heading into Week 2: 25; Week 2 Impact: -5; After Week 2: 20
- Memphis lost 25 JP for the loss and had 5 JP stolen by DC.
8. Houston Roughnecks (0-2, 0 JP) 🃏
- Previous rank: #8
- Week 2 Result: Lost to Arlington 11-9 on the road
- Week 2 Synopsis: Houston’s woes continued with a narrow 11-9 loss to Arlington. Anthony Brown threw for 146 yards and a touchdown but was intercepted once, and the offense couldn’t muster enough points.
- High Point: Holding Arlington’s high-powered offense to just 11 points was Houston’s best game defensively since week 4 last year, which saw them defeat Arlington 17-9.
- Low Point: The passing game looked very rough, with the bright spot being at the end when Anthony Brown went 4 for 7 on his passes for 60 yards and a touchdown on the final drive. The low production in the passing game was paired with the near nonexistence of a presence of a rushing game.
- UFL Week 2: UFLNH Team of the Week Honorees:
- 1st Team: None
- 2nd Team: WR Keke Chism, RT Cam Carter (2 players)
- Total Players Named: 2
- Jon Points Heading into Week 2: 0; Week 2 Impact: 0; After Week 2: 0
- Houston lost 25 Jon Points for the loss, but since they were at 0, they remain at 0.
