DC Defenders XFL Season Preview: Predictions & Best Bets
The 2020 XFL season will kick-off once again this weekend as there is more football to watch a week after the biggest game of them all, the Super Bowl. It may have taken a 20-year hiatus, but the XFL is coming back with eight brand new franchisees ready to take over the football industry. One of those teams being the DC Defenders who will be playing out of Audi Field, home of the MLS DC United. Let’s dive straight into the DC Defenders XFL Season Preview. Looking for game predictions? Check out our XFL Predictions now!
DC Defenders Head Coach
The Defenders will be led out of the tunnel each day by Pep Hamilton who is ready to score and score often every weekend of the XFL. Hamilton is most known for his coaching experience with successful offenses such as Andrew Luck at Stanford and with the Colts. Even though Hamilton is the coach, do expect him to call the offensive plays just like Sean McVay with the Rams.
DC Defenders Key Players
QB Cardale Jones: The QB who most likely has the best chance of getting back to the NFL, Cardale Jones will be using his giant 6’5″ 250 lbs. size to stay in the pocket and let loose of his cannon of an arm. Jones was a member of the Buffalo Bills and Los Angeles Chargers but has yet to see any life professional action it quite some time.
WR Eli Rodgers: The connection between Jones and WR Eli Rodgers will be un-real in the XFL as Rodgers has atop a lot of XFL players in terms of playing time in the NFL. Rodgers had three great years with the Pittsburgh Steelers in which he brought in 78 passes for 822 yards with four touchdown receptions.
RB Donnel Pumphrey: To meet the expectations of this fast-paced league, the Defenders decided to bring in running back Donnel Pumphrey to complete the offense. Remember, Pumphrey is the all-time leading rushing for division 1 football. He will most likely go down as one of the best San Diego State Aztecs ever in school history as he finished three years with a total of 6,405 yards rushing with 62 rushing touchdowns.
DC Defenders Win Total: O/U 5.5 Wins
Losing does not come very often for QB Cardale Jones as he did not lose a single game with OSU. He is already one of the top choices for XFL MVP as the Defenders have the talent to take this league by storm. The offense is loaded and so is the defense. They have the likes of Rahim Moore, Matt Elam and Shamarko Thomas who combine for 166 total starts in the NFL. I love this pick: BET: Over 5.5 Wins
DC Defenders Championship Odds (+450)
The DC Defenders have everything to make a championship run and it starts with the coaching experience. DC has a handful of coaches to lead this potential offensive power unit to the promised land and the value is there as well. With potentially winning the first two games off the bat, these odds will decrease. Take them now! BET: Defenders Championship +450
DC Defenders Full Roster
| No. | Name | Pos. | Ht. | Wt. | College |
| 1 | Thompkins, DeAndre | WR | 5’11” | 187 | Penn State |
| 2 | Rausa, Ty | K | 5’9″ | 189 | Boise State |
| 3 | Jackson, Tyree | QB | 6’7″ | 250 | Buffalo |
| 4 | Rogers, Eli | WR | 5’11” | 176 | Louisville |
| 7 | Niswander, Hunter | P | 6’5″ | 230 | Northwestern |
| 9 | Rowell, Jalen | WR | 6’4″ | Air Force | |
| 10 | Cobbs, Simmie | WR | 6’3″ | 220 | Indiana |
| 12 | Jones, Cardale | QB | 6’5″ | 264 | Ohio State |
| 15 | Ross, Rashad | WR | 6’0″ | 180 | Arizona State |
| 16 | Palka, Tyler | WR | 6’0″ | 197 | Gannon |
| 19 | Dupre, Malachi | WR | 6’4″ | 195 | Louisiana State |
| 20 | Merritt, Carlos | S | 6’0″ | 190 | Campbell |
| 21 | Grant, Doran | CB | 5’10” | 195 | Ohio State |
| 22 | Elam, Matt | S | 5’10” | 205 | Florida |
| 24 | Pumphrey, Donnel | RB | 5’8″ | 178 | San Diego State |
| 25 | Lawrence, Desmond | CB | 5’11” | 187 | North Carolina |
| 26 | Pressley, Jhurell | RB | 5’10” | 209 | New Mexico |
| 28 | Campbell, Elijah | CB | 5’11” | 192 | Northern Iowa |
| 29 | Kinnel, Tyree | S | 5’11” | 210 | Michigan |
| 30 | Sylve, Bradley | CB | 6’0″ | 172 | Alabama |
| 31 | Brossette, Nick | RB | 5’11” | 210 | Louisiana State |
| 32 | Abdullah, Khalid | RB | 5’9″ | 226 | James Madison |
| 38 | Thomas, Shamarko | S | 5’9″ | 205 | Syracuse |
| 42 | Khoury, Brian | DE | 6’3″ | 238 | Carnegie Mellon |
| 45 | Moore, Rahim | S | 6’1″ | 200 | UCLA |
| 51 | Johnson, Dorian | OG | 6’5″ | 291 | Pittsburgh |
| 52 | Celestin, Jonathan | LB | 6’0″ | 227 | Minnesota |
| 53 | Thurman, Jameer | LB | 6’0″ | 223 | Indiana State |
| 54 | Massaquoi, Jonathan | LB | 6’2″ | 265 | Troy |
| 55 | Williams, Antwione | LB | 6’3″ | 245 | Georgia Southern |
| 56 | Freeman, KeShun | DE | 6’2″ | 259 | Georgia Tech |
| 58 | Wright, Scooby | LB | 6’0″ | 228 | Arizona |
| 59 | Tarpley, A.J. | LB | 6’2″ | 225 | Stanford |
| 64 | Toth, Jon | OC | 6’5″ | 298 | Kentucky |
| 69 | Boozer, Cole | OT | 6’5″ | 306 | Temple |
| 72 | Tuley-Tillman, Logan | OT | 6’6″ | 308 | Texas-El Paso |
| 74 | Cook, Rishard | OG | 6’3″ | 364 | UAB |
| 75 | Brown, Chris | OG | 6’4″ | 315 | Southern California |
| 77 | O’Hagan, James | OC | 6’2″ | 299 | Buffalo |
| 78 | Bunche, Malcolm | OT | 6’6″ | 326 | UCLA |
| 79 | Wesley, De’Ondre | OT | 6’6″ | 320 | Brigham Young |
| 80 | Ernsberger, Donnie | TE | 6’3″ | 241 | Western Michigan |
| 85 | Hayward, Derrick | TE | 6’5″ | 260 | Maryland |
| 86 | Lee, Khari | TE | 6’4″ | 255 | Bowie State |
| 90 | Anau, Siupeli | DT | 6’2″ | 286 | Northern Arizona |
| 91 | Barnes, Tavaris | DE | 6’4″ | 267 | Clemson |
| 92 | Qualls, Elijah | DT | 6’1″ | 337 | Washington |
| 93 | Sprinkle, Tracy | DT | 6’2″ | 287 | Ohio State |
| 94 | Vakameilalo, Kalani | DT | 6’3″ | 322 | Oregon State |
| 95 | Bigelow, Kenny | DT | 6’3″ | 308 | West Virginia |
| 96 | Bromley, Jay | DT | 6’3″ | 297 | Syracuse |
| 99 | Montgomery, Sam | DE | 6’3″ | 248 | Louisiana State |
DC Defenders Logo
One quest. One purpose. One resolve.
Seeking glory through grit. Victory through valor.
Taking their stand February 2020: The DC Defenders. #XFLTeams pic.twitter.com/7Qzrd4hZM9
— United Football League (@TheUFL) August 21, 2019
DC Defenders 2020 Uniforms
INTRODUCING YOUR OFFICIAL DC DEFENDERS UNIFORMS 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/APTw0kGfp4
— D.C. Defenders (@XFLDefenders) December 3, 2019
Make sure to check out our weekly XFL Predictions as well as our XFL daily news! Cheers to another season of more football!
