Seattle Sea Dragons (6-3) at St. Louis Battlehawks (6-3)
In Week 9, the Seattle Sea Dragons faced the St. Louis Battlehawks in a matchup between two of the league’s best with heavy implications on playoff seeding. After one of their best performances of the season, the Sea Dragons came away with a win, keeping hopes alive for a potential playoff run.
Top Performers
Offense
QB – Ben DiNucci
WR – Jahcour Pearson
RB – T.J. Hammonds
Honorable Mention(s): WR – Jordan Veasey, WR – Josh Gordon, WR – Juwan Green
Defense
S – Bryce Thompson
S – Qwynnterrio Cole
DT – Tariqious Tisdale
Honorable Mention(s): DE – Niko Lalos, OLB – Tuzar Skipper, CB – Mykael Wright
Stats
Offensive Stats
Passing
##
Seattle Sea Dragons
Comp/Att (%)
Yds
TD
Int
LG
Sack – Yds
6
Ben DiNucci
21/31 (67.7 % Comp)
260
2
1
68
2-12
##
Team
21/31 (67.7 % Comp)
260
2
1
68
2-12
Rushing
##
Seattle Sea Dragons
Att
Yds
Avg
TD
LG
19
T.J. Hammonds
7
59
8.4
1
19
6
Ben DiNucci
7
38
5.4
1
14
30
Phillip Lindsay
10
17
1.7
0
8
89
Charlie Taumoepeau
2
9
4.5
0
7
##
Team
26
123
0.0
2
19
Receiving
##
Seattle Sea Dragons
Rec
Yds
Avg
TD
LG
Tgts
3
Jahcour Pearson
7
115
16.4
1
68
8
0
Josh Gordon
2
46
23.0
0
52
4
4
Juwan Green
2
30
15.0
0
16
4
86
Kelvin McKnight
1
18
18.0
0
18
1
89
Charlie Taumoepeau
1
17
17.0
0
17
1
80
Blake Jackson
2
15
7.5
0
10
5
88
Jordan Veasy
2
9
4.5
1
7
4
15
Damion Willis
1
5
5.0
0
5
1
19
T.J. Hammonds
2
3
1.5
0
7
2
30
Phillip Lindsay
1
2
2.0
0
2
1
##
Team
21
260
0.0
2
68
31
Fumbles
##
Seattle Sea Dragons
Fum
Lost
Rec
##
Team
0
0
0
Defensive Stats
##
Seattle Sea Dragons
Solo
Ast
Total
Sacks – Yds
TFL
INT
FF
FR
1
Bryce Thompson
5
2
7
0-0
2
1
0
0
16
Mykael Wright
5
0
5
0-0
0
0
0
0
2
Antoine Brooks
4
1
5
0-0
0
0
0
0
97
Niko Lalos
2
2
4
1-4
1
0
0
0
8
Tre Walker
0
4
4
0-0
0
0
0
0
53
Tyrell Adams
3
1
4
0-0
0
0
0
0
32
Qwynnterrio Cole
1
1
2
0-0
0
1
0
0
51
Tuzar Skipper
2
0
2
1-1
1
0
0
0
48
Shareef Miller
1
1
2
0-0
0
0
0
0
33
Alijah Holder
0
2
2
0-0
0
0
0
0
99
Tariqious Tisdale
2
0
2
2-10
2
0
0
0
58
Austin Faoliu
0
1
1
0-0
0
0
0
0
5
Chris Payton-Jones
1
0
1
0-0
0
0
0
0
9
Clarence Hicks
0
1
1
0-0
0
0
0
0
##
TEAM
26
16
42
4-15
6
2
0
0
Thoughts & Performance Grade
In Week 9, the Seattle Sea Dragons traveled to St. Louis to face the Battlehawks in a matchup with serious playoff implications. While the Battlehawks made it a game, the Sea Dragons played some of their best football of the year, staying in the driver’s seat, keeping the penalties to a minimum, and coming away with the win. Seattle keeps their playoff hopes alive for another week, but they still have an uphill battle to secure a playoff spot.
Ben DiNucci continued to play smart football, making great plays with his arm and legs throughout the game. He completed 67.7% of his passes and threw for 2 touchdowns, with his lone interception coming on a deep bomb, when the offense should have probably been trying to kill clock. Additionally, DiNucci ran for 38 yards and a touchdown on the day.
Seattle’s wide receiving core continued to show why they’re the best in the XFL, headlined by Jahcour Pearson having another fantastic game. Pearson totaled 7 catches for 115 yards and 1 touchdown on the day, spinning out of tackles and fighting for extra yards at every opportunity. The ground game was also productive, with T.J. Hammonds and Phillip Lindsay splitting carries for the majority of the game.
Defensively, this might have been Seattle’s best performance of the year. With some of the hits we saw, it sure felt like a playoff game. Seattle safety Bryce Thompson was playing out of his mind, blowing up multiple plays behind the line, flinging himself at opposing players like a missile.
Defensive end Niko Lalos and outside linebacker Tuzar Skipper also played excellent games. However, one of the best performances of the game came from defensive tackle Tariqious Tisdale, who joined the team just this last Wednesday. Creating a pass rush has been somewhat of an issue for Seattle throughout the season, but Tisdale recorded 2 sacks on the day and moved the Battlehawks back 10 yards.
Final Thoughts
Seattle is getting hot at the right time, Ben DiNucci continues to improve by the week, and the receiving core continues to dominate. Between DiNucci’s legs and Seattle’s fleet of running backs, the ground game is also becoming more consistent. The Sea Dragons were also extremely more disciplined than they had been in past weeks, totaling only 3 penalties on the day. While it’s still an uphill battle to secure a spot in the post-season, a win against the Vegas Vipers in Week 10 makes that very possible with some additional tie-breakers.
