The Arlington Renegades face their most important game of the season in a divisional matchup Sunday night against the San Antonio Brahmas.
Arlington heads into the game with a 2-2 record coming off a loss on the road against the St. Louis Battlehawks 24-11. It was a game that saw the offense produce 240 total yards and four turnovers. The Renegades suffered their worst loss of the season as well as making them 0-2 on the road.
San Antonio suffered a similar fate against the Seattle Sea Dragons losing 15-6 as they moved to 1-3 on the season. The Brahmas are going through coaching changes on offense and have looked at their quarterback position as another possibility for change. They are in need of a win to stay in the hunt for second place in the south division.
Game Preview
Line: San Antonio -3, O/U 35
Date/Location: Sunday, March 16th, 2023, at Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas
Kickoff Time: 9:00 PM EST
Weather Forecast: N/A
TV/Streaming: ESPN2, ESPN+
Renegades Injury Report
The top injury this week was linebacker Otaro Alaka who was placed on the reserve list due to injury. Another linebacker who is hurt is Edmond Robinson who is dealing with a hamstring injury. Robinson has missed a good portion of the season with the injury and looks to be in line to miss another game yet again for Arlington.
Two offensive players showed up on the injury report. Wide receiver JaVonta Payton has been dealing with a concussion but was the only player on the report who was at least a limited participant in practice. Offensive lineman Jake Stetz suffered a knee injury in Arlington’s 24-11 loss to the St. Louis Battlehawks. Stetz has not participated in practice this week and might miss the start.
Renegades Depth Chart
Reviewing the offense, one position to look at is quarterback Kyle Sloter is listed as the starter. Renegade head coach Bob Stoops told the media Wednesday that both Sloter and Drew Plitt will battle for the starting job and might play both quarterbacks in the game. Left guard is another position to look at as should Stetz not be able to play, Brian Folkerts would fill in as the starter.
The defense has seen its fair share of injuries and the outside linebackers could see changes there. If Robinson is ruled out, recently acquired Bunmi Rotimi would start with another recently signed linebacker Ryan Mueller being the backup.
Key Storylines for Renegades
Quarterback Kyle Sloter threw three interceptions and lost one fumble against St. Louis. It has become a continuous storyline featuring issues on the offense and the quarterbacks not getting into a rhythm. The Renegades are ranked as the worst rushing offense in the XFL which hasn’t helped. While the playcalling has seemed to improve, the playmakers now must be the ones that step up and create big plays.
It’ll be interesting to see how the defense performs after allowing the most points of the season last week with 24. Injuries have been the story of losing key players at linebacker and the secondary. The team will be looking at XFL leading tackler Donald Payne, linebacker Darnell Sankey, safety Will Hill, and cornerback De’Vante Bausby to step up.
Renegades-Brahmas Preview
As the XFL hits the halfway point of the regular season, it is time to start thinking about the playoffs and with the Orlando Guardians winless, Arlington and San Antonio are both looking to compete for one spot to play the Houston Roughnecks most likely in the playoffs. Both the Renegades and Brahmas are playing each other in a rare two-game series back-to-back.
This will be as even of a match as any fan will watch all season with both offenses bad and both defenses having great secondaries. The game will be decided by two key stats: turnovers and rushing yards. Whoever can win the turnover battle and gain the most rushing yards should come out as the winner. Arlington needs their offense to step up in a big way. Stars like Sloter, De’Veon Smith, and Sal Cannella need to make plays and get Arlington in a position to win. Don’t expect a lot of points as this should be a defensive battle.
Prediction: Arlington Renegades 14, San Antonio Brahmas 9
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