The XFL is back in 2023, a third iteration for the summer league after two previous unsuccessful launches. The first happened all the way back in 2001, with a second COVID-19 shortened attempt in 2020. The league announced its eight franchise names and brands. Find the entire list and further information about the teams below:
List of XFL Teams
Arlington Renegades
D.C. Defenders
Houston Roughnecks
Orlando Guardians
San Antonio Brahmas
Seattle Sea Dragons
St. Louis BattleHawks
Vegas Vipers
XFL Rosters
Arlington Renegades: Head coach Bob Stoops, has prior experience in the XFL with his coaching experience in 2020 with the Dallas Renegades. The long-time Oklahoma coach will be looking to find success with USFL’s top quarterback of 2022, Kyle Sloter.
Stoops, 62, had an impressive 191-48 record during his 17 years in charge of the Sooners program. With 10 Big 12 titles and a national championship in 2000, the veteran coach will look to translate the success to the XFL where his previous stint led to a measly 2-3 record.
Sloter is perhaps the most notable player in Arlington’s 51-man roster but another recognizable name might be that of De’Veon Smith, the 2020 rushing leader in the XFL. However, the most popular name might be punter Marquette King, a punting leader for the NFL in 2013 and an All-Pro second-teamer in 2016.
D.C. Defenders: Reggie Barlow, the head coach for the Defenders, might be one of the most intriguing coaches in the XFL. A former fourth-round pick in the 1996 NFL Draft by the Jaguars, Barlow has been a college-level head coach since 2007, first with Alabama State for eight years and a further six at Div. II Virginia State.
Finding success at each spot, Barlow posted a 49-42 record with the Hornets and a 34-16 record with the Trojans, he also averaged 10.4 yards per punt return in the NFL and had two touchdowns during his time there.
Jordan Ta’amu, a quarterbacking star for the Battlehawks during the 2020 XFL season, will be battling former Houston and Miami quarterback D’Eriq King and Syracuse’s Eric Dungey for playing time. After a run-in with COVID derailed running back Ryquell Armstead’s once-promising career, he will be looking to make a name for himself with an impressive showing.
Houston Roughnecks: Wade Phillips is the XFL’s oldest head coach at 75 years old. With a boatload of experience under his belt, Phillips has been coaching since 1969, starting as a graduate assistant and eventually retiring from the NFL in 2019.
One of the best defensive minds in NFL history, Phillips will look to rely on his defensive prowess to lead the Roughnecks. An all-time record of 82-64 during his tenures with the Broncos, Bills, and Cowboys, has him primed for success at the XFL level.
For a roster containing precious few players of note from NFL teams, former Steelers second-round pick- safety Sean Davis and coach Phillips will have to do an excellent job to get this roster to perform at a high level.
Orlando Guardians: Rookie head coach Terrell Buckley has plenty of playing experience that qualifies him for the job. Buckley, 51, spent 14 seasons in the NFL, recording 50 interceptions for 6 different teams. A Super Bowl champion with the Patriots in 2001, Buckley racked up 546 tackles during his career.
Spending the 2012-2021 seasons as a cornerbacks coach at Akron, Louisville, Mississippi State, and Ole Miss, this is his first head coaching opportunity.
The Guardians will be relying heavily on the quarterbacking capabilities of a former first-round pick, Paxton Lynch. Perhaps the most recognizable name on the roster, he will be joined by veteran receivers Eli Rogers and Cody Latimer, with Cody being listed as a TE on Orlando’s roster. On the defensive end, the team enrolls Matt Elam, another former first-round pick.
San Antonio Brahmas: Coach Hines Ward is another former NFL player looking to make an impact as a coach. A four-time Pro Bowler with 12,083 career receiving yards to his name, Ward will be looking to make the jump to head coach after a few seasons on the sidelines with the Steelers, Jets, and Florida Atlantic.
The second youngest coach in the XFL at 46, Ward will be looking to get the most out of an offense spearheaded by former Dolphins, Jets, Chargers, and Steelers running back Kalen Ballage. The team has options at the QB position between Jack Coan, Jawon Pass, and Reid Sinnett.
Seattle Sea Dragons: One of the largest tenured names in football, head coach Jim Haslett has been around since 1979 when he won the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year. After a solid 94 games during eight seasons, his career was unfortunately cut short by a leg injury.
Once he became a head coach, Haslett has been through every major league, from college to the World League of Football, in the UFL, and most notably, in the NFL where he was the Saints’ head coach from 2000 to 2005.
The 67-year-old Haslett is set to add the XFL to his list. Haslett will have a talented bunch under contract with the Dragons in the form of former All-Pro selection, Josh Gordon.
St. Louis Battlehawks: The youngest head coach in the NFL, Anthony Becht was a first-round pick in 2000. His coaching experience is minimal, with only a short-lived stint with the San Diego Fleet in the AAF. His playing experience comes from an 11-year career with the Jets, Buccaneers, Rams, Cardinals, and Chiefs.
As a blocking TE, Becht totaled 1,537 yards and 21 TDs on 188 catches. The best-known player, perhaps in the entire XFL, A.J. McCarron will be offering his QB services. He served as a backup from 2014-2021 and will be throwing to Marcel Ateman, a teammate of his from the 2018 season with the Raiders.
Vegas Vipers: The best playing career of any XFL coach, Rod Woodson was a staple in the NFL with a career that includes six All-Pro selections, a Defensive Player of the Year award, and a Super Bowl to his name. With 71 career interceptions and 23 forced fumbles to his name, Woodson is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. His prior coaching experiences came as a defensive backs coach in various stints with the Bengals, Raiders, and Broncos.
Woodson will have a strong cast of players to work with, with a QB combo of Brett Hundley and Luis Perez, along with WR Martavis Bryant and pass rusher Vic Beasley, strong NFL players who will be looking to prove they still have the talent in them.
XFL 2023 Schedule
The XFL announced its 10-game regular season schedule for 2023. A 10-week season starting from Feb. 18 will run through April 22, consisting of 40 regular-season games, followed by three playoff games.
Below is a look at the full 10-week schedule and matchups for the 2023 XFL season:
Week 1
| Saturday, Feb. 18 | Vegas Vipers at Arlington Renegades | 3 p.m. ET |
| Saturday, Feb. 18 | Orlando Guardians at Houston Roughnecks | 8:30 p.m. ET |
| Sunday, Feb. 19 | St. Louis Battlehawks at San Antonio Brahmas | 3 p.m. ET |
| Sunday, Feb.19 | Seattle Sea Dragons at D.C. Defenders | 8 p.m. ET |
Week 2
| Thursday, Feb. 23 | St. Louis Battlehawks at Seattle Sea Dragons | 9 p.m. ET |
| Saturday, Feb. 25 | D.C. Defenders at Vegas Vipers | 7 p.m. ET |
| Sunday, Feb. 26 | San Antonio Brahmas at Orlando Guardians | 4 p.m. ET |
| Sunday, Feb. 26 | Arlington Renegades at Houston Roughnecks | 7 p.m. ET |
Week 3
| Saturday, March 4 | Seattle Sea Dragons at Vegas Vipers | 7 p.m. ET |
| Sunday, March 5 | St. Louis Battlehawks at D.C. Defenders | 1 p.m. ET |
| Sunday, March 5 | Orlando Guardians at Arlington Renegades | 4 p.m. ET |
| Sunday, March 5 | San Antonio Brahmas at Houston Roughnecks | 8 p.m. ET |
Week 4
| Saturday, March 11 | Houston Roughnecks at Orlando Guardians | 7 p.m. ET |
| Saturday, March 11 | San Antonio Brahmas at Seattle Sea Dragons | 10 p.m. ET |
| Sunday, March 12 | Arlington Renegades at St. Louis Battlehawks | 4 p.m. ET |
| Sunday, March 12 | Vegas Vipers at D.C. Defenders | 7 p.m. ET |
Week 5
| Thursday, March 15 | Houston Roughnecks at Seattle Sea Dragons | 9 p.m. ET |
| Saturday, March 18 | D.C. Defenders at St. Louis Battlehawks | 7 p.m. ET |
| Saturday, March 18 | Orlando Guardians at Vegas Vipers | 10 p.m. ET |
| Sunday, March 19 | Arlington Renegades at San Antonio Brahmas | 10 p.m. ET |
Week 6
| Saturday, March 25 | Seattle Sea Dragons at Orlando Guardians | 1:30 pm. ET |
| Saturday, March 25 | St. Louis Battlehawks at Vegas Vipers | 7 p.m. ET |
| Sunday, March 26 | San Antonio Brahmas at Arlington Renegades | 3 p.m. ET |
| Monday, March 27 | Houston Roughnecks at D.C. Defenders | 7 p.m. ET |
Week 7
| Friday, March 31 | Seattle Sea Dragons at Arlington Renegades | 7 p.m. ET |
| Saturday, April 1 | St. Louis Battlehawks at Houston Roughnecks | 3 p.m. ET |
| Saturday, April 1 | San Antonio Brahmas at Vegas Vipers | 6 p.m. ET |
| Sunday, April 2 | D.C. Defenders at Orlando Guardians | 7 p.m. ET |
Week 8
| Saturday, April 8 | Vegas Vipers at St. Louis Battlehawks | 1 p.m. ET |
| Saturday, April 8 | Arlington Renegades at Orlando Guardians | 4 p.m. ET |
| Sunday, April 9 | Houston Roughnecks at San Antonio Brahmas | 3 p.m. ET |
| Sunday, April 9 | D.C. Defenders at Seattle Sea Dragons | 7 p.m. ET |
Week 9
| Saturday, April 15 | Vegas Vipers at Houston Roughnecks | 12:30 p.m. ET |
| Saturday, April 15 | Orlando Guardians at San Antonio Brahmas | 7 p.m. ET |
| Sunday, April 16 | Arlington Renegades at D.C. Defenders | Noon ET |
| Sunday, April 16 | Seattle Sea Dragons at St. Louis Battlehawks | 3 p.m. ET |
Week 10
| Saturday, April 22 | Orlando Guardians at St. Louis Battlehawks | Noon ET |
| Saturday, April 22 | D.C. Defenders at San Antonio Brahmas | 3 p.m. ET |
| Sunday, April 23 | Houston Roughnecks at Arlington Renegades | 3 p.m. ET |
| Sunday, April 23 | Vegas Vipers at Seattle Sea Dragons | 9 p.m. ET |
Who won the championship in XFL 2020?
After a restart in 2020, only five weeks into the season, the league’s operations had to sadly come to a close due to the COVID-19 pandemic and filed for bankruptcy on April 13, and the season as a result could not come to a close.
XFL Salaries vs NFL Salaries
XFL players are paid about $800 a week during the five-week training camp. As a member of their final roster, their contracts have a base salary worth $59,000, broken up into $5,000 per game and a $ 1,000-win bonus. That number, while higher than the base USFL salary of $45,000, is minuscule to the NFL base salary. A player with no service time in the NFL must be paid a minimum of $750,000 for a season.
Therefore, at a minimum, NFL players earn 833% more per week than XFL players. The minimum salary is varied in the NFL based on your service time. A player with seven-plus years would earn a minimum of $1.165 million per year.
Deciding the teams for the XFL season
Various sources and information outlets gave us information about the teams that would be participating in the build-up to the season.
The first report highlighted the hiring of Reggie Barlow with reports suggesting that he would take his talents to a team in San Antonio. While not one of the initial eight cities that hosted an NFL team in 2020, but had preliminary discussions. The second report highlighted a similar report, this time with former NFL Defensive Back Terrell Buckley and a team-centered in Orlando.
On the same day, a new report came out that mentioned that the league would go on with five teams from the original 2020 locations, with a change for the Vipers to move to Orlando, with the addition of two new teams in San Antonio and Las Vegas.
On July 24, 2022, Johnson and Garcia held an XFL town hall where they confirmed all 2020 teams except the Guardians, Wildcats, and Vipers would return. New York, LA, and Tampa would be replaced by teams in San Antonio, Las Vegas, and Orlando. With the final schedule release, the league confirmed the teams:
Arlington Renegades
Houston Roughnecks
Orlando Guardians
San Antonio Brahmas
D.C. Defenders
Seattle Sea Dragons
St. Louis BattleHawks
Vegas Vipers
