DC Defenders: 2020 Season Review
In the 2020 Season Review series, we're recapping the results, highlights, and stats from the first XFL season.
Read all eight team wrap-ups as we roll them out:
- Tuesday, 4/7: DC Defenders, New York Guardians
- Wednesday, 4/8: St. Louis BattleHawks, Tampa Bay Vipers
- Thursday, 4/9: Dallas Renegades, Houston Roughnecks
- Friday, 4/10: Los Angeles Wildcats, Seattle Dragons
2020 Season Review
Record/Results | Statement Win | Breakout Players
Best Moment | Photos | Team Stats | Player Stats
3-2 (T-1, East) ... but first place, thanks to head-to-head tiebreaker
- Home: 3-0
- Away: 0-2
- vs. East: 2-1
- Against The Spread: 3-2
Week | W/L | Opponent | Score | ATS | Over/Under |
| 1 | W | SEA | 31-19 | W | U |
| 2 | W | NY | 27-0 | W | U |
| 3 | L | at LA | 39-9 | L | O |
| 4 | L | at TB | 25-0 | L | U |
| 5 | W | STL | 15-6 | W | U |
STATEMENT WIN
Week 5 Highlights: DC Defenders 15, St. Louis BattleHawks 6
Week 5: DC Defenders 15, St. Louis BattleHawks 6
The DC Defenders made a statement in each of their three wins. After the first two weeks of the season, the Defenders looked like the best team in the XFL, thanks to a 31-19 win over the Seattle Dragons and a 27-0 win over the New York Guardians.
But the other one stands out: When the Defenders returned home from their two-game road trip, the team was no longer the XFL's best. Thanks to a 39-9 loss at the Los Angeles Wildcats and a 25-0 loss at the Tampa Bay Vipers, the Defenders desperately needed a win.
In order to do that, they would need to stop Jordan Ta'amu and the red-hot St. Louis BattleHawks.
Inside the friendly confines of Audi Field, the Defenders did just that.
The BattleHawks outgained the Defenders in total yards, but DC kept Ta'amu and the rest of the BattleHawks out of the end zone. But it wasn't just the on-field play that made this a statement win.
The fans played their part: With the help of the now-iconic "Beer Snake," the entire XFL was reminded of the league's best home-field advantage.
Moore had an excellent training camp in Houston. The former second-round NFL draft pick and pro veteran was the vocal and emotional leader of the Defenders' secondary.
But when the team returned from training camp, Moore was on the wrong side of roster cuts and stayed in Houston as part of Team 9.
That did not last long, and a day before Week 1, Moore was recalled to the team and made an immediate impact. He registered the first interception in XFL history and picked off a PAT attempt.
In Week 2, Moore forced his first fumble of the season, stripping Guardians RB Darius Victor clean. But he wasn't done there. Moore picked off Tampa Bay's Taylor Cornelius in Week 4 to register his second interception of the season.
Moore finished the truncated 2020 XFL regular season with two interceptions, one forced fumble and fumble recovery, four pass deflections and 15 total tackles.
The Defenders needed Moore to be everywhere, and he was.
K Ty Rausa
The former Boise State kicker was the final player added to the Defenders roster, joining the team just two weeks before the season opener.
But you would never know the Defender didn't select a kicker in the 2020 XFL Draft or went the entirety of mini- and training camp without a kicker. Rausa led the XFL with 11 field goal attempts and ranked second with 9 makes.
He also kicked the second-longest FG of the season, a 55-yarder in the closing seconds of the first half during Week 1 against the Seattle Dragons. Rausa closed out the season with a perfect 3-for-3 performance in the Week 5 win over the BattleHawks.
Khari Lee finds the end zone on a flea-flicker (Week 1)
Week 1: Double-flea-flicker TD pass
DC scored its first offensive touchdown on this flea-flicker, which ended with Cardale Jones finding Khari Lee, who evaded multiple defenders and crossed the goal line.
Cardale Jones warms up before Week 1. (Shawn Hubbard/XFL)
OFFENSE: EFFICIENCY
| Category | Stat (Rank) |
| Pts/G | 16.4 (7) |
| Pts/Play | 0.288 (5) |
| Avg Score Margin | -1.4 (5) |
| Yds/G | 264.0 (6) |
| Yds/Play | 4.6 (7) |
| Plays/G | 57.0 (6) |
| Yds/Play | 4.6 (7) |
| Rush Play% | 50.8 (2) |
| Pass Play% | 45.96% (7) |
PASSING
| Category | Stat (Rank) |
| Pass Yds | 720 (8) |
| Comp% | 55 (7) |
| Yards/Pass | 5.5 (8) |
| Pass TD | 5 (T4) |
| INT | 7 (6) |
RUSHING
| Category | Stat (Rank) |
| Rush Yds | 651 (3) |
| Rush Yds/G | 130.2 (3) |
| Yards/Rush | 4.5 (2) |
| Rush TD | 1 (8) |
EXTRA POINT
Category | Stat |
| 1-pt | 1/6 (17%) |
| 2-pt | 0/1 (0%) |
| 3-pt | 0/2 (0%) |
| TOTAL | 1/9 (11%) |
GAME CONTROL
| Category | Stat (Rank) |
| Takeaways | 7 (5) |
| Turnovers | 8 (5) |
| TO Margin | -1 (6) |
| 3rd Down Conv% | 32% (7) |
| 4th Down Conv% | 67% (2) |
| Red Zone TD% | 27% (8) |
| Team Pen Yds | 242 (4) |
DEFENSIVE EFFICIENCY
| Category | Stat (Rank) |
| Opp Pts/G | 17.8 (3) |
| Opp Pts/Play | 0.292 (2) |
| Opp Yds/G | 315.4 (4) |
| Opp Yds/Play | 5.36 (5) |
| Opp Plays/Game | 58.8 (3) |
| Opp Yards/Play | 5.3 (5) |
| Opp Rush Yds/G | 132.6 (7) |
| Opp Pass Yds/G | 182.8 (2) |
| Opp Yards/Rush | 4.57 (6) |
| Opp Yards/Pass | 6.54 (5) |
DEFENSIVE EVENTS
| Category | Stat (Rank) |
| Sacks | 8 (6) |
| QB Hits | 20 (8) |
| Interceptions | 5 (5) |
| Passes Defensed | 18 (7) |
| Fumble Recoveries | 2 (T4) |
| Forced Fumbles | 3 (T3) |
| Defensive/Special Teams TDs | 3 (1) |
More: DC Team Stats
QUARTERBACKS
| Name | COMP | ATT | % | YDS | AVG | TD | LG | INT | ATT | YDS | AVG | TD | LG |
| Cardale Jones | 61 | 113 | 54 | 674 | 6 | 4 | 40 | 7 | 17 | 61 | 3.6 | 0 | 14 |
| Tyree Jackson | 11 | 18 | 61 | 46 | 2.6 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 9 | 48 | 5.3 | 0 | 12 |
RUNNING BACKS
Name | ATT | YDS | AVG | TD | LG | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | LG |
| Jhurell Pressley | 42 | 190 | 4.5 | 0 | 27 | 9 | 40 | 4.4 | 0 | 15 |
| Donnel Pumphrey | 46 | 168 | 3.7 | 0 | 23 | 9 | 68 | 7.6 | 0 | 19 |
| Nick Brossette | 14 | 87 | 6.2 | 1 | 38 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Khalid Abdullah | 11 | 52 | 4.7 | 0 | 16 | 2 | 11 | 5.5 | 0 | 6 |
*Notable: Brossette's 38-yard run (Week 3) was the league's second-longest of the 2020 season.
WIDE RECEIVERS/TIGHT ENDS
| Name | TAR | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | LG |
| Rashad Ross | 22 | 12 | 193 | 16 | 1 | 40 |
| Eli Rogers | 30 | 19 | 164 | 8.6 | 0 | 27 |
| Khari Lee | 8 | 8 | 91 | 11 | 2 | 39 |
| DeAndre Thompkins | 17 | 7 | 85 | 12 | 1 | 21 |
KICKER
Name | FGM | FGA | FG% | LONG |
| Ty Rausa | 9 | 12 | 75 | 54 |
DEFENSE: TACKLES
Name | TAK | AST | CMB |
| Jonathan Celestin | 20 | 12 | 32 |
| Jameer Thurman | 18 | 10 | 28 |
| Desmond Lawrence | 16 | 2 | 18 |
| Tyree Kinnel | 14 | 3 | 17 |
| Scooby Wright | 9 | 8 | 17 |
DEFENSE: SACKS
Name | SK | YDS | QBH | TFL |
| Anthony Johnson | 2.5 | 25 | 4 | 3 |
| Tavaris Barnes | 1.5 | 12 | 2 | 2 |
| Jay Bromley | 1 | 11 | 3 | 2 |
| Jonathan Massaquoi | 1 | 4 | 2 | 2 |
| Siupeli Anau | 1 | 9 | 2 | 2 |
| Tracy Sprinkle | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 |
DEFENSE: INTERCEPTIONS
Name | INT | PD |
| Rahim Moore | 2 | 4 |
| Jameer Thurman | 1 | 3 |
| Matt Elam | 1 | 1 |
PUNTER
| Name | NO | YDS | AVG | LG |
| Hunter Niswander | 21 | 936 | 44.6 | 62 |
More: DC Player Stats