Defenders vs. Vipers: XFL Bets, Picks & Predictions (Week 2)
The opening weekend of the 2023 XFL season had three close matchups. The Arlington Renegades got a 22-20 win over the Vegas Vipers. Despite Luis Perez's three passing touchdowns, the Renegades got the victory thanks to two defensive touchdowns.
Meanwhile, the Houston Roughnecks obliterated the Orlando Guardians 33-12 in the second game on Saturday. Orlando quarterback Paxton Lynch got benched and made history. He is the only quarterback to ever get benched in the NFL, USFL, and the XFL.
We got two excellent matchups on Sunday. The San Antonio Brahmas got an 18-15 win over the St. Louis Battlehawks. Quarterback A.J. McCarron had 190 passing yards and two touchdowns, including one to former NFL wide receiver Hakeem Butler in a historic comeback victory.
In the last game of Week 1, the D.C. Defenders got a 22-18 win over the Seattle Sea Dragons. Down 18-16 entering the fourth quarter, Defenders' quarterback Deriq King had a five-yard rushing touchdown to put his team up for good.
After an exciting opening weekend, let's hope Week 2 is just as entertaining. Let’s take a closer look at Defenders vs. Vipers.
Best XFL Bets for Week 2: Defenders vs. Vipers
All odds are from DraftKings Sportsbook
D.C. Defenders vs. Vegas Vipers: Vipers ML (-155)
Last week the Defenders got the win over the Sea Dragons. However, that had more to do with Seattle's struggles on offense than anything D.C. did themselves. The defenders were outperformed in almost every category last week, including total yards (177) and yards per play (3.3). Furthermore, the team had only nine pass completions in the game. Meanwhile, they gave up 36 pass completions to the Sea Dragons. If not for a DiNucci pick-six in the fourth quarter, the Defenders likely lose that contest.
Meanwhile, the Vipers had a solid Week 1 performance despite coming away with the loss. Perez had three touchdown passes in the game, including two to Jeff Badet. The veteran receiver briefly spent time in the NFL. However, Badet was productive in his final two years in college, totaling over 1,000 receiving yards and seven touchdowns. More importantly, Vegas was on its way to a win until Perez threw a costly pick-six to Tomasi Laulile with just over four minutes left in the game.
One of these teams lucked out with a bad interception in Week 1. Meanwhile, the other was on their way to a victory before a bad luck pick-six. I'm backing the Vipers on the MoneyLine.
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Mike Fanelli is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from Mike, check out his archive and follow him @Mike_NFL2.