St. Louis Battlehawks at Tampa Bay Vipers 3/14/20 - XFL Picks & Predictions
The St. Louis Battlehawks travel to Tampa, FL on Saturday for a game against the Tampa Bay Vipers in a week 6 matchup in the XFL. In their last game, the Battlehawks lost to the D.C. Defenders by the score of 15-6. Jordan Ta’amu had a productive day under center as he completed 15 of 25 passes for 174 yards and didn’t throw an interception, however Ta’amu also failed to a throw a touchdown. Matt Jones led the way on the ground for the Battlehawks as he carried the ball 13 times and rushed for a total of 70 yards. The leading receiver on the day for St. Louis was L’Damian Washington who caught 5 passes for 114 yards. Overall, the Battlehawks offense gained a total of 319 yards on the day while their defense allowed 256 yards, but the Battlehawks inability to find the endzone cost them the game.
After the loss to D.C., the St. Louis Battlehawks are now 3-2 on the season and will be looking to improve against Tampa Bay. Quarterback Jordan Ta’amu has thrown for 1,050 yards this season while also throwing 5 touchdowns passes against 2 interceptions. L’Damian Washington has been the most productive receiver on the year for St. Louis as he has caught 21 passes for 252 yards and a touchdown. The Battlehawks are led on the ground by Matt Jones who has rushed 80 times for 314 yards and a touchdown.
The Tampa Bay Vipers welcome the St. Louis Battlehawks to town on Saturday after losing their last game to the Los Angeles Wildcats by the score of 41-34. Quarterback Taylor Cornelius completed 22 of 34 passes in the game for 300 yards, 2 touchdowns and 2 interceptions. Cornelius also rushed 7 times for 45 yards and a touchdown. Jalen Toliver was the leading receiver on the day for the Vipers as he caught 4 passes for 95 yards and a touchdown. The Vipers rushing attack was led by De’Veon Smith who carried the ball 24 times for 69 yards on the day. Tampa Bay gained a total of 434 yards on the day while their defense allowed 345 yards.
With the loss to Los Angeles, Tampa Bay is now 1-4 on the season and is running out of time to right the ship if they want to improve on their season. Quarterback Taylor Cornelius has thrown for 858 yards on the year, including 4 touchdowns against 6 interceptions. Dan Williams leads the Vipers in receiving on the year as he has caught 23 passes for 338 yards and 1 touchdown. Tampa Bay’s leading rusher is De’Veon Smith who has ran for a total of 365 yards on 90 carries but has failed to reach the end zone.
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The St. Louis Battlehawks have scored an average of 19.4 points per game on the year, which is ranked 4th in the XFL while the Tampa Bay Vipers have scored 19.6 points per game which is 3rd. St. Louis has allowed 20.4 points per game on the season while Tampa Bay has averaged allowing 23. The true matchup in this game is between the offenses of these two teams as Tampa Bay is ranked 1st in yards per game with an average of 391.8 while also allowing 258.8 yards per game which is also the best in the XFL, versus a St. Louis team who is ranked 2nd in both categories. I believe the Vipers have the advantage in this one as they have the best run defense in the league with an average of just 75.8 points per game, while St. Louis has allowed the 6th most rushing yards per game this season at 120.4 per game. Final score prediction, the Tampa Bay Vipers win and cover ATS, 24-18.
