Week 3 of the XFL was pretty fun. We started off hot on Saturday night, as Josh Gordon caught a game-winning, 65-yard catch with under one minute remaining to get the Seattle Sea Dragons into the win column for the first time this year. The 30-26 win over the Vegas Vipers was the highest-scoring XFL game of the year -- that is, until the St. Louis Battlehawks and D.C. Defenders took the field the very next day.
The Defenders remained undefeated with a 34-28 win over the Battlehawks, where things got testy late. After that matchup, the Arlington Renegades struggled with the Orlando Guardians before eventually pulling out a 10-9 win, and then the Houston Roughnecks built on their argument for best team in the league with a 22-13 win over the San Antonio Brahmas. It was a solid week.
As for our gambling picks, we went 3-1 ATS and 4-0 SU. Personally, I am of course playing spreads in the XFL, but moneyline parlays have worked out beautifully too.
ATS record: 8-4
Straight up record: 9-3
XFL Favorites ATS: 7-5
All odds are via Caesars Sportsbook
Arlington Renegades at St. Louis Battlehawks (-4)
Sunday, 4 p.m. ET (ESPN 2) | Stream: fuboTV (try for free)
As we discussed earlier in this piece, the Renegades struggled with the winless Guardians. I believe that says more about Arlington. If you've followed along with my picks this year, you know I'm very hesitant to pick the Battlehawks. A.J. McCarron has been up and down, but they've pulled off some close wins. With the game being in St. Louis, I actually think this line may be too low. I'll lay four points against a team I'm starting to question.
The pick: Battlehawks -4
Projected score: Battlehawks 25-15
Vegas Vipers at D.C. Defenders (-6)
Sunday, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN 2) | Stream: fuboTV (try for free)
Audi Field is going to be rocking. If you are unaware, the Defenders have the best home-field advantage in the XFL, and it doesn't matter that this game will be played on a Sunday night. You will still see plenty of shirtless grown men attempting to build the world's largest beer snake with zero regard for work in the morning. And that's why we love the XFL.
Gregg Williams' unit is aggressive, but Brett Hundley is definitely an upgrade at quarterback over Luis Perez. Six points is a good amount, but I don't want to bet against D.C. at home. The Defenders defeated the Vipers in Vegas by 12 points just a couple weeks ago, and are 3-0 ATS.
The pick: Defenders -6
Projected score: Defenders 23-16
Saturday's picks:
- Roughnecks over Guardians (Result: Roughnecks won)
- Sea Dragons over Brahmas (Result: Sea Dragons won)
