The 2024 DC Defenders season was the third season for the DC Defenders as a professional American football franchise and their first as a member of the United Football League (UFL). The Defenders played their home games at Audi Field and were led by head coach Reggie Barlow.
| 2024 DC Defenders season | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Owner | Alpha Acquico, LLC |
| General manager | Von Hutchins |
| Head coach | Reggie Barlow |
| Home field | Audi Field |
| Results | |
| Record | 4–6 |
| Division place | 3rd in XFL Conference |
| Playoff finish | Did not qualify |
Following an upset loss to the Arlington Renegades in the 2023 XFL Championship, the franchise looked to return the playoffs. However, the team would be troubled with injuries to key players and poor defensive play. This resulted in the team going on a poor 3-3 start by Week 6 in which they would never recover. They were officially eliminated from playoff contention following a Week 8 loss to the St. Louis Battlehawks.
Roster
editQuarterbacks (QB)
Running backs (RB)
Wide receivers (WR)
Tight ends (TE)
|
Offensive linemen (OL)
Defensive linemen (DL)
|
Linebackers (LB)
Defensive backs (DB)
|
Reserve
Rookies in italics
50 active, 10 reserve |
Signees to the NFL
edit| Player | Position | Date | NFL team | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daniel Whelan | P | May 17 | Green Bay Packers | [1] |
| Ferrod Gardner | LB | May 22 | Washington Commanders | [2] |
| Lucky Jackson | WR | May 23 | Minnesota Vikings | [3] |
| Brandon Smith | WR | June 12 | Arizona Cardinals | [4] |
| Chris Blair | WR | June 16 | Atlanta Falcons | [5] |
| Liam Fornadel | OG | June 18 | New England Patriots | [6] |
Schedule
editAll times Eastern
| Week | Day | Date | Kickoff | TV | Opponent | Results | Location | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Score | Record | ||||||||
| 1 | Sunday | March 31 | 12:00 p.m. | ESPN | at San Antonio Brahmas | 12–27 | 0–1 | Alamodome | 13,164 |
| 2 | Sunday | April 7 | 4:00 p.m. | Fox | Houston Roughnecks | 23–18 | 1–1 | Audi Field | 15,052 |
| 3 | Saturday | April 13 | 1:00 p.m. | ESPN | at Arlington Renegades | 29–28 | 2–1 | Choctaw Stadium | 8,411 |
| 4 | Saturday | April 20 | 7:00 p.m. | Fox | at Birmingham Stallions | 18–20 | 2–2 | Protective Stadium | 7,262 |
| 5 | Sunday | April 28 | 12:00 p.m. | ESPN | St. Louis Battlehawks | 12–45 | 2–3 | Audi Field | 16,058 |
| 6 | Sunday | May 5 | 4:00 p.m. | Fox | San Antonio Brahmas | 18–12 | 3–3 | Audi Field | 14,303 |
| 7 | Sunday | May 12 | 12:00 p.m. | ESPN | Michigan Panthers | 9–22 | 3–4 | Audi Field | 12,222 |
| 8 | Sunday | May 19 | 12:00 p.m. | ABC | at St. Louis Battlehawks | 21–26 | 3–5 | The Dome at America's Center | 32,403 |
| 9 | Sunday | May 26 | 2:30 p.m. | Fox | at Memphis Showboats | 36–21 | 4–5 | Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium | 6,387 |
| 10 | Sunday | June 2 | 12:00 p.m. | ABC | Arlington Renegades | 31–32 | 4–6 | Audi Field | 13,080 |
Game summaries
editWeek 1: at San Antonio Brahmas
editWeek 1: DC Defenders at San Antonio Brahmas – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Defenders | 3 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 12 |
| Brahmas | 7 | 13 | 0 | 7 | 27 |
at Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas
- Date: March 31
- Game time: 12:00 p.m. EDT/11:00 a.m. CDT
- Game weather: None (Indoor stadium)
- Game attendance: 13,164
- Referee: Bryan Banks
- TV announcers (ESPN): Mike Monaco, Sam Acho, Cole Cubelic and Stormy Buonantony
- Recap, Game Book
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Standings
edit| USFL Conference | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | W | L | PCT | GB | TD /- | TD | TD- | DIV | PF | PA | DIFF | STK | ||
| (y) Birmingham Stallions | 9 | 1 | .900 | - | 11 | 31 | 20 | 6–0 | 265 | 180 | 85 | W1 | ||
| (x) Michigan Panthers | 7 | 3 | .700 | 2 | 5 | 27 | 22 | 4–2 | 228 | 189 | 39 | L1 | ||
| (e) Memphis Showboats | 2 | 8 | .200 | 7 | -19 | 20 | 39 | 2–4 | 188 | 290 | -102 | W1 | ||
| (e) Houston Roughnecks | 1 | 9 | .100 | 8 | -12 | 17 | 29 | 0–6 | 158 | 233 | -75 | L6 | ||
| XFL Conference | ||||||||||||||
| Team | W | L | PCT | GB | TD /- | TD | TD- | DIV | PF | PA | DIFF | STK | ||
| (y) St. Louis Battlehawks | 7 | 3 | .700 | - | 7 | 31 | 24 | 5–1 | 260 | 202 | 58 | W1 | ||
| (x) San Antonio Brahmas | 7 | 3 | .700 | - | 12 | 24 | 12 | 3–3 | 192 | 153 | 39 | L1 | ||
| (e) DC Defenders | 4 | 6 | .400 | 3 | -2 | 24 | 26 | 2–4 | 209 | 251 | -42 | L1 | ||
| (e) Arlington Renegades | 3 | 7 | .300 | 4 | -2 | 26 | 28 | 2–4 | 247 | 249 | -2 | W2 | ||
| (x)–clinched playoff berth; (y)–clinched division; (e)–eliminated from playoff contention | ||||||||||||||
Staff
editThe 2024 coaching staff was announced on February 21, 2024.[8]
Head coach – Reggie Barlow
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| |||||
Offensive Line coach Russ Ehrenfeld was replaced by Sean Kugler Week 6.
References
edit- ^ Burke, Aidan. "Daniel Whelan becomes the first D.C. Defender to sign with NFL team". XFL Board. Retrieved June 26, 2023.
- ^ Manning, Bryan. "Commanders sign XFL linebacker". Commanders Wire. Retrieved June 26, 2023.
- ^ "Vikings sign XFL star wide receiver Lucky Jackson". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved June 26, 2023.
- ^ Root, Jess. "Cardinals sign former XFL WR Brandon Smith". Cards Wire. Retrieved June 26, 2023.
- ^ Paolantonio, Christian. "DC Defenders WR Chris Blair Signs With Atlanta Falcons". XFL Newsroom. Retrieved June 26, 2023.
- ^ "Patriots Sign Guard Liam Fornadel". www.patriots.com. Retrieved June 19, 2024.
- ^ "2024 DC Defenders Schedule". FBS Schedules. Retrieved June 26, 2023.
- ^ "UFL announces 2024 coaching staffs for all eight teams". Fox Sports. February 21, 2024. Retrieved February 23, 2024.