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The 2023 XFL season is officially upon us, and we are finally getting XFL and USFL action together for our viewing pleasure this Spring football season. Sportsbooks are now available on that device in your pocket all over the world, and so this is going to be a Spring Football season like no other. I'll be here every week providing sports betting advice for XFL action, so join me here and let's get Xtreme. Be sure to also read all our other weekly XFL fantasy football articles.
Also, don't fret...I'll be back, right here, to talk about gambling on the USFL in April; and if we ever start expanding into the realms of the European League of Football, Indoor Football League, Fan Controlled Football, and/or (I can only hope) the CPBL of Taiwan come baseball season–I'll be right here to discuss the full happenings across the board.
They might not be the #1...or #2 leagues...but damn it, we've congregated here because we love sports. So, when the powers to be in professional sports decide to supply our hungry demand for more year-round action, it would be fundamentally and morally wrong of us to not take a head-first dive into Spring Football education so that we can continue to enter DFS contests and place anxiety-inducing bets on games that most of our friends and family probably won't even know are being played--and if you're still reading this paragraph, I am fully confident that you share my sentiment on that point. Anyway, let's get to talking about the Spring Football league that could've only been originally brought to us by the minds behind the WWE. XFL 2023: let's rock. With Week 1 underway, let's learn from our mistakes and misperceptions and adjust accordingly.
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Battlehawks at Sea Dragons (Thursday, February 23rd, 9 PM)
Best Bet: Sea Dragons (-3)
Regardless of the way in which the Battlehawks slipped into a week 1 win and the Sea Dragons slipped into a loss, it was abundantly clear from watching the game that the Battlehawks have some serious problems outside of the offensive and defensive lines and that the game between the Sea Dragons and Defenders very well may have been a matchup between the two best teams in the XFL.
Reggie Barlow turned out to have some real coaching chops translated from Alabama State and Virginia State to the Spring Football environment, but in the second of back-to-back road games, Anthony Becht is in trouble against June Jones, and Seattle fans show out for their alternative sports teams. Ben DiNucci might take a few sacks and give up a few possessions, and apparently, anything can happen in an XFL fourth quarter, but I think a victory of three or more by the Sea Dragons is the much better value for what we've seen heading into week 2.
Defenders at Vipers (Saturday, February 25th, 7 PM)
Best Bet: Defenders (+3.5)
I'm not sure what Vegas Vipers game or DC Defenders win that the handicappers were watching last week, but this one feels suspiciously like fish in a barrel to me. Rod Woodson definitely didn't look completely lost in week 1 and Luis Perez performed quite admirably, but DC looked all the part of a championship contender in week 1 against Seattle, and Reggie Barlow gave plenty of reason to be confident in his ability to translate small college success into XFL victories.
The Vipers dropped their first game against a surprisingly-vulnerable looking Arlington squad that looked offensively impotent, yet safe being manned by Drew Plitt, in a game where they appeared to be getting thoroughly out-classed until late in the contest. Rod Woodson might've handled the Renegades alright last week, but this more versatile package that DC is utilizing is something that he won't be prepared for. Even with the home advantage for the Vipers, I go a step bolder and say take the Defenders on the money line.
Brahmas at Guardians (Sunday, February 26th, 4 PM)
Best Bet: Brahmas (-3)
Speaking of teams that were thoroughly out-classing their opponents until late in the game, the San Antonio Brahmas were one crazy fourth-quarter series of events away from coming through at +2.5, while the Orlando Guardians looked like by far, the worst team in the XFL as they got obliterated by Houston.
The Brahmas appear to be a solid, well-rounded team that will have an offensive ceiling with Jack Coan at the helm, and they have a strong run-first approach that distinguishes them from other teams in the league.
Plus, judging from week 1, Hines Ward is at least a decent coach for this environment. The Guardians' offense, defense, and coaching situations already appear to be dire. At this point, the South Division might turn out to be way more interesting than first anticipated, but not for the Guardians, and they aren't safe from that fate even at home this week. I would take San Antonio up to -5 or -5.5.
Renegades at Roughnecks (Sunday, February 26th, 7 PM)
Best Bet: Renegades (+4.5)
The Houston Roughnecks and Wade Phillips looked like a very good team in week 1, but that is easy to do when you are playing an awful team. The Arlington Renegades pulled out a close (closer than it should've been) win against Vegas in week 1 despite some offensive stagnancy.
But in obtaining a quality debut win, with the potential offensive ceiling-raiser Kyle Sloter waiting in the wings, I think it is way too early to be saying that the Roughnecks should be favored by 4.5 points -- the only sample that we have of them on the field is the one-sided trampling of the team that will easily occupy the basement of the XFL in 2023.
This is another situation where I will go a bit bolder because I am feeling excellent about the value of the Arlington Renegades on the money line.
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