DC DEFENDERS WEEK 5:
THE SHIELD FINALLY BREAKS

- Tyler Yasembousky, Contributor

The DC Defenders h tholde best home record in XFL / UFL history. As of 2020 they were 10/0 at home. All victory, no defeats. UNDEFEATED. Unfortunately, that historic record came to an end on Sunday against the St. Louis Battlehawks. And it happened In the most embarrassing of way as DC lost a 45-12 game that was close at halftime.

Unfortunately for DC, their opponents scored 28 points in the second half and The Defenders scored ZERO. 

Let’s take a look at how this game became so one sided. 

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The game started off on a positive note with The Defenders defense getting a turnover.  The Battlehawks came out strong, but Defenders lineman Malik Fisher had other plans. He made his presence known early as he got to QB AJ McCarron for an early strip sack.St. Louis got the ball right back on the following drive, as CB Brandon Sebastian picked off Defenders' QB Jordan Ta’amu. The Battlehawks came up with a crucial fourth-down conversion to get into the red zone before wideout Butler finished things off with a 13-yard touchdown. 

Butler was the clear MVP on that drive, owning the middle of the field as he starred on both the 4th down and touchdowns play. Then it got even uglier for DC. The Battlehawks were already clicking in the first quarter. After forcing a fourth-and-21, their special teams unit blocked a punt attempt before kicker Andre Sznyt knocked in a 37-yard field goal to extend their lead to 11-0. 

The Battlehawks' defense then forced its third turnover of the first quarter on the Defenders' third drive. This time it was defensive back DB Kameron Kelly who picked off QB Ta’amu's throw and ran the ball back to the 38-yard line. I always talk about how great our kicker is so I have to give some credit to the St. Louis kicker. The Battlehawks' kicker was the epitome of perfection, pushing them to a 17-0 lead with his third field goal of the day midway through the second quarter from 22 yards out after nailing a 51-yarder to close out the first quarter.

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The Defenders turned things around as the second quarter came to a close. The team earned its first touchdown of the game after a 10-play, 60-yard drive that ended with Cam’ron Harris punching in the 1-yard touchdown. 

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DC finally made it a game after another score. Defenders receiver Kelvin Harmon made it a one-score game headed into halftime with this impressive catch-and-run, breaking several tackles on his way to the end zone. 17-12 St. Louis.

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The Battlehawks added another field goal in the third quarter to make it an eight-point game headed into the fourth, when St. Louis ran away with the win an embarrassing fashion. The Battlehawks took possession of the ball after sacking Defenders QB the first play of the frame. They turned that into six more points on the following drive.

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Just when things looked like they couldn’t get worse for DC, The Battlehawks forced the Defenders to turn the ball over on downs once again, and they took the opportunity to add to their lead in a big way, making a statement with a monster 80-yard touchdown. This was one of the biggest plays in UFL history.  St. Louis is up 32 - 12. 

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Defenders QB Jordan Ta’amu was picked off on the ensuing drive, and The Battlehawks cashed in for another score. 

St. Louis sealed the win with another blocked punt late in the fourth quarter and its fifth touchdown of the day.

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The final score was Battlehawks 45 -  Defenders 12 

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Four turnovers and two blocked punts would cause the first ever loss at Audi field.  I really anticipated this game being a lot closer, especially with DC having beaten St. Louis in both of their games last year. 

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But the Battlehawks head coach Anothony Becht made it clear in the post game press conference that they build this team in the offseason for one goal and that is to, "Beat DC."

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The sword was finally able to break the shield.