HOUSTON, TEXAS — In a Texas showdown where both teams were winless, this game was of great importance and the Houston Roughnecks took advantage. They beat the Arlington Renegades 17-9 in a defensive slugfest. Coming into today’s matchup, the Renegades were 2nd in yards per game offensively averaging 322.7 ypg, however, they only mustered up a measly 193 yards against a struggling Roughnecks defense. The 2-10 3rd down conversion rate really hurt Arlington as they couldn’t sustain the drives enough to get down the field and put points on the board.
However, for as poor as the offense looked, the defense kept them in the game, seemingly flipping the script from the early season struggles. The difference in the game was a 10-yard rushing TD from Roughnecks’ Mark Thompson midway through the third. At that point it pushed the lead to double digits at 17-3 in Houston’s favor. The Renegades responded with a TD of their own on the very next drive, but that two score lead proved to be too much for them to overcome.
The Renegades had a final opportunity to tie the game late with a 98-yard drive, however, the drive stalled when QB Luis Perez was stripped at the 42 yard line. The Roughnecks recovered and that was all she wrote. Perez 15-28 for 144 yards.
That makes the Renegades 0-4 on the season and for the 2023 XFL Champions, they are in a dire situation to even make the playoffs this year. Arlington returns home next Saturday to take on the San Antonio Brahmas at home at 6pm.
