From The Press Box: DC Defenders Return Home For Battle With St. Louis

D.J. Swearinger #36 of the DC Defenders huddles with his teammates before the game against the Birmingham Stallions at Protective Stadium on April 20, 2024 in Birmingham, Alabama. (Stew Milne/UFL/Getty Images)

The DC Defenders may be better than what their 2-2 record indicates. After a disappointing loss in San Antonio to start the season, the Defenders bounced back with wings against Houston and Arlington to improve to 2-1 on the season. While they did suffer a heartbreaking loss in Birmingham last week, the DC and head coach Reggie Barlow pushed the 2023 USFL Champions further than any team has pushed them in recent memory.

In Week Five, the Defenders will return home as they home to extend their home winning streak further into the double digits. To do so, they’ll need Jordan Ta’amu to continue being the 2024 UFL MVP candidate he’s been through much of the first half of the season. While he’s completed 52% of his passes on the year, he’s tied for second in passing touchdowns and fourth in passing yards per game. If he can continue performing at this pace, the Defenders should be able to keep up with St. Louis. However, the Defenders will have to live up to their name in order to keep former Alabama standout AJ McCarron. Throwing for 838 yards and 8 touchdowns while completing more than 70% his passes, McCarron has cemented himself as one of the best passers in the league. Averaging 30 points per game over the last three weeks, St. Louis poses DC’s toughest test this season offensively.

First Quarter: DC Defenders – 0 | St. Louis Battlehawks — 14

Things can change at the drop of a dime. After a deep return from Blake Jackson that put St. Louis at the Defenders’ 25-yard line, defensive end Malik Fisher became just the second man this season to force a turnover by way of AJ McCarron. Unfortunately for DC, their celebration would be short lived as Brandon Sebastian picked Jordan Ta’amu off.

Heading into Week Five, the Defenders knew that they would have hard time beating an offensive juggernaut like St. Louis if they gave up big plays, did not force AJ McCarron off the field on fourth down and turned the ball over. Well, they managed to do just about all of those things within the first half of the first quarter. After a clutch fourth down conversion, McCarron and company were able to finish the job off with a 13-yard dart to Hakeem Butler. St. Louis is up eight after the two-point conversion.

The Defenders could not have began the game with a worst start. Not only were they not able to turn Malik Fisher’s fumble into any points, they turned the ball over three times and put St. Louis in prime scoring position each time. If the Defenders want to have any chance at getting back into this game, they’re going to have to run the ball effectively, use the clock and start putting pressure on McCarron consistently.

Second Quarter: DC Defenders – 12 | St. Louis Battlehawks — 17

The tough times continue for the DC Defenders heading into the second quarter. After an uneventful three-and-out to start the quarter, the Defenders gave up a nine-play, 65-yard drive for three to McCarron, Butler and company. Right now, it doesn’t matter if its a short field or a long field; the Defenders are going to give up points.

After a rough first quarter, the Defenders appear to be showing signs of life. An unnecessary roughness penalty paired with some quality runs of five yards of more from Cam’ron Harris, DC has worked their way into St. Louis territory. Now, they’ll just need to punctuate this drive with a rushing touchdown to send it into the half.

Ladies, gentleman and non-binary folks, we have a ball game on our hands. Not only did Cam’ron Harris punctuate the last drive with a one-yard touchdown rush, but the Defenders backed up the offensive unit with a four-play defensive stop. DC’s key defensive hold put Ta’amu in position for back-to-back completions of ten yards or more to Kaden Smith and Kelvin Harmon. The Defenders may have looked down and out to start the game, but they are more than back in the swing of things and will receive the ball to start the second half.

Third Quarter: DC Defenders – 12 | St. Louis Battlehawks — 20

In many ways, the second half has looked drastically different than the first. There have been no major turnovers or significant offensive gains through the air. Instead, the Defenders and Battlehawks have traded punts. To add in a bit of spice, DC has also missed a field goal. Just when fans got their feet at the sight of significant punt return, it was called back and DC will begin their latest drive from within their own two-yard line.

If there is one thing that St. Louis had done well so far, it’s capitalize off of good field position. A 27-yard punt return from Steven Mitchell Jr. put the Battlehawks within field goal range. While the Battlehawks were able to punch it into the endzone, a field goal is enough to put the pressure on the Defenders as we inch closer to the fourth quarter.

Fourth Quarter: DC Defenders – 12 | St. Louis Battlehawks — 45

What could go wrong for the DC Defenders has gone wrong in the fourth quarter. Beginning with a fumble that St. Louis turned into six points, the Battlehawks have scored on three consecutive possessions and forced a turnover. While the Defenders have been able to pull off comebacks in the past, it doesn’t appear that a miracle is coming anytime soon for Reggie Barlow’s squad. For the first time since arriving in more than 10 games, it looks like the Defenders will be losers at Audi Field unless something miraculous happens in the final eight minutes of action.

The fourth quarter proved to be a complete disaster for the Defenders as they couldn’t stop the Battlehawks on offense, defense or even special teams. Fortunately, they’ll have another chance to right the ship as they return home next week against the San Antonio Brahamas. Unfortunately, San Antonio also handed them their worst defeat….before today.

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