Is there football this weekend? TV show, start times and more

The XFL scratches the itch of football fans in a big way. Here’s everything you need to know about Week 4 XFL games today, including kickoff times, channels, streaming options and more.

XFL Games Today: Any Football This Weekend?

Through the first three weeks of the 2023 XFL season, some teams looked like title contenders and others… well, not exactly title contenders. Here’s a look at this weekend’s action, along with insights into what we can expect from each team.

Orlando Guardians (0-3) vs. Houston Roughnecks (3-0)

• Date: Saturday, March 11
• Start time: 7 p.m. ET
• TV channel and streaming options: FX and fuboTV

Betting lines assume a blowout, and realistically, it might happen. The Roughnecks are one of the best teams in the league on offense and defense, while Orlando has struggled on both sides of the ball.

Keep an eye on Houston’s D, which has limited opponents to 3.5 yards per carry while producing 13 sacks. Paxton Lynch should struggle more often than not. To keep pace, he’ll need to be aggressive — building on his impressive 12-52-1 rushing line — and get the underused Christian Rambo more involved.

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While Cody Latimer has (deservedly) stepped into the role of the Guardians’ No. 1 player, Rambo was their first-round pick in the “offensive skills” portion of November’s draft. For context, Latimer went in the 11th and final round.

That doesn’t mean Rambo deserves more appearances. After all, half of the first-round picks have objectively been complete losses thus far; one was even cut before the season started.

But talent is talent, and Rambo has shown hints of breaking through. If he gets going, Lynch should have enough firepower to kick this offense into a new gear.

Seattle Sea Dragons (1-2) vs. San Antonio Brahmas (1-2)

• Date: Saturday, March 11
• Start time: 10 p.m. ET
• TV channel and streaming options: FX and fuboTV

The winner will make it to the playoffs. The loser’s work will be left unfinished during the last six weeks.

Seattle was one of my two preseason picks (along with St. Louis) to win the title. I believed in their passing game with Ben DiNucci, Josh Gordon, Jahcour Pearson and Blake Jackson. And their RB duo of Brenden Knox and Morgan Ellison looked underrated.

Their 1-2 record is irrelevant from my perspective. The Sea Dragons offense is elite – plain and simple. DiNucci leads all XFL quarterbacks in passing yards. Ellison ran in place of the recently injured Knox and leads the league in rushing yards. And Pearson and Gordon are No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, in receiving yards.

They faced DC and St. Louis in the first two weeks – arguably the toughest opener for any XFL team.

However, they have only earned four sacks and one interception on defense. And San Antonio has enough playmakers to sustain the effort against a relatively competent D.

One question is whether Jack Coan is the “answer” to QB’s Brahms. I’ve had my doubts since Week 1, and it doesn’t help that de facto No. 1 receiver Jalen Tolliver has been bullied, forcing guys like Alize Mack and TJ Vasher to step up.

Another question concerns the backcourt, which combines the slow Jacques Patrick and the explosive Kalen Ballage. I wrote last month that I would be shocked if the Brahmas didn’t sign another RB before the end of the season. The two have combined for a whopping 72 carries and a not-so-wonderful 233 yards. That’s 3.2 yards per carry. It won’t work against Seattle.

St. Louis Battlehawks (2-1) vs. Arlington Renegades (2-1)

• Date: Sunday, March 12
• Start time: 4 p.m. ET
• TV channel and streaming options: ESPN2 and fuboTV

If you live in a world where daylight saving time is important, be sure to move your clocks forward an hour on Sunday morning. Or earlier if you want to connect your friends.

While Saturday’s nightcap is between a great 1-2 team and a deserving 1-2 team, Sunday’s opener can be characterized as a great 2-1 team against an overrated 2-1 team.

What I mean? As mentioned above, I have been with Battlehawks all year. Along with Houston, they are probably the most complete team (yes, even more complete than DC). AJ McCarron has all the weapons he needs in the passing game, and his backfield should continue to hum with Brian Hill at the helm.

I haven’t caught on to their questionable defense, which coincidentally has the same number of sacks (four) and interceptions (one) as the Sea Dragons. St. Louis has played three tough games to start the season, including traveling to San Antonio for Sunday’s Week 1 tilt and then Seattle for another game four days later.

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They won both because they’re a damn good team. I expect McCarron to connect early and often with Hakeem Butler, Austin Proehl and Darrius Shepherd. All they get from first round pick Marcell Ateman is gravy.

Why am I in Arlington? Well, they have two tight wins over the undefeated Vipers and the undefeated Guardians. While their run defense has been phenomenal (2.7 yards per carry), they don’t have enough offensive playmakers to keep up with teams like St. Louis.

Longtime readers know how high I’ve been on TE Sal Cannella. The last tight end head coach Bob Stoops was in college was Mark Andrews. This team knew what they were doing when they drafted Cannella in the first round for his “offensive skills”.

The problem is that the rest of their offense has looked underpowered. Kyle Sloter looked to officially replace Drew Plitt last weekend at QB. Let’s see if that helps. But the running game remains anemic as De’Veon Smith and Keith Ford combined for 142 rushing yards on 55 carries (2.6 ypc).

DC Defenders (3-0) vs. Vegas Vipers (0-3)

• Date: Sunday, March 12
• Start time: 7 p.m. ET
• TV channel and streaming options: ESPN2 and fuboTV

Another struggling team, another newly installed quarterback. The Vipers’ Brett Hundley is the X-factor in this one, which should undoubtedly go DC’s way. However, we can’t discount how Hundley’s talents could play out in the XFL.

After all, he excelled in the running game at UCLA, averaging a 12-54 line of scrimmage and 21 rushing yards over his final two seasons. However, he wasn’t freed up to be a true dual threat in the NFL, where he averaged 30 rushing yards on just under four carries over his nine career carries. The efficiency was there, but not the volume. He could do so much more.

Rod Smith, John Lovett and Jeff Badet form a solid core for a team that doesn’t fully deserve to be 0-3 at this point. I’d argue that if Hundley had been the starter in week 1, they could have beaten Arlington in the opener (instead of losing by two).

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Still, DC has a good chance to go 4-0. Their running game is beyond elite in this league, with three of the top seven rushers in the XFL – including electric QB Jordan Ta’amu.

However, the Defenders’ passing game is still questionable. They might not need it on Sunday. But if they do, can Ta’amu improve on a meek 48% completion rate? At some point, the team will be good enough to force Ta’amu to win through the air. Until that happens, I remain skeptical of DC’s chances of winning the title.