As usual, the XFL has a four-game card on tap for this weekend. Two games will kick off on Saturday then two more on Sunday. Here are our top XFL predictions and bets for Week 8’s action, including plays for the St. Louis Battlehawks and D.C. Defenders.
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Best XFL Bets & Predictions | Week 8
Las Vegas Vipers vs. St. Louis Battlehawks | Saturday, April 8 at 1 p.m. ET
The Las Vegas Vipers enter this contest as a 7-point underdog to the St. Louis Battlehawks in a game with a total of 46 points. The Vipers are currently just 2-5, but they beat the Brahmas by 14 points last week. On the other side, St. Louis sits at 5-2 after beating the Houston Roughnecks by nine last week. These teams met in Week 6 with the Battlehawks winning by 23.
The toughest game to handicap at this point, the Battlehawks have taken money and moved to the key number of seven. The line movement makes sense because the Battlehawks hold numerous advantages. Vegas has the worst defense in the XFL. The Vipers rank last in pass yards allowed per attempt and seventh in rush yards allowed per attempt.
The Battlehawks also have a massive quarterback advantage. The Vipers interestingly traded away Luis Perez and will now move to some combination of Brett Hundley and Jalan McClendon. Meanwhile, the Battlehawks have received rock-solid quarterback play from A.J. McCarron. McCarron enters this game as questionable, but if active, the Battlehawks make the most sense against the spread here.
Best XFL Bet: Battlehawks -7 -110 at Caesars
Arlington Renegades vs. Orlando Guardians | Saturday, April 8 at 4 p.m. ET
The Arlington Renegades enter this game as a 1.5-point underdog in a game with a 42.5-point total. The Renegades currently sit at 3-5 after losing to the Brahmas and Sea Dragons in the last two weeks. On the other side, the Guardians opened the year 0-6 but upset the league-leading D.C. Defenders last week.
While Orlando got off to a rough start, this team has been a buy-low for multiple weeks now. Prior to their upset win over D.C., Orlando had a series of single-digit losses against Las Vegas, Arlington, and Seattle. Now playing up to their potential, this team continues to take money against an inferior Arlington team.
Quarterback play will make a big difference in this game. Arlington has featured a revolving door at quarterback, moving between Drew Plitt and Kyle Sloter to open the year. It has gotten so bad that the team traded for Luis Perez mid-season. With a little over a week to prepare, his prospects do not look great here. In contrast, Orlando appears to have solved their quarterback woes with Quinten Dormady. Dormady is averaging 7.9 yards per attempt and boasts a completion percentage of 69.1%, which ranks at the top of the XFL. Bettors yet to register at DraftKings can get $150 in bonus bets after placing a winning $5 moneyline wager!
Best XFL Bet: Guardians -1.5 -110 at DraftKings
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Houston Roughnecks vs. San Antonio Brahmas | Sunday, April 9 at 3 p.m. ET
The Houston Roughnecks enter this game as a 5-point favorite over the San Antonio Brahmas in a game with a 40-point total. The Roughnecks now sit at 4-3 after losing to Seattle, D.C., and St. Louis over the last three weeks. However, they face one of the worst teams in the XFL in the San Antonio Brahmas. The Brahmas now hold a 2-5 record after losing to Vegas.
Even with Houston’s recent losing streak, this line is too low. The losses came against three of the best teams in the XFL, and Houston holds clear positional advantages over the Brahmas. The first of these comes at the quarterback position. Houston projects to get their starter Brandon Silvers back after missing last week’s game. On the other side, the Brahmas haven’t landed on one starter. The team has dealt with injuries to Jack Coan, Reid Sinnett, and Kurt Benkurt over the last few weeks. Coan does project to return here, but he has been among the worst signal callers. He is averaging 5 yards per attempt and has completed only 56.7% of his passes.
For those looking at an alternative, the under could also be in play. San Antonio has only scored more than 15 points on one occasion, which occurred against the Guardians’ awful defense back in Week 2. Houston can certainly score in bunches, but the Brahmas play solid defense, ranking in the top half of both rushing and passing defense.
Best XFL Bet: Roughnecks -5 -110 at Caesars
D.C. Defenders vs. Seattle Sea Dragons | Sunday, April 9 at 7 p.m. ET
The Defenders enter this game as a 2-point underdog to the Sea Dragons in a game with a 46.5-point total. The Defenders dropped their first game of the year to the Guardians last week, putting them at 6-1. Meanwhile, Seattle knocked off Arlington last week, putting their record at 5-2 overall.
Seattle has taken considerable money, which has moved them from a pick’em to the favorite. Seattle passes at the highest rate in the XFL while running the second most plays. Fortunately for them, D.C. comes in with the third-worst passing defense, allowing 7.3 yards per attempt to opposing passing attacks. However, D.C. also leads the league in rushing. Seattle ranks third-worth in rushing defense, giving both teams offensive advantages.
When these teams previously met, D.C. won by four points, but Seattle out-gained D.C. 331 to 177. They also averaged 4.4 yards per play, compared to 3.3 from D.C.. However, those numbers are all from Week 1, and D.C. has made considerable strides since then. The Defenders have fully committed to Jordan Ta’amu under center and Abram Smith in the backfield. With both operating as two of the more efficient players at their position, taking a shot with the underdog makes sense here.
Best XFL Bet: Defenders +2 -110 at DraftKings
