The New York Guardians kicked off Week 4 of the XFL by shaking off a couple of terrible weeks where they couldn’t score a touchdown, and got a win over the Los Angeles Wildcats–who were coming off a blowout win over the DC Defenders. The final score was 17-14.
New York Guardians Knock Off Los Angeles Wildcats 17-14
First Quarter
The New York Guardians — who started former AAF quarterback Luis Perez this time — surprisingly got on the board first. After both teams traded three and outs, the Guardians went down the field efficiently. The drive ended with a 51-yard field goal from Matt McCrane.
The Wildcats responded quickly to get the first touchdown of the game. They got in the end zone with three seconds left in the quarter when Josh Johnson zipped a four-yard pass to Tre McBride. This came shortly after a fourth-down conversion in the red zone by way of a Johnson quarterback sneak. After the failed point-after, the score at the end of the quarter was 6-3.
Second Quarter
The Guardians had another good drive to start the second quarter; however, this one resulted in only a field goal as well (this time 23 yards), which still tied the game up at 6-6. After forcing a quick Wildcats three and out, the Guardians got the ball back and took it for another long drive with multiple third down conversions. Chewing the clock was a common theme for them in the first half.
The drive finally ended after the two-minute warning when Perez threw a nice back-shoulder throw which Mekale McKay brought in with a leap for a three-yard touchdown. They then added a two-point conversion with Marquise Williams coming in for a quarterback draw, putting the score at 14-6. This was also the first Guardians touchdown since Week 1. The Wildcats tried to get points of their own before halftime, but their drive stalled near mid-field.
Third Quarter
The Wildcats got the ball to start the second half and after crossing mid-field had to settle for a 48-yard field goal. However, the attempt from Nick Novak was tipped at the line, and the eight-point deficit remained. The Guardians next drive stalled instead of taking a long time, so the Wildcats got the ball back fairly quickly.
They ended up going for it on 4th & 2 near their own 30, which was successful due to a pass interference penalty. Just afterwards, Johnson threw a 42-yard deep pass touchdown to Saeed Blacknall, which was his first catch of the season. They then tied up the game at 14-14 with a two-point conversion pass to Jordan Smallwood. The Wildcats got the ball back quickly, but that resulted in the first turnover of the game when Jamar Summers tipped a pass just as it reached the receiver and then intercepted it.
Fourth Quarter
It took another long-winded, clock-eating drive for the Guardians, but they did get points off the interception. The result was a 47-yard field goal from McCrane to give them a 17-14 lead. The Wildcats on their next drive had to settle for a field goal as well, but Novak pushed the 44-yard attempt wide right.
The Guardians attempted to stretch their lead further, but McKay dropped what could have been a long touchdown pass (or at least put them in scoring range). The Wildcats tried to get a drive going, but came up short when Johnson slightly underthrew a receiver on fourth down.
The Guardians got in field goal range again with less than a minute left, but opted to take a delay of game and punt the ball instead, pinning the Wildcats down near their own 10 with 33 seconds left. However, they weren’t able to get further than their 40. After a final attempt of a series of laterals, they were finally tackled at the 20 and the game ended there.
Closing Notes
Luis Perez had an efficient if unspectacular day, going 18-for-26 with 150 yards and a touchdown pass. The running game was more important for them as their top two runners had 114 yards combined.
Josh Johnson had a pretty good day overall, going 25-for-40 with 330 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception. With Nelson Spruce out, Tre McBride had a great day receiving instead with eight receptions for 127 yards and a touchdown. The difference for the Wildcats ended up being two failed field goal attempts.
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