XFL Gets Mostly High Marks For Debut Games This Weekend

The XFL averaged 17,454 fans for its opening four games this weekend, led by L.A. Wildcats-Houston Roughnecks at TDECU Stadium on Saturday, which drew 17,815 fans. Tampa Bay Vipers-N.Y. Guardians at MetLife Stadium yesterday drew 17,634, while St. Louis Battlehawks-Dallas Renegades drew 17,206 to Globe Life Park yesterday. Seattle Dragons-DC Defenders on Saturday drew 17,163 to Audi Field (THE DAILY).

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DC'S FINEST: In DC, Thom Loverro wrote it was "hard to ignore the positive vibe in and around Audi Field" on Saturday for the Defenders' first game. The "organic" atmosphere included "little in the way of hype or hoopla surrounding the game day experience." Outside the stadium, the team held a "simple fan fest, with a few sponsors set up, a band, and some tailgating in the limited parking available." Inside, there were "none of the fireworks or pyrotechnics that, ironically, the NFL took" from XFL Founder Vince McMahon's WWE shows (WASHINGTON TIMES, 2/9). In Seattle, Kyle Melnick wrote many spectators "didn't know what to expect from the XFL's first game," and Dragons-Defenders "provided a glimpse of what the game -- and fanbase -- could look like." Audi Field "remained full and the teams pulled off a handful of highlight plays." The 20,000-seat venue "welcomed 17,163 fans" (SEATTLE TIMES, 2/9). THE ATHLETIC's Rhiannon Walker noted Defenders coaches and players were "blown away by the sheer number of fans" who filled the venue. Nobody "knew what to expect, but they certainly weren't expecting that or a wave that lasted for 15 minutes." Many felt Audi Field was the "perfect venue" for the new XFL because it had the "right amount of space to accommodate a healthy fan base" (THEATHLETIC.com, 2/9). NBC Sports' Peter King said Dragons-Defenders "looked like an event that was cool and that people wanted to be at." PFT's Mike Florio also noted the game "felt like a bigger deal because the stadium felt full" ("PFT," NBCSN, 2/10).

FANS BUYING IN: In N.Y., Ryan Dunleavy writes the announced crowd for the Guardians' first home game at MetLife Stadium was "comparable to naked-eye estimates at a Rutgers football game" in '19. The crowd was "restricted to the 82,500-seat stadium's lower bowl," where it "filled the end zones and most of the home sideline" (N.Y. POST, 2/10). USA TODAY's Lorenzo Reyes writes there was a "measured enthusiasm" at MetLife Stadium yesterday. Fans seemed "eager to accept the XFL and its transparency the NFL never will provide" (USA TODAY, 2/10). However, in New Jersey, Andy Vasquez notes while the fans at the game were engaged, the "overall vibe suffered because of the sheer size of MetLife Stadium." Fox "tried to keep the empty seats off the broadcast," but that was an "impossible task -- and not a great look for a live television audience." There would have been a "totally different vibe had this game been played in a smaller venue like other XFL teams have done" (Bergen RECORD,2/10).

WORTH THE WAIT: In Ft. Worth, Stefan Stevenson in a front-page piece notes more than an hour before BattleHawks-Renegades at a retrofitted Globe Life Park, a "long line of fans waited to get into the XFL pro shop to buy merchandise." Other fans "waited in long lines for concessions, which may have been more to do with a lack of stadium workers than a run on hot dogs" (Ft. Worth STAR-TELEGRAM, 2/10).

MUCH IMPROVED OVER ORIGINAL: In New Orleans, Rod Walker wrote the XFL was "able to keep" his attention. Credit to McMahon for "learning from all that quirkiness from the XFL's first run." It was "clear from the opening kickoff the XFL had some new, fresh ideas to make the game better." The "biggest difference between the old XFL and this 2.0 version is this one is less gimmicky." Not everything was "perfect," and the league could "do away with in-game interviews with players." But the XFL "got the two most important things right: the quality of play and how it's presented on TV" (NOLA.com, 2/8). USA TODAY's Chris Bumbaca wrote the original XFL's "gimmicks are not going to cut it" in this version of the league, and "that's a good thing." The new XFL is "trying to differentiate itself" with "more subtle innovations." The running clock is a "good idea and works well" (USA TODAY, 2/9). In DC, Les Carpenter wrote any gimmicks from the XFL this weekend "had nothing to do with skin or sex but everything to do with the game on the field." Saturday's inaugural games "felt like football" (WASHINGTON POST, 2/9). ESPN/ABC's Steve Levy said, "If all you know about the XFL is 'He Hate Me,' forget about it, long gone. This is the brand spanking new XFL" ("Dragons-Defenders," ABC, 2/8).

GOOD FOR WHAT IT IS: In Colorado Springs, Woody Paige wrote the XFL games were "quicker-paced, with fewer penalties and less controversy, than the typical NFL version of football" (Colorado Springs GAZETTE, 2/9). In Houston, Jerome Solomon wrote when it "comes to the quality of play, even casual fans will recognize this isn't the NFL." But per one of the XFL's "slogans, for the love of football, it doesn't take NFL-quality players for one to be entertained" (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 2/9). SI.com's Conor Orr wrote at its "best, the XFL will snuggle neatly into the rotation with non-playoff hockey and non-tournament college basketball." It will "exist within the football infrastructure and appeal to the offseason fan by not taking itself too seriously" (SI.com, 2/9). In Dallas, Joseph Hoyt writes there has been lots of "positive feedback about the league," the reason being that the XFL was "doing what it said it would" (DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 2/10).

WHOLE NEW WORLD: In Tulsa, Guerin Emig notes Renegades coach Bob Stoops had to deal with several things that were not present during his stint at the Univ. of Oklahoma, including "pregame glad-handing" and coaching "with an ESPN microphone dangling over his head [and] an ESPN cameraman scurrying around the field behind plays." Stoops said, "I’m here to do my part to help the league in any way I can. That means participating differently than I have before ... I get it.” Stoops is "easily the XFL’s most marketable coach and probably its [most] marketable figure" (TULSA WORLD, 2/10).