The 2020 DC Defenders season was the first season for the

DC Defenders The DC Defenders are a professional American football team based in Washington, D.C. The Defenders compete in the United Football League (2024), United Football League (UFL) as a member of the XFL Conference. The team was founded by Vince McMaho ...

as a professional

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

franchise. They were playing as charter members of the XFL, one of eight teams to compete in the league for the 2020 season. The Defenders played their home games at

Audi Field Audi Field is a soccer-specific stadium in the Buzzard Point neighborhood of Washington, D.C. It is the home of D.C. United, DC Power FC, and Washington Spirit soccer teams, and the DC Defenders American football team. The stadium seats 20,000 p ...

and were led by head coach Pep Hamilton. Their inaugural season was cut short due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

and the XFL officially suspended operations for the remainder of the season on March 20, 2020.

Standings

DC Defenders kickoff against the Seattle Dragons at Audi Field

Schedule

''All times Eastern''

Final roster

Staff

Season summary

During the first two weeks of the XFL season, the Defenders got off to a hot start, beating the

Seattle Dragons The Seattle Sea Dragons were a professional American football team based in Seattle, Washington. The Sea Dragons competed in the second incarnation of the XFL (2020), XFL. The team was founded by Vince McMahon’s Alpha Entertainment as the Seat ...

in the first XFL game by a score of 31–19 at home, and dominating the

New York Guardians New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 1 ...

at home 27–0. However,

Cardale Jones Cardale Jones (; born September 29, 1992) is an American former professional football quarterback. He played college football for the Ohio State Buckeyes, where he was a CFP national champion, and was selected by the Buffalo Bills in the fourth ...

and the Defenders got into a slump the next two weeks, falling to 2-2 and losing back to back games on the road; first to the

Los Angeles Wildcats Los Angeles Wildcats is a name shared by several American football teams from Los Angeles: * Los Angeles Wildcats (AFL), a team that played in the American Football League of 1926 * Los Angeles Wildcats (Minor League AFL), a team that played in the ...

39–9, and then to the Tampa Bay Vipers 25–0. The Defenders were able to rebound in week 5 thanks to Tyree Jackson, winning against the St. Louis Battlehawks at home 15-6 and improving their record to 3-2 before the XFL officially suspended operations 12 days later.

Game summaries

Week 1: vs. Seattle Dragons

This was the first-ever XFL game, and the Defenders would have the first score (although Seattle had the first touchdown) and the first win of the XFL.

Week 2: vs. New York Guardians

In the fourth quarter, the Defenders tried for a three-point conversion, the first three-point attempt in the XFL.

Standings

Schedule

Final roster

Staff

Season summary

Game summaries

Week 1: vs. Seattle Dragons

Week 2: vs. New York Guardians

Week 3: at Los Angeles Wildcats

Week 4: at Tampa Bay Vipers

Week 5: vs. St. Louis BattleHawks

References