The 2023 Houston Roughnecks season was the second season for the
Houston Roughnecks 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 played as charter members of the
XFL, one of eight teams to compete in the league for the
2023 season. The Roughnecks played their home games at the
TDECU Stadium and were led by head coach
Wade Phillips
Harold Wade Phillips (born June 21, 1947) is a former American football coach. He has served as head coach of the Denver Broncos, Buffalo Bills, Dallas Cowboys, Houston Roughnecks and San Antonio Brahmas. He has also served as interim head coa ...
.
Earning their first playoff berth and clinching first place in the South Division, the Roughnecks were eliminated by the
Arlington Renegades
The Arlington Renegades are a professional American football team based in Arlington, Texas. The Renegades compete in the United Football League (UFL) as a member of the XFL Conference. The team was founded as the Dallas Renegades by Vince McMah ...
in the South Division title game in the playoffs.
This was the last season before the XFL merged with the
United States Football League
The United States Football League (USFL) was a professional American football league that played for three seasons, 1983 through 1985. The league played a spring/summer schedule in each of its active seasons. The 1986 season was scheduled to be ...
to form
United Football League (UFL). As part of the merger agreement leading up to the 2024 season, the XFL's Roughnecks would disband and the USFL's
Houston Gamblers
The Houston Gamblers were an American football team that competed in the United States Football League in 1984 and 1985. The Gamblers were coached by veteran NFL head coach Jack Pardee in both their seasons. They were noteworthy for introducin ...
would take over the Roughnecks name.
Final Roster
Schedule
''All times Central''
Game summaries
Week 1: vs. Orlando Guardians
Week 2: vs. Arlington Renegades
Week 3: vs. San Antonio Brahmas
Week 4: at Orlando Guardians
Week 5: at Seattle Sea Dragons
Week 6: at DC Defenders
Week 7: vs. St. Louis BattleHawks
Week 8: at San Antonio Brahmas
Week 9: vs. Vegas Vipers
Week 10: at Arlington Renegades
Standings
Postseason
Schedule
Game summaries
XFL South Division Finals: vs. (2) Arlington Renegades
Staff
References
{{2023 XFL season
Houston
Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...
Houston Roughnecks
Houston Roughnecks seasons