What a difference a week makes for the New York Guardians. In their season-opening 23-3 victory against Tampa Bay at MetLife Stadium, they got a strong performance from QB Matt McGloin and big-time play from their defense.
However, on Saturday at Audi Field, the Guardians(1-1) were held scoreless in their Week 2 matchup against the D.C. Defenders and would lose 27-0. The Defenders(2-0) were led by QB Cardale Jones, who threw for 276 yards and two touchdowns.
One of the great things about the XFL is the access, and when a player is happy, sad, or frustrated, it will be on full display, which was the case with McGloin, who completed only 8 of his 19 passes for 44 yards and two interceptions. Before halftime, an angry McGloin had this to say to ESPN’S Dianna Russini
Matt McGloin is…not happy
📺 @ABCNetwork
🖥 https://t.co/P39leRxPZY pic.twitter.com/nsON8nPoJK— XFL (@xfl2020) February 15, 2020
McGloin, who played for the Raiders in the NFL, would eventually be replaced by backup QB Marquise Williams in the fourth quarter.Â
As bad as McGloin and the Guardians’ offense was on Saturday, according to Guardians head coach Kevin Gilbride, New York’s loss was his fault.
“I’m disappointed with how we played, and I told the team, ‘that’s on me,'” Gilbride said after the game.Â
Obviously, this is the nature of sports. Players get frustrated, and they say things, but most of the time, the fans don’t hear it. McGloin probably said a little more than he wanted to in this game, but in the heat of the moment, stuff happens. You wonder how much this will impact the team moving forward. However, this a long season, and New York has to find a way to bounce back next week when they visit St. Louis in the BattleHawks’ home-opener.Â
Photo: XFL