2020 Tampa Bay Vipers season

American professional football season
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The 2020 Tampa Bay Vipers season was the only season for the Tampa Bay Vipers as a professional American football franchise. They played as charter members of the XFL, one of eight teams to compete in the league for the 2020 season. The Vipers played their home games at Raymond James Stadium and were led by head coach Marc Trestman.

Their inaugural season was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the XFL officially suspended operations for the remainder of the season on March 20, 2020.[1]

Standings

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East Division[2]
Team W L PCT TD+/- TD+ TD- DIV PF PA DIFF STK
DC Defenders 3 2 .600 -3 9 12 2–1 82 89 -7 W1
St. Louis Battlehawks 3 2 .600 3 11 8 1–1 97 77 20 L1
New York Guardians 3 2 .600 -1 8 9 1–2 79 85 -6 W2
Tampa Bay Vipers 1 4 .200 -4 11 15 1–1 98 115 -17 L1
West Division[2]
Team W L PCT TD+/- TD+ TD- DIV PF PA DIFF STK
Houston Roughnecks 5 0 1.000 7 21 14 3–0 158 111 47 W5
Dallas Renegades 2 3 .400 -3 9 12 2–1 90 102 -12 L2
Los Angeles Wildcats 2 3 .400 4 18 14 0–2 129 122 7 W1
Seattle Dragons 1 4 .200 -3 12 15 0–2 87 119 -32 L3
(x)–clinched playoff berth; (y)–clinched conference; (e)–eliminated from playoff contention


Schedule

All times Eastern

Week Day Date Kickoff TV Opponent Results Location
Score Record
1 Sunday February 9 2:00 p.m. Fox at New York Guardians L 3–23 0–1 MetLife Stadium
2 Saturday February 15 5:00 p.m. Fox at Seattle Dragons L 9–17 0–2 CenturyLink Field
3 Saturday February 22 2:00 p.m. ABC Houston Roughnecks L 27–34 0–3 Raymond James Stadium
4 Sunday March 1 7:00 p.m. ESPN2 DC Defenders W 25–0 1–3 Raymond James Stadium
5 Sunday March 8 9:00 p.m. ESPN at Los Angeles Wildcats L 34–41 1–4 Dignity Health Sports Park
6 Saturday March 14 5:00 p.m. FS2 St. Louis BattleHawks Not played Raymond James Stadium
7 Saturday March 21 2:00 p.m. ABC Dallas Renegades Raymond James Stadium
8 Saturday March 28 2:00 p.m. ABC at DC Defenders Audi Field
9 Sunday April 5 Noon ESPN at St. Louis BattleHawks The Dome at America's Center
10 Sunday April 12 TBA New York Guardians Raymond James Stadium

[3]

Final roster

2020 Tampa Bay Vipers final roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

  • 80 DeAndre Goolsby
  • 89 Pharoah McKever
  • 86 Colin Thompson
  • 85 Nick Truesdell
 Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

Reserve lists


55 active, 4 inactive

Staff

2020 Tampa Bay Vipers staff

Front office

  • President – Josh Bullock
  • Director of player personnel – Josh Hinch
  • Director of Football Operations – Josh Moore
  • Manager of Football Operations/Scout – Ron Selesky

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

Defensive coaches
  • Defensive coordinator – Jerry Glanville
  • Defensive line – Bert Hill
  • Linebackers – Mike Archer
  • Secondary – William Fields

Special teams coaches

  • Special teams coordinator – Billy Parker
  • Assistant teams coordinator – Frank Gansz Jr.


Season summary

In the first week of the season, the Vipers took a loss to the New York Guardians, only scoring a field goal in the 3rd quarter. They then lost to the Seattle Dragons in the second week of the season, losing 17–9 in Seattle. Even after the two losses, they put up a fight against the then 2-0 Houston Roughnecks, only losing by a mere 7 points at home. They got their first win of the XFL season against the DC Defenders, shutting them out 25–0 to advance to 1–3. In week 5, they blew an 18-point lead and lost to the Los Angeles Wildcats on the road 41–34.

Game summaries

Week 1: at New York Guardians

Week 1 — Tampa Bay at New York
Period 1 2 34Total
Vipers 0 0 303
Guardians 7 10 0623

at MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey

  • Date: Sunday, February 9
  • Game time: 2:00 p.m. EST
  • Game weather: Cloudy • Temperature: 42 °F (6 °C) • Wind: E 6 mph
  • Game attendance: 17,634
  • Referee: Jeff Heaser[4]
  • TV announcers (Fox): Kevin Burkhardt (play-by-play), Greg Olsen (analyst), Jenny Taft (sideline)
Game information
First quarter
  • NY – Matt McGloin 1-yard rush (1-pt. good), 9:55. Guardians 7–0. Drive: 8 plays, 48 yards, 5:08.
Second quarter
  • NY – Colby Pearson 12-yard pass from Matt McGloin (1-pt good), 13:38. Guardians 14–0. Drive: 3 plays, 57 yards, 1:21.
  • NY – Matt McCrane 49-yard field goal, 0:05. Guardians 17–0. Drive: 3 plays, 37 yards, 0:31.
Third quarter
  • TB – Andrew Franks 23-yard field goal, 1:05. Guardians 17–3. Drive: 16 plays, 77 yards, 7:42.
Fourth quarter
  • NY – Jamar Summers 27-yard fumble return (1-pt. failed), 12:09. Guardians 23–3.
Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
  • TB – Daniel Williams – 6 receptions, 123 yards
  • NY – Mekale McKay – 3 receptions, 58 yards

Tampa Bay entered the game as a 3½ point favorite,[5] but went on to suffer a 20-point blowout loss on the road. The Vipers suffered 4 turnovers and gave up 3 touchdowns while only getting 1 field goal, despite getting inside the 5-yard line multiple times.

Week 2: at Seattle Dragons

Week 2 — Tampa Bay at Seattle
Period 1 2 34Total
Vipers 0 3 609
Dragons 0 0 14317

at CenturyLink Field, Seattle, Washington

  • Date: Saturday, February 15
  • Game time: 5:00 p.m. EST
  • Game weather: Rain • Temperature: 46 °F (8 °C) • Wind: S 12 mph
  • Game attendance: 29,172
  • Referee: Tra Blake[6]
  • TV announcers (Fox): Curt Menefee (play-by-play), Joel Klatt (analyst)
Game information
First quarter
No scoring
Second quarter
  • TB – Andrew Franks 36-yard field goal, 2:36. Vipers 3–0. Drive: 9 plays, 44 yards, 4:58.
Third quarter
  • TB – Tarvarus McFadden 78-yard interception return (1-pt failed), 12:18. Vipers 9–0.
  • SEA – Keenan Reynolds 68-yard pass from Brandon Silvers (2-pt failed), 11:26. Vipers 9–6. Drive: 2 plays, 69 yards, 0:33.
  • SEA – Marcell Frazier 1-yard interception return (2-pt good), 5:31. Dragons 14–9.
Fourth quarter
  • SEA – Ernesto Lacayo 27-yard field goal, 1:07. Dragons 17–9. Drive: 7 plays, 35 yards, 1:38.
Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
  • TB – Reece Horn – 5 receptions, 51 yards
  • SEA – Keenan Reynolds – 3 receptions, 87 yards, 1 TD

Week 3: Houston Roughnecks

Week 3 — Houston at Tampa Bay
Period 1 2 34Total
Roughnecks 9 9 8834
Vipers 3 15 6327

at Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, Florida

  • Date: Saturday, February 22
  • Game time: 2:00 p.m. EST
  • Game weather: Cloudy • Temperature: 69 °F (21 °C) • Wind: ENE 13 mph
  • Game attendance: 18,117
  • Referee: James Carter[7]
  • TV announcers (ABC): Steve Levy (play-by-play), Greg McElroy (analyst), Tom Luginbill and Dianna Russini (sideline)
Game information
First quarter
  • TB – Andrew Franks 48-yard field goal, 12:34. Vipers 3–0. Drive: 7 plays, 29 yards, 2:26.
  • HOU – Cam Phillips 84-yard pass from Phillip Walker (3-pt. good), 3:49. Roughnecks 9–3. Drive: 1 play, 84 yards, 0:13.
Second quarter
  • TB – Quinton Flowers 7-yard rush (1-pt. good), 9:17. Vipers 10–9. Drive: 7 plays, 58 yards, 2:51.
  • HOU – Phillip Walker 8-yard rush (3-pt. failed), 5:06. Roughnecks 15–10. Drive: 8 plays, 76 yards, 4:12.
  • HOU – Sergio Castillo 28-yard field goal, 1:00. Roughnecks 18–10. Drive: 7 plays, 49 yards, 2:17.
  • TB – Taylor Cornelius 1-yard rush (2-pt. good), 0:03. Tied 18–18. Drive: 6 plays, 59 yards, 0:56.
Third quarter
  • HOU – Cam Phillips 24-yard pass from Phillip Walker (2-pt. good), 12:13. Roughnecks 26–18. Drive: 5 plays, 80 yards, 2:27.
  • TB – Daniel Williams 20-yard pass from Taylor Cornelius (2-pt. failed), 2:13. Roughnecks 26–24. Drive: 8 plays, 61 yards, 3:45.
Fourth quarter
  • TB – Andrew Franks 43-yard field goal, 12:51. Vipers 27–26. Drive: 6 plays, 23 yards, 2:06.
  • HOU – Cam Phillips 17 yard pass from Phillip Walker (2-pt. good), 10:31. Roughnecks 34–27. Drive: 5 plays, 63 yards, 2:24.
Top passers
  • HOU – Phillip Walker – 24/36, 306 yards, 3 TD
  • TB – Taylor Cornelius – 16/31, 193 yards, TD, INT
Top rushers
  • HOU – James Butler – 7 carries, 72 yards
  • TB – De'Veon Smith – 15 carries, 49 yards
Top receivers

Week 4: DC Defenders

Week 4 — DC at Tampa Bay
Period 1 2 34Total
Defenders 0 0 000
Vipers 7 9 6325

at Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, Florida

  • Date: Sunday, March 1
  • Game time: 7:00 p.m. EST
  • Game weather: Mostly cloudy • Temperature: 60 °F (16 °C) • Wind: NNE 3 mph
  • Referee: Jeff Heaser[8]
  • TV announcers (ESPN2): Tom Hart (play-by-play), Joey Galloway (analyst), Pat McAfee (sideline)
Game information
First quarter
  • TB – Jacques Patrick 8-yard rush (1-pt. good), 8:43. Vipers 7–0. Drive: 11 plays, 75 yards, 4:29.
Second quarter
  • TB – DeAndre Goolsby 13-yard pass from Taylor Cornelius (1-pt. failed), 13:41. Vipers 13–0. Drive: 15 plays, 75 yards, 6:48.
  • TB – Andrew Franks 40–yard field goal, 3:45. Vipers 16–0. Drive: 9 plays, 47 yards, 4:46.
Third quarter
  • TB – Taylor Cornelius 17-yard rush (2-pt. failed), 4:36. Vipers 22–0. Drive: 3 plays, 23 yards, 1:05.
Fourth quarter
  • TB – Andrew Franks 26-yard field goal, 10:17. Vipers 25–0. Drive: 17 plays, 71 yards, 7:22.
Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
  • DC – Donnel Pumphrey – 3 receptions, 32 yards
  • TB – Daniel Williams – 7 receptions, 72 yards

Week 5: at Los Angeles Wildcats

Week 5 — Tampa Bay at Los Angeles
Period 1 2 34Total
Vipers 10 14 01034
Wildcats 0 20 71441

at Dignity Health Sports Park, Los Angeles, California

  • Date: Sunday, March 8
  • Game time: 9:00 p.m. EST / 6:00 p.m. PST
  • Referee: Reggie Smith[9]
  • TV announcers (ESPN): Tom Hart (play-by-play), Joey Galloway (analyst), Pat McAfee (sideline)
Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Top passers
  • TB –
  • LA –
Top rushers
  • TB –
  • LA –
Top receivers
  • TB –
  • LA –

References

  1. ^ "A THANK YOU TO OUR FANS". Retrieved March 23, 2020.
  2. ^ a b "XFL Standings". XFL.com. February 9, 2020. Retrieved February 11, 2020.
  3. ^ "XFL 2020 Schedule Released, First Game Dragons @ Defenders". Retrieved October 22, 2019.
  4. ^ Filipe, Cameron (6 February 2020). "XFL Week 1 referee assignments". Football Zebras. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
  5. ^ "Tampa Bay Vipers at New York Guardians XFL odds, picks and best bets". Sportsbook Wire.
  6. ^ Filipe, Cameron (13 February 2020). "XFL Week 2 referee assignments". Football Zebras. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
  7. ^ Filipe, Cameron (20 February 2020). "XFL Week 3 referee assignments". Football Zebras. Retrieved February 22, 2020.
  8. ^ Filipe, Cameron (27 February 2020). "XFL Week 4 referee assignments". Football Zebras. Retrieved February 29, 2020.
  9. ^ Filipe, Cameron (5 March 2020). "XFL Week 5 referee assignments". Football Zebras. Retrieved March 7, 2020.
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Vegas Vipers
  • Founded in 2018
  • Formerly the Tampa Bay Vipers (2020)
  • Defunct XFL (2020) club 2018–2024
  • Based in Las Vegas, NV
Franchise
  • History
  • Seasons
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  • Draft
    • First-round
  • Starting quarterbacks
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  • League: XFL
    Conference: East (2020); North (2023)
Seasons