Author: Mark Nelson

Dontez “Speedy” Byrd is flying high in Seattle

Posted on by Mark Nelson

Going into week one of the XFL, Seattle Dragons wide receiver Dontez “Speedy Byrd was fulfilling his topmost desire, and that was to play pro-football.

After his senior year at Tennessee Tech, where he had a stellar year catching 78 passes for 1,003 yards, and six TDs, Dontez could only imagine getting onto an NFL roster. After spending time with the Atlanta Falcons in the 2018 NFL pre-season, and with the Memphis Express of the AAF in 2019, he remained a free agent.

Being out of football, Dontez had expressed a desire to play in the XFL for a while. Finally the Seattle Dragons came calling in January 2020, and offered to fly him to Houston in the middle of a busy training camp.

Byrd did not hesitate to jump at the opportunity.

“Sometimes you never know when you’re going to be called, or when the opportunity is going to come, but when opportunity is given, you can’t leave any doubts,” Byrd said.

In other words, Dontez strongly feels that such an opportunity should not be taken lightly, and he has demonstrated this on the football field. After joining the Dragons, Byrd has proven he deserves a spot on the Dragons starting roster by his performance in game one of the XFL season, where he impressed by catching two passes for 34 yards, including a beautiful catch along the sidelines while he was being covered closely.

“I know when my number is called, I got to make that play,” Dontez said modestly. “Not only is my coach depending on me to make that play, but a lot of my teammates are depending on me to make plays as well.”

After a loss to the Defenders in the first week, Byrd claims the Dragons learned from their mistakes, which allowed them to beat the Tampa Bay Vipers in the next game.

“We went into DC for our first game. We learned a lot that game, and had some things we needed to get fixed in order to get the win against the Vipers,” Byrd explained. “We went back to practice the week after we played against DC and got better as a group and really just honed down on the details and got ready to go against the Vipers.”

It seemed to work. Now, the Dragons are focused on their next opponent, the Dallas Renegades. Dontez also pointed out that this next game is a divisional game, which makes it all the more important.

“It’s our first conference game. So, we need to take this game very serious and get a win.”

We will be watching for Dontez “Speedy” Byrd this Saturday 20 February, when the Dallas Renegades play the Seattle Dragons at 2PM PST at CenturyLink Field in Seattle.

To hear the entire interview with Dontez Byrd, check out the XFL Xtra Podcast – Episode 25


XFL Week 2 attendance saw growth due to good numbers in Seattle

Posted on by Mark Nelson
Oliver Luck
XFL Commissioner Oliver Luck stands in front of over 29,000 fans in Seattle’s CenturyLink Field. (Credit: XFL.com)

In its second week of operation the XFL overall attendance numbers grew, mainly because of 29,172 fans who attended the Seattle Dragons first game at CenturyLink Field.

In week two, the league attracted 76,285 fans to its games, as opposed to 69,818 in week one. This equates to a 9.5-percent increase.

Although Seattle saw success in their inaugural game numbers, the two teams that already hosted their inaugural games saw slightly lower numbers. A slightly lower 15,031 came to see the DC Defenders 27-0 win over the New York Guardians, 12.4 percent down from the previous week’s game. The Houston Roughnecks had 17,103 in attendance for their 28-24 win over the St. Louis BattleHawks, four-percent down from their opening game.

In the Los Angeles home opener, the Wildcats had 14,979 fans in attendance at Dignity Health Sports Park for their 25-18 loss to Dallas. This was the smallest crowd to date, but still a respectable number.  Click-bait news sites attempted to downplay the LA attendance by using social media images taken during the pregame warm-up which showed the stands relatively empty. However, as is a norm in the LA market, the stands filled out nicely once the game was underway.

A packed CenturyLink Field also gave the Seattle Dragons a boost, since fan noise became a factor for the opposing Tampa Bay Vipers.

In week three, the XFL may see even stronger overall attendance numbers since there is another home game in Seattle, and the opening home game in St. Louis, where it is reported the game is very nearly sold out.

Wide Receiver Colby Pearson’s story is being told as a New York Guardian

Posted on by Mark Nelson
YouTube video

 

New York Guardians Wide receiver Colby Pearson grew up in Blackfoot, Idaho, where he played football for the Blackfoot High School Broncos. In his senior year he caught 77 passes for 1,246 yards and 22 touchdowns, enabling the Broncos to go 12-1, and win the 4A state title.

Pearson followed his stellar high school career by signing with the Cougars of Brigham Young University. In his senior year he led the team in touchdown receptions with four, and was second on the team in 38 receptions for 384 receiving yards.

In 2017, Pearson was signed by the Green Bay Packers as an undrafted free agent. Due to injuries he was waived on August 28, 2017. In December, he was re-signed to the practice squad, and later signed a reserve/future contract with the Packers on January 2, 2018.

On July 30, 2018, Pearson went to the Atlanta Falcons. Suffering another injury in training camp, he was waived with an injury settlement.

“Unfortunately, I’ve been having this this battle with the injury bug. I had two injuries when I was in Green Bay and then got injured again in the pre-season when I was in Atlanta,” Colby explained.

In the summer of 2019 Pearson was invited to the XFL Summer Showcase in Seattle. Soon afterward he was invited to the XFL draft which took place in October 2019.

On draft day, Pearson followed the picks closely, but was disappointed that he never heard his name called. On day two of the draft, he went to the gym, just to take his mind off things.

“I was actually just training, because that first day it (the draft) came and I didn’t get a call from them. So, I was kind of bummed out. I was, I don’t know what the next step is,” Colby recalled.  “So, I had gone back to the gym to train like normal, and I think that’s when I got the call.”

Colby was surprised to get a call from the New York Guardians during the open phase of the draft. Things began to move quickly now that he had joined the Guardians organization.

As a Guardian, Colby went through a mini camp, a training camp, and endured cut-downs to gain a spot on the Guardians roster.

This was Colby Pearson’s journey to play pro football. Now, do you wonder where that long journey took him?

It took him to the New York Guardian’s opening game where he caught two passes for 44 yards and his first pro football touchdown.

Colby Pearson
Colby Pearson enjoys a moment of glory, as he is interviewed about his touchdown catch.

Despite the career milestone, Pearson was modest in response. Instead of talking about his TD, he focused on pointing out that the Guardians offense still needed fine tuning.

“We were just happy to get out there first game of the year and come out with the W,” he said. “Execution wise, on offense we have little things to clean up and I think we’re going to have a really productive offense.”

After the Guardians came away with a win in their opening game, Pearson pointed out they are focusing on their next game against the DC Defenders.

“From watching just their first game a little bit on TV, I think they were a tough team as well,” he said. “We’re going to have our hands full. So, we have a good week of preparation… we have a short preparation week and so we know we’re going to have our hands full and we have to get ready and hit it hard.”

Colby is right. There is never going to be a rest for the Guardians, since the short 10-week XFL regular season has no bye weeks. Every week, each team is involved in a new matchup.

When asked about the league’s slogan, “For the love of football,” Colby was quick to point out it was about players who are trying to make a statement.

“Every guy here in the XFL has his own story, and at some point things didn’t work out for them. I think, in order to play in the startup league, everyone’s had a kind of sacrifice, and it really goes to show that the players here really have a love for the game, and they feel like they have untold stories out there.”

We are happy to report that Colby Pearson’s story is now being told as a Guardian. We wish Colby all the best on the football field, with hope that he remains a healthy, productive wide receiver for the New York Guardians of the XFL.

Colby Pearson and the New York Guardians meet the DC Defenders in Washington on Sat 15-Feb-20 at 2PM ET on ABC.

To hear the entire interview with Colby Pearson, check out the XFL Xtra Podcast – Episode 24


Seattle Dragon’s Center Kirk Barron is ready for XFL football

Posted on by Mark Nelson
Kirk Barron (right) is shown during a joint practice with the Dallas Renegades.
Seattle Dragon’s Kirk Barron (right) is shown during a joint practice with the Dallas Renegades. (Credit Twitter @XFLDragons)

In October, Kirk Barron was with family when he heard his name called at the XFL draft.

“I was living in Denver at the time and I went home for it, back to Mishawaka, Indiana and I was with my mom, my girlfriend, and my grandma,” he said. “I just heard my name called, and it was just instant relief knowing that I was still playing the game.”

“I’ve always wanted to be drafted and, you know, that was pretty cool to hear your name called.”

Like many college football players, Kirk graduated with a burning desire to play pro football.  Of course, fulfilling that dream became one of the great challenges of his young life.

After a successful career with the Purdue Boilermakers, under head coach Jeff Brohm, Barron set his sights on the NFL. He was signed as an undrafted free agent with the Miami Dolphins in May 2019, but was waived later that month.

Over the summer, the XFL came calling in the way of an invitation to attend the June 14th XFL Summer Showcase in New York. Barron attended the showcase, and XFL coaches took a good look at the offensive line specialist.

Later in the summer, less than two weeks before their season opener, the Cincinnati Bengals signed Barron to add depth to their offensive line. However, in a move that must have frustrated the young football player, they waived him a few days later.

Patience brought positive news, as Barron received an invitation to the XFL draft. Soon afterward, he was chosen by the Seattle Dragons on day one of the draft, during the Offensive Lineman phase.

Despite the challenges, Barron remains positive about his road to pro football, and credits his girlfriend and family for motivating him to keep going.

“It’s really hard to explain it. You got the guys like the Russell Wilson’s of the world, or the Tom Brady’s who worked their butts off. They’re also extremely lucky because they needed an opportunity or a shot. And the thing with playing professional football is that you got to keep to it. Just because someone says no at the time, does not mean that that’s the end of your career,” Barron remarked. “I know I wouldn’t be in the XFL right now and still playing football. If it wasn’t for my family or my girlfriend. I mean they definitely pushed me. They know how much the game of football means to me and they pushed me to keep with it. I’m very grateful that they did.”

Barron has now been through a mini camp and a training camp with the Dragons and he is ready to travel to the team’s inaugural game in Washington, DC this Saturday.

As for the Dragons, Barron believes they are a winning squad.

“Our defense is pretty tenacious, the get after the ball. The offense like to run the ball, I feel like, but we’re not afraid to air it out. We’re pretty balanced… I just think we’re a really complete team.”

As for Barron, one of his jobs is to protect the quarterback.

“You protect him like he’s the President,” he said.

We look forward to seeing Kirk Barron on the field for the Seattle Dragons this Saturday in the XFL opening game.

To hear the entire interview with Kirk Barron, check out the XFL Xtra Podcast – Episode 22

Four things we need to happen when the XFL returns

Posted on by Mark Nelson

With the XFL kicking off on 8 February, we’d like to point out four things XFL fans would love to see happen in conjunction with the kickoff. Of course, innovative spring football is the topmost desire of all fans, and it seems  this is something they are about to receive. However, getting these four additional things to come to fruition would be the icing on the cake.

1. Vince McMahon needs to say, “This is the XFL!”

Vince McMahon has to go on the field to introduce the XFL. The previous time McMahon did this on 3 February 2001, at the XFL debut game between the NY/NJ Hitmen vs Las Vegas Outlaws at Sam Boyd Stadium in Las Vegas, remains an iconic moment of the the first XFL, and has actually become a meme for the league’s identity.

YouTube video

 

Of course, McMahon doesn’t have to hype the league the same way. He could easily talk about the two years of work Alpha Entertainment has done to build his new league.

However, he has to say, “This is the XFL!” in his signature gravelly voice. This part is mandatory.

2. Trot out the old XFL football heroes

The league needs to bring out some of the old XFL heroes. Players like Tommy Maddox, Rod Smart, Jeff Brohm and John Avery should be brought out to comment on the new league. This would serve to make a decent connection between the old league and new in a positive way.

Players like Maddox and Smart, who had great success in the NFL after their XFL playing time, would serve to point out that the XFL is about great football, and nothing else.

3. Make sure people know the “X” does not stand for “Xtreme”

The fact is that the “X” in XFL never really stood for anything, and that fact remains true in the 2020 version of the league.

History lesson: When the first incarnation of the league was envisioned, it was originally thought XFL would stand for “Xtreme Football League.” However, since there was already a league in formation with that name, for legal purposes the league decided that the “X” did not stand for anything.

However this did not stick.  Even a true XFL fan like Homer Simpson thought the “X” stood for “Xtreme.” In fact, this animated gif meme is often seen when people are referring to the XFL on social media.

So, the XFL needs to work hard to ensure that people know the “X” doesn’t stand for anything.

In a Sports Illustrated interview with XFL Commissioner Oliver Luck, the league’s name was discussed. In describing the origin of the league’s name, it was stated, “The F and the L act to indicate, if only indirectly, a football league. But the X is a variable. It could mean anything.”

Let’s go with that.

4. Someone needs to tell Homer Simpson the XFL is back

YouTube video

 

The last time the “XFL” was mentioned on “The Simpsons” was in the season 13 episode “The Old Man and the Key” (aired March 10, 2002), where Marge had to break bad news to Homer that the XFL had folded:

Marge:  Honey, I’ve got some bad news for you.
Homer: Not now, Marge. I’m waiting for the new XFL season! Who will win this year’s million-dollar game? Who? Who?
Marge: Honey…
Homer: (Making an X with his fingers) The “X” is for “Xtreme.”
Marge: There is no XFL this year. The league folded.
Homer: Who told you?
Marge: Last year’s MVP. He sweeps up toenails at the beauty parlor.

Don’t you think it’s high time that Marge tells Homer that his favorite football league is back? In fact, this would be a great way to promote the league, especially since memes based on this Simpsons clip are quite predominate on the web. Let’s create a new meme… “Homer is thrilled that the XFL is back!”

Maybe they could do an entire story line where Homer is excited to hear the XFL is returning, and he actually goes to an XFL game. Since The Simpsons is on Fox, a broadcast partner of the XFL, there is a chance such a crossover could actually be a reality.

It’s worthwhile to note, the XFL MVP Marge was referring to was Tommy Maddox, and he actually did not have to “sweep up toenails” after the XFL folded. Instead, he spent three years with the Pittsburgh Steelers, the first two as their starting quarterback.

Kicker Garrett Hartley’s XFL Dream Derailed

Posted on by Mark Nelson
Garrett Hartley - New Orleans Saints
Garrett Hartley – New Orleans Saints

On Wednesday 22 January, veteran NFL kicker Garrett Hartley tweeted from Tulane University in New Orleans, and said he was excited to say he was signed by an XFL team. In the days after this initial announcement, fans followed Garrett on social media when he revealed he was going to the Seattle Dragons, then when he flew to Seattle, and even when he tried on his white Seattle Dragons uniform pants.

We all remembered Hartley playing for the New Orleans Saints in Super Bowl XLIV in 2010, where he went 3-for-3 with field goals from 46, 44, and 47 yards, to become the first kicker in Super Bowl history to convert three field goals of 40 yards or more.

Once in Seattle, Garrett put on a show for the XFL Dragons, making 19 of 20 field goals, the longest from the 55-yard line. For the Dragons coaches, this confirmed the video they had seen of Hartley working out on the field at Tulane. His leg was still in shape, and he was more than ready to kick for the XFL.

However, there was still the matter of medical clearance. Unfortunately, Hartley was soon told that an XFL physician would not clear him for game play, since he had undergone spinal surgery where one of the original discs in his neck had been replaced by an artificial disc.

Not passing his medical was the last thing on Garrett Hartley’s mind, as he said over the phone from New Orleans on Thursday evening.

“I’ve already been cleared medically through my world-renowned spine surgeon, Dr. Watkins Jr., and as well as cleared through another surgeon at Tulane, through my MRI reports,” Garrett said. “I would never put myself in jeopardy to play a game if it meant I can ultimately suffer lifelong consequences because of it.”

The medical snag was also a surprise to the Seattle Dragons’ coaches that had coaxed Garrett to come to Seattle.

“That is 100% correct,” Garrett confirmed. “From everyone that I spoke to there, everything was mutual and they were happy to have me, I was happy to be there, and I was going to be their guy. No questions asked.”

It was the league’s medical official that put an end to Hartley joining the Dragons.

“I was told that the risk of the unknown from my surgery was why they would not clear me,” Hartley explained. “Since I have an artificial disc in my neck and not a fusion, there isn’t enough evidence for them to medically say that I would be cleared.”

“In the XFL, there’s no waivers to be signed, since there’s not a collective bargaining agreement, and all the decisions go to the XFL, and not the individual teams like it would be in the NFL,” Hartley explained.

What this really means to Hartley is not only is he restricted from playing for the Dragons, he is restricted from playing for any XFL team.

To top that off, there isn’t any way to reverse the decision, because, as Hartley pointed out, the XFL doesn’t have an appeal process in place.

“Unfortunately, they don’t have anything in place set up as far as appeals goes,” Hartley said. Still, he remains optimistic that the decision is not final.

“There are some potential meetings that might take place early next week that will definitely bring me back up in the conversation,” he said.

Not to mention that Hartley feels strongly that his artificial disc should not be considered to be a liability.

“The frustrating thing for me was the fact that I never had any surgeon other than a primary care doctor overlook, or look at me physically in person to see how strong I am.”

“Knowing that the artificial disc is the future of fusions, anyway. I have more mobility, it’s longer lasting. You know, we have professional athletes across the world that have these in, just none of them happen to be a football player. They’re professional soccer players. There is military active personnel with an artificial disc in their cervical neck. Unfortunately, like I said, they wouldn’t give me the green light.”

Hartley confirmed that he never saw any surgeon or orthopedic specialist while he was in Seattle.

“They were going off some assumptions from their own research of the disc,” he said.  “I know that they had spoken to my surgeon, which operated on Peyton Manning as well as other high priority athletes that obviously came back to play, even though he had a different procedure than me.”

“Having that reassurance through a top ranked doctor is all the assurance that I need as a player, in the confidence, knowing if he feels it’s safe, that obviously I believe that it will be (safe) for me to be on the field.”

Hartley retains hope that this decision will be overturned and he will be allowed to play football for the XFL.

We can’t disagree. After all, it would be great to see him kick another game winning field goal, such as the one that allowed the Saints to play in Super Bowl XLIV.

You can hear more of the interview with Garrett Hartley in this Sunday’s XFL Xtra Podcast. 

XFL LA Wildcats trade Luis Perez to the New York Guardians

Posted on by Mark Nelson

Three months after being assigned to the Los Angeles Wildcats as their Tier 1 quarterback, Luis Perez was traded to the New York Guardians for quarterback Charles Kanoff.

After the Los Angeles Wildcats acquired veteran quarterback Josh Johnson, it has become rumored that Perez was not in the running for the starting quarterback job.

Head Coach and General Manager Winston Moss said of the Perez trade:

“We respect Luis. He is a first-class person and a first-class player. We felt as though the development of Josh Johnson and Jalan McClendon would give us the best chance to have success this season.”

Charles Kanoff played college football at Princeton. He signed as an undrafted free agent with the Arizona Cardinals in 2018, and also spent time on the  practice squads of the Detroit Lions and Tampa Bay Buccaneers before signing with the Guardians on January 5, 2019. He only spent two weeks with the Guardians before being moved to the Wildcats.

The New York Guardians have not indicated how Perez will figure into their quarterback depth chart.

Anthony Johnson is focused on Seattle Dragons training camp

Posted on by Mark Nelson
Anthony Johnson (91) – Credit XFL.com

Since coming to Houston to attend an XFL Seattle Dragons pre-season training camp, Anthony Johnson is focused on one thing…  having a successful training camp.

In fact, his insistence that he was not thinking past the training camp to the Dragons opening XFL inaugural game against the DC Defenders on 8 February was proof enough of his mindset.

“It is an exciting feeling,” he said. “But, right now I think we’re just focused on trying to get through camp. Trying to get everything finalized and get us ready for that game.”

Anthony pointed out that the Dragons were preparing for a pre-season matchup against the DC Defenders Monday, a game that would serve to be a “dress rehearsal” for the real game that will take place in three weeks.

Other than the job at hand, Anthony is positive about the Seattle Dragons.

“This is a great team. Everybody has come together pretty quick in just in a short period of time. I’m excited to see where this team goes.”

“We have a great coaching staff around us,” Anthony said. “Coach Lopez has a great mind. I love listening to him, and I love hearing the things that he has to say. Just all of his concepts, and the same thing with coach Johnson, you know, he’s a great coach and he’s helped me a lot with my game since I’ve been here, just changing different things up on how I play.”

We look forward to seeing Anthony on the field for the Seattle Dragons on February 8th.

To hear the entire interview with Anthony Johnson, check out the XFL Xtra Podcast – Episode 20


Running Back James Butler is picked up by the XFL Houston Roughnecks

Posted on by Mark Nelson

On January 8th, the Houston Roughnecks announced the addition of running back James Butler to their roster.

A native of Wheaton, Illinois, and a graduate of the St. Francis High School football program, Butler started his college career playing for the University of Nevada Wolfpack. In Nevada, he was named All-Mountain West honorable mention in 2015 and 2016 and earned his team’s Outstanding Offensive Player Award in 2016. In his time at Nevada, he had two 1,000-yard seasons and rushed for 3,316 yards and 27 touchdowns, in addition to hauling in 49 passes for 438 yards and three more TDs.

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After a stellar career at Nevada, Butler transferred to Iowa for his senior season and was a backup. He had 91 rushes for 396 yards and a touchdown.

After College, Butler landed in the Oakland Raiders organization, playing in the pre-season and then relegated to the practice roster, despite showing brilliance when he was put on the field.

In 2019, in a bid to get actual playing time, Butler went to the pre-season training camp of the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the CFL. When he was waived by the Roughriders, he wound up returning to the Raider’s practice roster.

In a span of two seasons, Butler was cut four times by the Raiders. They must have liked something about him, because they kept bringing him back.  It seems there was wide interest in his football skills, but Butler was looking for on-field playing time.


This is when the XFL came into the picture.

Butler was recently in Green Bay airport, returning from a workout with the Packers, when he received the call from the XFL.

“I was in Green Bay when I got the call and I was like in the Green Bay airport and they, they were like, can we get you on a flight tomorrow? And I wasn’t even back in Chicago yet.”

On the 8th of January, the Houston Roughnecks reported that Butler had been added to their training camp roster.

Soon after joining the Roughnecks, Butler began to enjoy the type of offence they were building.

“It was a different offence. It reminded me a lot of the offense they ran in Nevada, like a true spread offence,” he explained. “I was talking to coach Estes and he was saying you’re not going to see a lot of eight, nine-man boxes in this kind of offence.”

“I would say this is a pass-first team,” Butler said. “But, incorporates a lot of that with run, so I like it. It’s different. It really utilizes a running back’s talents.”

Despite the intriguing nature of the offensive scheme, and since cut down day is fast approaching, Butler’s main incentive is to make the team.  His motivation even extends to making any XFL roster at this point in time.

“Any roster, honestly,” he clarified.

It’s not just Butler who is pulling for himself to be successful in this league. Back in Illinois, Pat Calcagno the coach of Butler’s former high school team is also pulling for him.

We hope Butler’s hard-working attitude carries him into the regular season of the XFL.

To hear the entire interview with Jame Butler, check out the XFL Xtra Podcast – Episode 20

Wide Receiver Dontez Byrd gets an opportunity with the XFL Seattle Dragons

Posted on by Mark Nelson

They call him “Speedy” Byrd and he’s a wide receiver that started out in Ballard High School in Louisville, Kentucky. In fact, he wanted to play pro football nearly his whole life. When he was young, he wrote a letter to his mother telling her so:

However, like many footballers, there would be many hurdles to cross before Dontez’s “legacy” could be achieved.

When he graduated from high school, Dontez did not have an offer to play at the college level. However, he walked on at Louisville and earned his way onto the team. It worked out, and Byrd made a name for himself on special teams.

In 2017, his senior season, Byrd transferred to Tennessee Tech, where he had a stellar year as a wide receiver where he caught 78 passes for 1,003 yards, and six TDs.

In 2018, this led to Dontez being signed by the Atlanta Falcons as an undrafted free agent. After a rookie minicamp, he earned himself a spot on the roster for the preseason. Even though he was waived before the beginning of the regular season, Dontez remains positive about the experience.

“I played in all four preseason games and had three catches for 76 yards,” he said. “it was good to come in and be around all those receivers that I looked up to in college, and having a chance to play with them in the NFL was pretty cool. And now, I use what they taught me today.”

After a switch of agents, his career suffered a slight pause. Byrd’s next opportunity came in 2019 with the Memphis Express of the Alliance of American Football (AAF). However, his playing time was limited due to an ankle sprain.

After the AAF league folded, Byrd returned to the situation where he was looking for a new pro football team. When the XFL came along, he expressed interest in the league and looked for an XFL opportunity.

That opportunity finally came in January when he received an invitation to join the Seattle Dragons at their preseason training camp in Houston. The timing of that call was quite miraculous, as Dontez was waiting for a job interview when it happened.

“It’s crazy because I received a call at 8:30 in the morning, and I was in a job interview,” Dontez explained. “It was actually my first job interview. I’ve been waiting a while to play football, and I just decided I was going to get a job.”

“I left the interview and went home. Then, I got packed up and got ready to go.”

Through his faith, Dontez just knows it was divine intervention.

Now that he is in the Dragons training camp, Dontez is anxious and eager to get on the field, prove himself, and make the Dragon’s roster.

“I know we only have a couple of practices left, and a preseason game Monday. So, I have to get out there and get some good film on tape so I can make this roster.”

Speedy Byrd has his work cut out for him, but we have faith that his skill, determination and drive will lead him to achieve his legacy.

To hear the entire interview with Dontez Byrd, check out the XFL Xtra Podcast – Episode 20