Sunday featured a matchup between the D.C. Defenders and the St. Louis Battlehawks in the XFL. It was a tight game that ended with a chaotic fight in the final moments, which caught the attention of many fans.
The Battlehawks secured a 34-28 victory after the Defenders failed on a 4th-and-15 onside-kick alternative with 16 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter.
This sparked an all-out brawl between the two teams, with both benches clearing to either separate the fight or get involved themselves.
A scuffle broke out towards the end of the Defenders vs. Battlehawks game 😳 pic.twitter.com/1dydLX18mE
— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) March 5, 2023
It took quite some time for the officials to get things under control. Ultimately three players were ejected for their involvement in the melee. Defenders’ Francis Bernard, Battlehawks running back Brian Hill, and Defenders offensive lineman Rod Taylor were all given an early head start to the locker room.
The Defenders went on to knee the ball and end the game. However, the lasting impression was this altercation, which many took to social media to discuss.
Who won this bench-clearing brawl?👀
(via @ESPNNFL) pic.twitter.com/w7TguJJGGC
— betr (@betr) March 5, 2023
Here's your XFL kerfuffle, surprised they missed the guy who threw a helmet pic.twitter.com/xWzh7J1DjI
— CJ Fogler account may or may not be notable (@cjzero) March 5, 2023
We’ve got an XFL brawl!
How can you not be entertained by this league?
pic.twitter.com/jpER5ZL35M— Odds Shark (@OddsShark) March 5, 2023
We've got an XFL fight 😳
— Action Network (@ActionNetworkHQ) March 5, 2023
Triple ejection by referee Chris Coyte and crew with XFL VP/officiating Dean Blandino assisting in the replay command center pic.twitter.com/xNKQGqnwuh
— Fᴏᴏᴛʙᴀʟʟ Zᴇʙʀᴀs🇺🇦 (@footballzebras) March 5, 2023
Absolute chaos in this XFL game right now pic.twitter.com/WJ90ujfFuz
— Woodward Sports Network (@woodwardsports) March 5, 2023
This win propelled the Defenders to 3-0 on the season, quickly emerging as one of the better teams in the rebooted XFL. It’s unclear at this point if further repercussions will be issued to those who were ejected from the game.
The brawl may not have been a good look for the league as the XFL attempts to get off the ground floor in their latest revamp of the league.
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.