The Seattle Sea Dragons have won two straight games and will reach the midpoint of the season when they host the Houston Roughnecks.
Seattle Sea Dragons (2-2) vs. Houston Roughnecks (4-0)
When: Thursday, 7:30 p.m.
Where: Lumen Field
TV: ESPN
Keys to the game
We’ll say it again: Win the turnover battle
The Sea Dragons have committed more turnovers than their opponents in each of their four games. Seattle has nine turnovers and has forced just one. The Sea Dragons were able to win the past two games despite losing the turnover battle, but the wins came over two teams — Vegas and San Antonio — that have a combined record of 1-7. Houston is a much tougher opponent and it will be pretty tough for the Sea Dragons to win if they lose the turnover battle again.
Pressure the quarterback
Houston quarterback Brandon Silvers — who started for the Seattle Dragons in the 2020 XFL — has been very good in his first four games. He has completed 88 of 135 passes for 962 yards, with 10 touchdowns and three interceptions. Houston leads the league in scoring at 30.5, and perhaps the best way to slow the Roughnecks is to get pressure on Silvers. Seattle had a season-high four sacks in its 15-6 win over San Antonio on Saturday, and similar production would be a huge boost to Seattle’s chances.
Protect QB Ben DiNucci
The Roughnecks have 17 sacks (five more than any other team), so Seattle will be facing a big challenge in trying to protect quarterback Ben DiNucci, who has been sacked just four times this season. The Sea Dragons have done a better job the past couple weeks of giving DiNucci a clean pocket to pass from, but the task this time will be much tougher.
Prediction: Houston might be the better team on paper, but the Sea Dragons will have the fans on their side and their confidence should be back after two straight wins. Seattle 31, Houston 30