By Scott Hanson
The Seattle Times
Not only did we find out Monday who is on the Seattle Dragons’ 52-man roster, we also found out who the starting quarterback is.
Dragons coach Jim Zorn said Brandon Silvers, who threw for 10,677 yards in four seasons at Troy (2014-17), will be the XFL team’s starting quarterback in its season opener Feb. 8 at the D.C. Defenders.
Silvers beat out former Seahawk B.J. Daniels, who will be the backup, and Joe Callahan, who did not make the 52-man roster announced Monday.
“He’s probably been more effective throwing the ball,” Zorn said of Silvers, who was assigned to the team before the draft. “He doesn’t move as well as B.J., but his concern is to do what he does well. B.J. is coming on, and we have high expectations for him, but we can only play one at a time.”
The team expects to release a full depth chart within the next week.
Zorn had to deal with one of the unpleasant aspects of his job in waiving 16 players to get to the 52-man limit. Among those waived was former UW Huskies running back Lavon Coleman.
Two others were placed on injured reserve and are eligible to return after the third game: defensive tackle Tani Tupou, a former Seahawk and Husky, and receiver Reuben Mwehla, who played at Bellevue High School before his college career at Idaho.
“That is so hard,” Zorn said of making the cuts. “We are cutting guys who expected to be here.”
Zorn said versatility was important in putting together the final roster, pointing to 6-foot-5, 277-pound tight end Cam Clear as an example. He can also play on the offensive line if needed.
The Dragons kept just three running backs, but Zorn said he has a couple of other players — whom he did not want to name — who could also run the ball.
The team practiced Monday at Memorial Stadium after returning from 2 1/2 weeks of training camp in Houston, where they were joined by the league’s seven other teams.
The Dragons scrimmaged the Defenders last week, but Zorn still said how his team will compare with the rest of the league is unknown.
“That is the biggest mystery,” Zorn said. “I think everyone is nervous. … I don’t know if we’re as big as everyone else or if we’re as fast as everyone else, but the proof will be in lining up and just playing.”
Seattle’s 52-man roster is filled with local connections.
Among the receivers are former UW Husky and Seahawk Kasen Williams and former Seahawk Keenan Reynolds, who was a star quarterback at Navy and will be the Dragons’ emergency quarterback.
Mohammed Seisay, whom the Seahawks traded a sixth-round pick to get from Detroit in 2015, is one of five cornerbacks on the Dragons’ roster. Seisay never played in a regular-season game for the Seahawks after getting hurt in his first preseason game with the team.
Tight end Connor Hamlett played at Meadowdale High School in Lynnwood before going to Oregon State.
