Former Minnesota Vikings in the XFL: Week 1 recap

ARLINGTON, TEXAS - FEBRUARY 09: Darius Hillary #41 of the St. Louis Battlehawks slips on the turf as he tries to stop the run by Jeff Badet #13 of the Dallas Renegades in the first half of an XFL football game on February 09, 2020 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images)
ARLINGTON, TEXAS - FEBRUARY 09: Darius Hillary #41 of the St. Louis Battlehawks slips on the turf as he tries to stop the run by Jeff Badet #13 of the Dallas Renegades in the first half of an XFL football game on February 09, 2020 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Ken Murray/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
(Photo by Ken Murray/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

Norton protects the blindside for L.A.

The Los Angeles Wildcats were the team that got roughed up the most in Week 1 as they were destroyed by P.J. Walker to the tune of four touchdowns in a 37-17 loss to the Houston Roughnecks.

While the headlines have been dedicated to the Wildcats’ firing of their defensive coordinator after just one week, there was also a decent performance from Storm Norton.

As one of the greatest names in Vikings history, Norton lined up at left tackle for Los Angeles and the results were mixed. PFF charged Norton with three allowed pressures and a penalty in 56 pass-blocking snaps, but he didn’t allow a sack. With everything considered, he graded out as the 10th best pass-protecting offensive lineman in Week 1.

Outside of Norton, there just wasn’t much to see here. DuJuan Harris made a brief cameo with Minnesota in 2015, but his playing time was just as short for the Wildcats, seeing only two carries for six yards in the loss.

PFF preseason god Jack Tocho also suited up for Los Angeles, but that stardom didn’t translate in Week 1 as he finished with just one tackle on the afternoon.