2022 New Orleans Breakers season

Last updated

2022 New Orleans Breakers season
General manager Larry Fedora
Head coach Larry Fedora
Home stadium None
Results
Record6–4
League place2nd in South Division
PlayoffsLost Division Finals (at Stallions) 17–31

The 2022 New Orleans Breakers season was the first season for the New Orleans Breakers as a professional American football franchise. They play as charter members of the United States Football League, one of eight teams to compete in the league for the 2022 season. The Breakers technically play as a traveling team (since the entirety of the regular season will be played at Protective Stadium and Legion Field in Birmingham, Alabama) and are led by head coach Larry Fedora.

Contents

Offseason

Draft

Kyle Sloter was chosen in the first round. He played for 6 NFL teams and was on the official roster for 2. Kyle Sloter.JPG
Kyle Sloter was chosen in the first round. He played for 6 NFL teams and was on the official roster for 2.
Taywan Taylor was selected in the 16th round. Taylor was selected in the third round of the 2017 NFL draft by the Tennessee Titans before going to the Browns in 2019. Taywan Taylor 2018 08-09.jpg
Taywan Taylor was selected in the 16th round. Taylor was selected in the third round of the 2017 NFL draft by the Tennessee Titans before going to the Browns in 2019.
Chad Williams was selected in the 17th round. Williams was selected in the third round of the 2017 NFL draft by the Arizona Cardinals before playing for the Colts in 2019. Chad Williams (4880656) (cropped).jpg
Chad Williams was selected in the 17th round. Williams was selected in the third round of the 2017 NFL draft by the Arizona Cardinals before playing for the Colts in 2019.

The 2022 USFL draft was conducted entirely on social media. Draft selections by the Michigan Panthers were announced on their social media. [1] [2] The Breakers selected NFL journeyman Kyle Sloter in the first round.

New Orleans Breakers
RoundSelectionPlayerPositionCollegeNotes
18 Kyle Sloter QB Northern Colorado
21 Davin Bellamy DE Georgia
38 Anree Saint-Amour DE Georgia Tech
41 James Folston Jr. DE Pittsburgh
49 Nigel Chavis DE Norfolk State Compensatory pick.
54 Paul Adams OT Missouri
65 Donnell Greene OT Minnesota
74 Marquis Lucas OT West Virginia
85 Adonis Alexander CB Virginia Tech
94 Derrick Jones CB Ole Miss
105 Manny Patterson CB Maine
114 Ja'Len Embry CB Northern Illinois
119 Isiah Brown CB FIU Compensatory selection.
121 Zach Smith QB Tulsa
133 Shawn Poindexter WR Arizona
146 Johnnie Dixon WR Ohio State
153 Jonathan Adams WR Arkansas State
166 Taywan Taylor WR Western Kentucky
173 Chad Williams WR Grambling
186 Dartez Jacobs S Georgia State
207 Jared Thomas C Northwestern
212 Jerod Fernandez ILB North Carolina State
221 Steven Rowzee OG Troy
238 Liam Dobson OG Texas State
239 Jalen Allen OG Charlotte Compensatory selection.
248 Shakir Soto DT Pitt
251 Kamilo Tongamoa DT Iowa State
268 Connor Christian DT Jacksonville State
269 Chris Okoye DT Ferris State Compensatory selection.
275 Larry Rose III RB New Mexico State
284 Jordan Ellis RB Virginia
294 Diondre Wallace OLB Towson State
306 Vontae Diggs OLB UConn
326 Austin MacGinnis K Kentucky
342 Salvatore Cannella TE Auburn

Supplemental draft

2022 New Orleans Breakers Supplemental Draft
RoundSelectionPlayerPositionCollegeNotes
11 Justin Johnson TE Mississippi State
28 Keith Washington II CB West Virginia
35 Tyrone Logan Jr. RB North Carolina
44 Shareef Miller DE Penn State
56 Aashari Croswell S Arizona State
63 EJ Bibbs TE Iowa State
72 Turner Bernard CB San Diego
87 Jarey Elder WR West Chester
95 Matt White P/K Monmouth
104 Toree Boyd OL Howard

Personnel

Final roster

2022 New Orleans Breakers roster
Quarterbacks (QB)

Running backs (RB)

  • 31 Jordan Ellis
  • 21 Ezra Gray
  •  6 Anthony Jones

Wide receivers (WR)

Tight ends (TE)

  • 80 Sal Cannella
  • 81 Justin Johnson
 Offensive linemen (OL)
  • 79 Kai Absheer T
  • 77 Paul Adams T
  • 53 Tim Coleman T
  • 69 Jack Kramer G
  • 74 Marquis Lucas T
  • 67 Steven Rowzee G
  • 65 Jared Thomas C

Defensive linemen (DL)

 Linebackers (LB)

Defensive backs (DB)

Special teams (ST)

 Practice squad

Reserve

  • -- Donnell Greene T--
  • 18 Dartez Jacobs S Injury icon 2.svg (IR)
  •  7 Austin MacGinnis K 7
  • 53 Treyvion Shannon T53
Rookies in italics
40 active, 5 reserve, 10 practice squad

The Breakers, like all other teams, have a 38-man active roster with a 7-man practice squad. [3]

Staff

Larry Fedora was chosen as the Breakers head coach. As a Southern Miss and North Carolina head coach, he led both teams to conference titles. Larry Fedora.jpg
Larry Fedora was chosen as the Breakers head coach. As a Southern Miss and North Carolina head coach, he led both teams to conference titles.
2022 New Orleans Breakers staff

Front office

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

  • Offensive coordinator/Quarterbacks – Noel Mazzone
  • Wide receivers – Pat Washington
  • Tight ends/Special teams coordinator – Matt Butterfield
  • Offensive line – Jim Turner
Defensive coaches



Schedule

Regular season

The Breakers' 2022 schedule was announced on March 7. They opened the season against the Philadelphia Stars. [4]

WeekDateTime (ET)OpponentResultRecordTVRecap
1 April 175:00 p.m. Philadelphia Stars*W 23–171–0 USA Recap
2 April 243:00 p.m. Tampa Bay Bandits W 34–32–0 NBC/Peacock Recap
3 April 308:00 p.m. Birmingham Stallions*L 13–222–1 Fox Recap
4 May 83:00 p.m. Houston Gamblers*W 23–163–1 NBC/Peacock Recap
5 May 143:00 p.m. New Jersey Generals L 17–273–2 Fox Recap
6 May 2212:00 p.m. Pittsburgh Maulers*W 26–164–2 FS1 Recap
7 May 289:00 p.m. Michigan Panthers W 31–27 (OT)5–2 FS1 Recap
8 June 43:00 p.m. Birmingham Stallions L 9–105–3 Fox Recap
9 June 124:00 p.m. Tampa Bay Bandits*W 17–66–3 Fox Recap
10 June 198:30 p.m. Houston Gamblers L 3–206–4 FS1 Recap

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. * mean that they host the game, since all eight teams play at the same stadium

Game summaries

Week 1: vs. Philadelphia Stars

Week 1: Philadelphia Stars at New Orleans Breakers – Game summary
Quarter1234Total
Stars0710017
Breakers728623

at Protective Stadium, Birmingham, Alabama

  • Date: April 17
  • Game time: 5:00 p.m. (delayed)
  • Referee: Larry Smith
  • TV announcers (USA): Paul Burmeister, Michael Robinson, Lewis Johnson
Game information

The Breakers started their season against the Philadelphia Stars. The Breakers put the first points on the board with a pick-6 by Vontae Diggs, putting the Breakers up 7-0. In the second quarter, the Breakers blocked a punt in the endzone for a safety, putting the Breakers up 9-0. In the waning minutes of the second quarter, the Stars drove 94 yards downfield, where the Breakers defense committed 20 penalty yards, and scored, putting the Breakers at a 9-7 lead.

In the third quarter, a Kyle Sloter pass was intercepted by the Stars, which set them up with a 38 yard field goal to put the Breakers down 9-10. Halfway into the third, the Breakers took the lead again with a 58 yard touchdown drive and a 2 point conversion, putting the Breakers up 17-10. The Stars responded in the fourth with a 2 play 50 yard drive which included a 42 yard rush, to tie it up 17-17. The Breakers responded on their next drive with a 9 play 63 yard drive, putting the Breakers up 23-17, which would be the final score as both teams traded possessions for the rest of the fourth.

Week 2: at Tampa Bay Bandits

Week 2: New Orleans Breakers at Tampa Bay Bandits – Game summary
Quarter1234Total
Breakers14701334
Bandits03003

at Protective Stadium, Birmingham, Alabama

  • Date: April 24
  • Game time: 3:00 p.m.
  • Referee: Alex Moore
  • TV announcers (NBC/Peacock): Jac Collinsworth, Jason Garrett, Lewis Johnson
Game information
First quarter
  • NO – Kyle Sloter 1-yard rush (Austin MacGinnis kick no good), 7:32. Breakers 6–0. 13 plays, 79 yards, 5:44.
  • NO – T. J. Logan 5-yard rush (Kyle Sloter pass good), 0:15. Breakers 14–0. 12 plays, 70 yards, 5:42.

Second quarter

  • TB – Tyler Rausa 21-yard field goal, 5:54. Breakers 14–3. 11 plays, 69 yards, 6:20.
  • NO – Shawn Poindexter 18-yard pass from Kyle Sloter (Austin MacGinnis kick good), 2:28. Breakers 21–3. 7 plays, 56 yards, 3:23.

Fourth quarter

  • NO – Austin MacGinnis 22-yard field goal, 14:49. Breakers 24–3. 10 plays, 55 yards, 2:54.
  • NO – Johnnie Dixon 4-yard pass from Kyle Sloter (Austin MacGinnis kick good), 11:33. Breakers 31–3. 5 plays, 31 yards, 1:50.
  • NO – Austin MacGinnis 30-yard field goal, 1:11. Breakers 34–3. 4 plays, 7 yards, 1:44.

The Breakers faced division rival Tampa Bay Bandits. The Breakers struck first on a 79 yard touchdown drive, but the extra point was missed, putting the Breakers at 6-0. After a Bandits punt, the Breakers marched 65 yards downfield to score another touchdown, converting a 2-point conversion to bring the Breakers to 14-0. The Bandits responded in the second quarter with a 69 yard field goal drive capped off by a 21-yard field goal by Tyler Rausa to bring the Breakers at 14-3. The Breakers responded with a 56 yard touchdown drive that included a 29-yard one-handed catch by wide receiver Johnathan Adams, deemed the catch of the season, [5] to put the Breakers up 21-3.

In the second half, the Bandits turned it over on downs while the Breakers were unable to score. In the fourth quarter, the Breakers stretched their lead to 24-3 after a 22 yard field goal. They triumphed more, scoring a touchdown off a Ta'amu interception, putting them at a commanding 31-3 margin. They then made a 30-yard field goal to put them at 34-3 with a little over a minute, which would be the final score.

Week 3: vs. Birmingham Stallions

Week 3: Birmingham Stallions at New Orleans Breakers – Game summary
Quarter1234Total
Stallions01001222
Breakers067013

at Protective Stadium, Birmingham, Alabama

  • Date: April 30
  • Game time: 8:00 p.m. EDT
  • Referee: Larry Smith
  • TV announcers (Fox): Curt Menefee, Joel Klatt, Brock Huard
Game information

The 2-0 Breakers played against division rival, the 2–0 Birmingham Stallions. In what started off as a slow offensive performance for both sides, the Stallions got a 7-0 lead on a J'Mar Smith screen pass to Marlon Williams. Later into the 2nd quarter, the Breakers scored on a 10 yard pass from Kyle Sloter to Johnnie Dixon which made the Stallions lead trim down to 7-6. With 7 seconds left in the half, Brandon Aubrey made a 33-yard field goal to give Birmingham a 10-6 lead at the half.

Coming out of the half, the Breakers conducted an 8:50 17 play drive to regain the lead at 13-10 on an 11 yard pass from Sloter to Dixon. This would be the last time the Breakers would score all game. Birmingham would score 12 points in the final quarter of play. A touchdown from Smith to Victor Bolden Jr, a safety forced by Dondrea Tillman, and a Brandon Aubrey field goal. Birmingham would end up winning 22-13. The loss put the Breakers at 2nd in the South Division.

Standings

South Division
#
WLPCTGBDIVPFPASTK
1(y) Birmingham Stallions 91.900–5–1234169W1
2(x) New Orleans Breakers 64.60033–3196164L1
3(e) Tampa Bay Bandits 46.40052–4162195L2
4(e) Houston Gamblers 37.30062–4196208W2
(x)–clinched playoff berth; (y)–clinched division; (e)–eliminated from playoff contention

Postseason

RoundDateTime (ET)OpponentResultRecordTVRecap
Division FinalsJune 258:00 p.m.at Birmingham Stallions L 17–310–1 NBC/Peacock Recap

References

  1. ↑ "USFL DRAFT DETAILS: TIME, DRAFT ORDER, SELECTION PROCESS". foxsports.com. February 22, 2022. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
  2. ↑ "USFL DRAFT 2022: NEW ORLEANS BREAKERS' ROUND-BY-ROUND PICKS". foxsports.com. March 10, 2022. Retrieved April 26, 2022.
  3. ↑ "USFL to have a "player selection meeting" on February 22–23". Pro Football Talk. January 4, 2022. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  4. ↑ "2022 New Orleans Breakers Schedule". FBSchedules. Retrieved April 8, 2022.
  5. ↑ Young, RJ (April 25, 2022). "BREAKERS' ROUT OF BANDITS A WARNING SHOT TO REST OF USFL". theusfl.com. Retrieved April 26, 2022.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.