- Michigan's D.J. Miller Jr. is an early standout: The cornerback's two interceptions in Week 2 help him rank as the UFL's highest-graded player through two weeks of action.
- The Stallions are getting good production out of their linebackers: DeMarquis Gates and Chapelle Russell both boast 80.0-plus PFF overall grades, one of only two linebacker duos to do so through Week 2.
- Looking for past spring football data? PFF's Premium Stats database has you covered with UFL, USFL, XFL and AAF data since 2019.
Estimated Reading Time: 8 minutes
PFF has you covered for 2025 spring football with weekly grades, in addition to grades and analysis for the NFL and college football. We're diving into every UFL team's highest-graded players throughout the 2025 season. Only those who meet the minimum snap threshold are included.
Arlington Renegades
- RB Kalen Ballage (84.2)
- QB Luis Perez (81.3)
- EDGE Chris Odom (80.4)
- EDGE Durrell Johnson (79.7)
- WR Isaiah Winstead (77.7)
Kalen Ballage owns the highest PFF rushing grade (87.0) in the UFL through two weeks. He also leads the league in yards after contact per attempt (5.1).
A spring football mainstay, Luis Perez has earned 70.0-plus PFF overall grades in each of the past three seasons, including a position-leading 89.0 mark in 2024 despite his team’s shortcomings. His strong start to 2025 includes leading the Renegades to a 2-0 record, making two big-time throws and being the UFL’s top-graded passer (80.6).
Chris Odom is another UFL star with prior production on his resume. He has racked up seven quarterback pressures through two games, the fourth most among edge defenders. He’ll look to replicate his 2022 season in USFL when he paced the league in PFF pass-rush grade (91.7), pressures (59) and pass-rush win rate (24.0%).
Birmingham Stallions
- LB DeMarquis Gates (84.4)
- LB Chapelle Russell (80.6)
- WR Marlon Williams (74.5)
- T Keaton Sutherland (74.5)
- EDGE Bradlee Anae (73.6)
The Stallions' linebacker corps is in good shape through two weeks, with both Chapelle Russell and DeMarquis Gates flashing strong play. Gates was the UFL's second-highest-graded linebacker in Week 2 (84.4), and he managed two forced incompletions on four targets into his coverage.
Chapelle Russell bounced around the NFL after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers made him a seventh-round selection in 2020. His lone NFL start, a 48-snap outing with the Commanders in 2021, resulted in an impressive 70.3 PFF overall grade, potentially a hint about what he’ll accomplish this year in the UFL. He has forced a fumble in run defense and not allowed a catch in coverage through two weeks.
2022 USFL Championship standout Marlon Williams is back for his fourth season with the defending UFL champion Stallions, and although he didn't catch a pass in Week 1, his 22 yards after the catch and three receptions in Week 2 vaulted him onto this list.
DC Defenders
- CB Bryce Thompson (81.7)
- EDGE Malik Fisher (77.4)
- WR Chris Rowland (74.7)
- T Yasir Durant (74.2)
- DI Joseph Wallace (72.9)
Bryce Thompson ranks as the fourth-highest-graded UFL cornerback through two weeks, largely because he has allowed just one catch on six targets into his coverage. He also converted a nickel blitz into a sack after finessing his way into the pocket with a spin move.
Malik Fisher has produced four quarterback pressures through two weeks, but most of his value is in run defense, where he owns two run stops and has yet to be downgraded on 19 snaps. His 76.0 PFF run-defense grade leads all edge defenders.
Fresh off his second straight three-catch game, Chris Rowland has been a steady presence for the Defenders' offense thus far. He created a 45-yard gain with his after-the-catch work and tossed a two-point touchdown pass for DC in Week 2.
45-yards! Big time gain from Rowland 😮💨 pic.twitter.com/BdWsNUtDl9
— D.C. Defenders (@XFLDefenders) April 6, 2025
Houston Roughnecks
- EDGE Tashawn Bower (81.5)
- CB Corn Elder (76.6)
- EDGE TJ Franklin (73.1)
- C Jack Kramer (70.6)
- LB Marvin Moody (69.6)
It's nearly an all-defense top five for the Roughnecks, who sit at 0-2 and have scored a league-low 15 points through two games. Tashawn Bower is in his first spring football season and has posted the second-highest pressure rate (23.8%) among qualifying edge defenders thus far.
Corn Elder‘s play on the backend hasn't yet yielded positive team results, but his forced fumble — and subsequent recovery — in a tight Week 2 loss to the Renegades was a positive moment for Houston.
The UFL's most prolific run defender through two weeks resides in Houston, with TJ Franklin having amassed a league-leading four run-game tackles for loss or no gain and six total run stops.
What a wild sequence in the #UFL.
— James Larsen (@JamesLarsenPFN) April 6, 2025
Luis Perez drops a dime to Sal Cannella – who gets lit up by Corn Elder, forcing a fumble, and Houston recovers.
The next play, Anthony Brown forces a throw high, and Ajene Harris picks it off for Arlington.
Ugly offense across the board. pic.twitter.com/IcxkjTUIpX
Memphis Showboats
- WR Jonathan Adams Jr. (93.5)
- DI P.J. Hall (82.4)
- CB Lance Boykin (77.5)
- TE Jay Jay Wilson (71.6)
- CB Kyree Woods (68.2)
Jonathan Adams Jr. is the UFL's highest-graded offensive player through two weeks, as well as the league leader in catches (15), yards (216), first downs (12) and contested catches (four). One of his best grabs in Week 2 was on a late-game back-shoulder throw to move the chains.
P.J. Hall, one of the UFL's best interior defenders in 2024, is back at it 2025 and on pace to earn his second straight season-long 80.0-plus PFF overall grade. Hall's 14.6% pass-rush win rate through two weeks is the top mark among interior defenders.
Despite already having faced 11 targets in coverage — the third most among cornerbacks — Lance Boykin has surrendered only one first-down reception. His early-season stat sheet also includes two forced incompletions and just a 67.2 passer rating allowed.
Michigan Panthers
- CB D.J. Miller Jr. (96.1)
- WR Samson Nacua (90.4)
- EDGE Kenny Willekes (85.4)
- EDGE Breeland Speaks (81.7)
- S Kai Nacua (81.5)
Through two weeks, D.J. Miller Jr. is the UFL's highest-graded player on either side of the ball (96.1). Powering that grade are two very impressive interceptions in Week 2, one on a deep shot. In all, Miller has let up just one catch for 9 yards on six targets into his coverage.
Samson Nacua‘s Week 1 touchdown on only two catches helps his case here, although he has played only 10 receiving snaps and 17 run-blocking snaps through two weeks.
Kenny Willekes parlayed a productive Michigan State career into a seventh-round NFL draft selection in 2020, and he has been with the Michigan Panthers since 2024. His 83.8 PFF pass-rush grade last year ranked sixth among edge defenders, and his 24.2% pass-rush win rate this season places him fourth at the position.
Leave it to Breeland Speaks to continue to wreak havoc in spring football after the former second-round NFL draft pick's recent work earned him a preseason look with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Only Dondrea Tillman (now with the Denver Broncos) and Pita Taumoepenu tallied more quarterback pressures than Speaks over the past two seasons among spring football edge defenders.
SECOND INTERCEPTION OF THE GAME FOR MILLER 😤 pic.twitter.com/mneeQqnJHS
— Michigan Panthers (@USFLPanthers) April 5, 2025
San Antonio Brahmas
- S Henry Black (73.3)
- RB Jashaun Corbin (68.3)
- RB Anthony McFarland Jr. (67.7)
- QB Kellen Mond (66.6)
- CB Greedy Williams (66.1)
A tumultuous start to the season, headlined by offensive coordinator A.J. Smith's voluntary departure and an 0-2 record, leaves the Brahmas without any players boasting a 75.0-plus PFF overall grade. Still, Henry Black has garnered a positive grade on 10% of his run-defense snaps through two weeks, the second-best rate among safeties. His coverage stat sheet is without a target across 17 snaps.
Running backs Jashaun Corbin and Anthony McFarland Jr. have combined for 161 yards on 25 carries, with 114 of those yards coming after contact. No team is averaging more yards after contact on the ground than the Brahmas (3.9), thanks to that duo.
St. Louis Battlehawks
- DI Austin Faoliu (90.8)
- LB Olakunle Fatukasi (87.3)
- S Lukas Denis (86.7)
- CB Brandon Sebastian (85.4)
- LB Mike Rose (80.4)
It's all defense for the Battlehawks through Week 2, led by Austin Faoliu‘s 14.3% pass-rush win rate that places him second among UFL interior defenders. His 88.5 PFF run-defense grade is also nearly 10 points higher than the next-best player at the position.
Olakunle Fatukasi, the younger brother of NFL standout Foley Fatukasi, is a similarly adept defender, pacing UFL linebackers in PFF overall grade through two weeks. He is the league's only linebacker who has allowed four or more catches but no first downs.
Lukas Denis was one of the XFL's top safeties in 2023 before latching on with the Atlanta Falcons for a year. He is back to his dominant ways in 2025, although now primarily as a slot cornerback. He has allowed the fifth-lowest passer rating into his coverage (35.8) among qualifying cornerbacks through two weeks.
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