The Houston Roughnecks started the season strong, winning all of the team’s games through the first three weeks.
Beyond the victories, arguably two of the league’s top three stars are coming out of Houston: quarterback P.J. Walker and Cam Phillips.
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Walker is proving that he could be an NFL training camp addition, and Phillips has caught seven touchdown passes in the team’s first three games - including the first touchdown in Roughnecks history.
The bio
Phillips was a standout wide receiver at Virginia Tech, with extensive playing time in all four of his seasons. He graduated in 2017 with 236 catches for 3,027 yards and 37 touchdowns for the Hokies. Phillips made First-Team All-ACC as a senior.
After going undrafted in 2018, Phillips joined the Buffalo Bills for two games, making one catch for nine yards. He spent most of 2018 as a practice squad player before getting cut in 2019. Six weeks after the Bills cut him, the Roughnecks picked him up in the sixth round of the XFL Draft.
Hat tricks
Phillips scored the first touchdown in Roughnecks’ history on a 55-yard strike.
That was his only touchdown against the LA Wildcats, but since then, Phillips has scored three touchdowns in both of the past two games. Phillips was especially dominant in week three, putting up 194 yards on eight catches.
Phillips has 20 catches for 324 yards and seven touchdowns in his first three games. He is averaging seven catches for 108 yards and two touchdowns per game so far this season.
Phillips’ thoughts
Phillips said he wants to be a playmaker for the Roughnecks.
“Whether that is short passes, medium passes, third downs, whatever that is, I just want to make plays for my team,” Phillips told KPRC 2.