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Even though he and his St. Louis Battlehawks have missed the XFL playoffs, AJ McCarron is not going anywhere.
On Sunday, the Battlehawks beat the Orlando Guardians 58-23, but it proved to be for naught, as the Seattle Sea Dragons claimed a 28-9 victory over the Vegas Vipers to take the North Division's last playoff spot via tiebreaker.
Speculation has arisen regarding McCarron's next step, but he affirmed his future with the Battlehawks on Twitter shortly after the game:
"Would play for this MAN anytime and anywhere! A Great Coach and even better man! Can't wait till Next Year!"
A. J. McCarron XFL: Stats and accomplishments
AJ McCarron has been a revelation since coming to the XFL in 2022.
He started all but one of the Battlehawks' ten games, and in those nine games, McCarron completed 203 of 295 attempts for 2,150 yards and 24 touchdowns against six interceptions. He also rushed for 100 yards and a touchdown.
McCarron first emerged as a breakout star after spearheading consecutive comeback wins in San Antonio and Seattle. After the win against San Antonio, he explained why he joined the league:
" My 6-year old loves watching tape of me on YouTube. That's a big reason I chose to return this way. I probably could've tried to come back with an NFL team and had a chance to probably make bigger money. but no one knows what the future holds. I'm enjoying this and it's a great way to create some memories for me and my boys."
During Sunday night's game, McCarron completed 80% of his passes (28/35) for 420 yards and six touchdowns. He also scored his only rushing touchdown of the season, as the Battlehawks set the league record for most points by a team in a game.
How did AJ McCarron fare in NFL?
McCarron's heroic rise contrasts with his time in the NFL, where he mostly sat on the sidelines.
Coming off three collegiate titles in four prolific seasons with Alabama, he was drafted 164th overall by the Cincinnati Bengals in 2014. He played four seasons with the team, mainly as Andy Dalton's reliever, but he did start the Bengals' 2015 Wild Card Game, which they lost against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
After an attempted midseason trade to the Cleveland Browns in 2017 fell through, McCarron joined the Buffalo Bills for 2018. However, he suffered a shoulder injury and was traded to the Oakland Raiders before the season even began. He was released at the end of the year.
McCarron played two games for the Houston Texans, starting one. He then moved on to the Arizona Cardinals but got injured in preseason.
