Ex-Steelers WR Tyler Vaughns Stars in Arlington Renegades’ XFL Title Win

Former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Tyler Vaughns starred for the Arlington Renegades in their XFL championship victory over the D.C. Defenders, 35-26 on Saturday night.

Vaughns caught all eight targets for 83 yards and a touchdown, leading the Arlington receivers. His touchdown was a nine-yard pass from Luis Perez that made it 14-0 Renegades.

Tyler Vaughns got the @XFLRenegades fired up with the double-move 😤 pic.twitter.com/a1zr75FpiB

— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) May 14, 2023

How in the world did Tyler Vaughns snag this one? The @XFLRenegades offense is firing on all cylinders.

This spectacular grab set up a 51 yarder from Taylor Russolino, which he, of course, knocked through. 20-6 lead for Arlington at half. #XFLChampionshippic.twitter.com/O67yk1eUm7

— James Larsen (@JamesLarsenPFN) May 14, 2023

ARLINGTON CAME TO PLAY 🙌

Luis Perez finds Tyler Vaughns for 6️⃣ and converts on the 2️⃣-point conversion to go up 14-0‼️ @XFLRenegades | @XFL2023 pic.twitter.com/92JjAvg9hh

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) May 14, 2023

In 10 regular season games, Vaughns had 31 catches for 302 yards, tops among all Arlington wide receivers.

A 6-foot-2, 190-pound wide receiver, Vaughns joined the Steelers in 2021 after being cut by the Indianapolis Colts as an undrafted free agent. He spent the 2021 season on the Steelers’ practice squad, and returned to Pittsburgh for training camp in 2022.

Last preseason, he caught eight passes for 112 yards and also scored a touchdown to lead the Steelers in receiving through three games. But he was unable to secure a spot on the 53-man roster or the practice squad. Vaughns went unclaimed on waivers and unsigned, before being selected by Arlington in the 10th round of the XFL Supplemental Draft in January.

Vaughns is one of three former Steelers on the Renegades’ roster. He was joined by defensive tackle Doug Costin, a Steelers 2022 training camp invite that had two tackles in the title game, and cornerback Shakur Brown, who went to camp with the Steelers as a UDFA in 2021. Brown was injured this spring and finished the XFL season on the IR.

The Renegades finished the season with a 4-6 record, but qualified for the playoffs because they finished second in the South Division, while 7-3 St. Louis was eliminated from the North Division.

The Renegades beat the Houston Roughnecks, 26-11 in the Divisional Final, setting up their XFL Championship appearance, held in a neutral site at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas.

Under head coach Bob Stoops, former Steelers tight end Jonathan Hayes is the Arlington co-offensive coordinator and his brother, former Steelers special teams coach Jay Hayes is co-defensive coordinator, along with former Steelers defensive coordinator Tim Lewis.

The XFL title is the second awarded in three seasons of the league’s existence. The Los Angeles Xtreme won in 2001. The 2020 revival was canceled mid-season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.