The Stallions Keep Winning Up Front—Despite Rash Of Injuries
BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA - May 23, 2026
By Steve Irvine
Injuries have caused a revolving door on the offensive line for the Birmingham Stallions but they still found a way to put themselves in the drivers seat for one of the four UFL playoff spots.
In the last three weeks, the Stallions lost two of the best offensive tackles in the league in Armani Taylor-Prioleau and Mason Brooks, offensive guard Tyrese Robinson and center Andrew Raym to injuries. None of the four will play again this season. Yet, the Stallions have won three consecutive games and, if things fall right, could clinch a playoff spot on Saturday at 2 p.m. at Columbus.
“I'm proud of the coaching staff and our team,” said Stallions head coach AJ McCarron. “I mean, maybe I'm a little biased, but I think any other team loses their starting left tackle, starting right tackle, right guard and center in a three-week span, they're probably not winning. I don't care what level you're coaching. Like, you lose four starting linemen in three weeks. That's not a recipe for success right there. And we're finding a way to win. So we just got to stay on that path.”
All four of the players lost recently started at least five games and played a large number of snaps. Raym and Robinson were both hurt in last week’s win over Columbus at Protective Stadium. Afterward, McCarron was asked about the injuries in his offensive line.
“Yeah, it’s just next guy,” McCarron said. “I mean, that’s all we can do. There ain’t a massive pool of guys to go choose from late in the season.”
The Stallions picked up a pair of offensive linemen this week. They brought back Preston Wilson, an Oklahoma State product, who was with the team in training camp and added Andrew Carter. The 6-foot-3, 310-pound Carter played four years in NAIA at Carroll College in Montana and finished his college eligibility with one season at Weber State. He’s played with the Tucson Sugar Skulls and the Green Bay Blizzard in the Major League of Indoor Football (IFL) the past two seasons.
As of today, the Stallions have five offensive linemen with game experience this season, including right tackle Adrian Ealy, who played 43 snaps in his first game action this season last week. Ealy played 43 snaps at right tackle while wearing Taylor-Prioleau’s jersey because Ealy’s jersey did not fit. Center Joey Lombard played 14 snaps over the past two weeks but was not with the team before that.
The offensive line the rest of the way will be built around guard Zach Johnson, tackle Noah Henderson and center Noah Johnson. Zack Johnson was an All-UFL offensive lineman for the Stallions in 2024 and has played in all eight games with seven starts this season. He allowed one sack while playing 378 snaps thus far. Noah Johnson played in all eight games this season with two starts and Henderson has three starts in his five appearances. Tackle Brian Dooley is the other lineman on the roster.
“I mean, listen, injuries are part of it,” McCarron said. “We've got to replace guys. Like, I hate it because I only have a certain amount of guys. It's why I'm fighting for the league to carry all 50 guys active. I don't understand why we're at 43 (active on game day). I don't understand. I understand from a sense of a business standpoint, it's about money. But I think we'll see a change next year in that. It's going to help the quality of football, but it's hard. We're carrying 20 guys on offense, 20 guys on defense after you count having to carry three quarterbacks active.”