Return of the XFL?

[argolio]

Remember the XFL when instead of the kickoff the two guys ran towards the ball and IIRC the very first time one of the guys got injured.

I don't think spring football is the issue, the USFL damn near made it, might have done if it wasn't for a certain NFL wannabe named Trump. But since then no one has showed the desire or resources to stay with it for the long haul.

The USFL hurt the CFL a bit because the CFL raised salaries and it hurt them. They learned that lesson and hopefully won't repeat it.

The USFL outbid the NFL for players. No spring league today can do that.

[jerrym]

Trent Richardson, who rushed for 259 yards for the Riders in 2017, is being pursued by both the XFL and NFL after leading the short-lived AAF in TDs with 12 in eight games. He had been a #3 NFL overall pick in 2012, picking up 2,000 yards in three seasons before bouncing around for a couple of years, then playing briefly for the Riders, then being out of football for a couple of years before signing with the AAF.

[gilthethrill]

Trent Richardson, who rushed for 259 yards for the Riders in 2017, is being pursued by both the XFL and NFL after leading the short-lived AAF in TDs with 12 in eight games. He had been a #3 NFL overall pick in 2012, picking up 2,000 yards in three seasons before bouncing around for a couple of years, then playing briefly for the Riders, then being out of football for a couple of years before signing with the AAF.

Richardson should be grateful any league has interest in him. 12 TDs in the AAF....under 3 yards a carry on average. Eye popping. Then again Luis Perez, Richardson's Birmingham qb is also is drawing interest, which tells you the XFL will basically be AAF rosters. It can't fail.

[jerrym]

June Jones says Manziel, whom Jones predicted "would be the best player ever to come up here (the CFL)" is on Jones list of potential XFL QBs for his Houston team. I guess some people never learn.

[doubleblue]

June Jones says Manziel, whom Jones predicted "would be the best player ever to come up here (the CFL)" is on Jones list of potential XFL QBs for his Houston team. I guess some people never learn.

How is that going to work for the XFL. Are they trying to sign NFL cuts now? I would think quite a few players that were cut are waiting by the phone for the NFL to recall them when injuries start to happen.

[gilthethrill]

How is that going to work for the XFL. Are they trying to sign NFL cuts now? I would think quite a few players that were cut are waiting by the phone for the NFL to recall them when injuries start to happen.

I believe the league can start signing players, but then there is a draft in October involving players that have been working out in "Showcases" over the summer and recent NFL cuts. Qb Landry Jones has signed with the XFL, but now he must wait for the league draft to see which team he plays for.

I am sure lots of players who get drafted will, like you mentioned wait for an NFL call.

I have to mention....qb Luis Perez has attended an XFL Showcase, so I hope he gets the call.

[SkalbaniasGhost]

How is that going to work for the XFL. Are they trying to sign NFL cuts now? I would think quite a few players that were cut are waiting by the phone for the NFL to recall them when injuries start to happen.

XFL is offering player stipends for Nov/Jan time frame which will entice some players who might not want to sit.

see link below for updates on XFL draft pool.

there appears to be lots of former Argonauts/CFL players on the list.

https://twitter.com/gregmparks/status/1169795980130246663

[doubleblue]

I see the three QB's listed on the Argos neg list are on here. The Center Saskatchewan gave up a 3rd round pick for in the supplemental draft, Jake Bennett is on as well.

Dexter McCoil former LB/S with Edmonton would be someone of interest for CFL teams. He was pretty good and still only 28 years old.
But a lot of unknowns to me.

[KCargosfan]

The XFL is going to have a negative impact on the CFL, unfortunately. Players that would otherwise come to the CFL are going to go to the XFL, as most guys are going to get around $7K a week with a handful making more than $100K.

[jerrym]

If the XFL fails like all the other NFL altertnatives and XFL1.0 did, it could provide new talent to our league not previously identified by CFL teams or that developed their skills within the XFL as has happened after other league failures. However, I agree that it will draw potential talent from the CFL, at least for a while.

[gilthethrill]

The XFL is going to have a negative impact on the CFL, unfortunately. Players that would otherwise come to the CFL are going to go to the XFL, as most guys are going to get around $7K a week with a handful making more than $100K.

Have to disagree. AAF 2 won't be around long enough to hurt the CFL. Next.

[jerrym]

The XFL released its initial draft pool with quite a few ex-CFLers, but few who have performed at a high level in the CFL. The full list is on the url below.

The XFL player draft for the 2020 season will be conducted October 15-16, 2019. Vince McMahon’s league released the player list teams will be able to choose from during the pick-fest. ...

A pair of former Saskatchewan Roughriders are available in quarterback Jake Heaps and running back David Cobb, as well as one-time Edmonton linebackers Dexter McCoil, Taylor Reed and Terrance Bullitt. Former Montreal offensive lineman Na’Ty Rodgers and former Ottawa linebacker Quentin Gause are also eligible to be selected. One current CFL player is on the list in Montreal offensive tackle Chris Schleuger. Receiver Matt Hazel was in Bombers training camp in 2019, Mekale McKay’s rights are held by Winnipeg and the Argos have quarterback Joe Callahan on their neg list. ...

The infamous Johnny Manziel made June Jones’ list of quarterbacks who are going to be distributed to each team prior to the draft. But Manziel must meet the standards set forth by commissioner Oliver Luck.

Over the two-day draft, each XFL team will populate a 71-man roster by selecting players from a set of positional groupings. One quarterback will be assigned to each team prior to a five-phased draft as follows:

1. Skill players (QB, RB, REC, TE)
2. Offensive line (OT, OG, OC)
3. Defensive front seven (DL, LB)
4. Defensive backfield (CB, NB, SS, FS)
5. Open draft (all remaining players after positional drafts, in addition to P/K/LS)

The draft pool will include approximately 1,000 professional football players, all of whom accepted a commissioner’s invitation and passed a standard background check. In phases 1-4, each team will choose 10 players for a total of 40 players. In phase 5, each team will choose from the pool of remaining players to complete its initial roster.

Using a snake format, the selection order within each phase reverses after every round: the team selecting first in the first round will pick eighth in the second round, first in the third round, eighth in the fourth round and so on. The order of selection was determined by lottery under the supervision of Luck. ...

The coaches and scouts for each XFL team will gather in their local markets to draft their initial rosters. Teams will be given 90 seconds to make a selection and declare their picks through a video conference with the XFL home office in Stamford, Connecticut.

https://3downnation.com/2019/10/07/x...r-cfl-players/

[jerrym]

Here's a look at XFL salaries, cap and NFL options:

The XFL sent a memo out to agents outlining player compensation details and what happens if the NFL comes calling for their clients. Key points:

• the season begins on February 8, 2020, players will be eligible for game activation fees (i.e., customary game checks) as well as victory bonuses. Game activation fees and victory bonuses are $1,685 and $2,222, respectively. Accordingly, a player may earn up to $4,947 per game week.
• In total, the average XFL salary will be approximately $55,000 for players who remain on the active list of a team throughout the season, taking into account potential activation fees and bonuses that may be earned.
• All game activation fees or victory bonuses due to a player will be paid on the regularly scheduled bi-weekly pay date. The 2019-20 XFL payroll schedule follows below.
• Effective December 4, 2019, players will be eligible to participate in the XFL’s health insurance program – which includes medical, dental, and vision plans – at no charge for a player’s individual coverage. Players who are interested also may participate in the XFL’s 401(k) plan.

If at any time after the conclusion of the 2020 XFL championship game (April 25, 2020) a player receives and chooses to accept a written offer to sign a contract with an NFL team, the player will be free to play competitive football for such NFL team and the player’s XFL contract will be terminated. ...

For a salary comparison, according to sources, the average CFL player made around $84,000 CAD in 2018. Excluding quarterbacks, athletes from the United States earned approximately $93,000 CAD and Canadians $80,000 CAD. CFL players are paid after every game played. While the XFL’s approximate salary cap is $4 million, while the CFL’s is over $5.2 million.

The CFL reintroduced the NFL window in July 2018. ...

The XFL had decided not to pursue players currently under contract in the CFL — active or practice roster. If a pact is discontinued then a player could be considered for the XFL. That means pending CFL free agents won’t be eligible to sign with XFL teams until mid-February. ...

CFL teams won’t release players to join a rival league. If players from the three-down league wanted to wait it out and sign with an XFL team, athletes would be doing so after the first week of games.

https://3downnation.com/2019/10/17/c...-with-the-cfl/

[jerrym]

The XFL is increasingly looking like no challenge to the CFL because of its salary scale and players starting to turn down the chance to play in the league. With this kind of PR problems how long will it last?

Recently, the XFL projected salaries of about $55K per year for its players. In actuality, those salaries could be even lower.

“The salary schedule did not come close to matching what was talked about rampantly throughout the XFL combine workouts and was discussed online by many different sources,” agency Logan Brown Sports said in a statement (via Twitter). “The base salary is $27,040 with per-game active bonuses of $1,685 and weekly win bonuses of $2,222.”

LBS represents defensive end Corey Vereen, who was selected by the L.A. Wildcats in the XFL’s first draft. Because the pay is lower than anticipated, Vereen says he will not play for Vince McMahon‘s rebooted league.

Vereen is the first XFLer to back out of playing with the league, but if his take on the salaries is accurate, he probably won’t be the last.

https://www.yardbarker.com/nfl/artic...14819_30359135

Vereen said he passed on offers from the CFL, and accepted a commissioner's invitation to the XFL draft, based on a presumption of higher salaries. ...

Vereen, who spent training camp in 2017 with the New England Patriots, led the AAF's Memphis Express with four sacks in 2019. He was drafted by the XFL's Los Angeles Wildcats but informed the club this week that he would not sign a contract.

"How are you going to sit here and get all these people together and try to get the best talent for your league and pay them $27,000?" Vereen said. "I love the game. But I'm not going to be taken advantage of at the end of the day. I have an engineering degree. I'm a software developer. My current job makes more than that. I'm not doing that, unfortunately. It looked like a great opportunity."

Asked if he was aware of other players mulling a similar decision, Vereen said, "Most definitely."

https://africa.espn.com/nfl/story/_/...n-play-low-pay

[jerrym]

XFL coaches failed to draft former CFL players Johnny Manziel and Trent Richardson. Gee - I wonder why no one wants to touch Manziel.

[jerrym]

The XFL has added a ninth team based in Dallas with former Argo HC Bart Andrus just announced as HC. Considering his coaching record and that many of its players are expected to be cuts from other XFL teams, this looks very ad hoc. But with Andrus running the show, I'm sure the team will be extremely successful and help make the XFL standout.

The XFL’s first training camp just wrapped up and the league is set to announce the 52-man roster for all eight of it’s franchises this upcoming Monday. A lot of the cuts are expected to join the XFL’s ‘Team 9’, which will be used to supplement the teams throughout the season in case of injury.

There haven’t been many details on ‘Team 9’ other than that they would be based out of Dallas and would be comprised of roughly 35 to 40 players. Well, today, it seems we found out who will be coaching this team throughout the season. According to Football Scoop, Bart Andrus has been tapped for the position.

Andrus served as head coach for the Amsterdam Admirals of NFL Europe from 2001 to 2007, the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League in 2009, and the Omaha Nighthawks of the United Football League in 2012, compiling a career record of 40 wins and 54 losses. Andrus also was the head football coach at Rocky Mountain College in 1996, posting a mark of 6–4.

https://xflnewsroom.com/news/bart-an...-coach-team-9/

[gilthethrill]

The XFL has added a ninth team based in Dallas with former Argo HC Bart Andrus just announced as HC. Considering his coaching record and that many of its players are expected to be cuts from other XFL teams, this looks very ad hoc. But with Andrus running the show, I'm sure the team will be extremely successful and help make the XFL standout.

https://xflnewsroom.com/news/bart-an...-coach-team-9/

From what I understand Jerry, "Team 9" is basically just players who practise and can be readily available for any of the 8 XFL teams that require them to plug in for injured players etc. I predict Andrus will go undefeated this season.

[ArgoZ]

From what I understand Jerry, "Team 9" is basically just players who practise and can be readily available for any of the 8 XFL teams that require them to plug in for injured players etc. I predict Andrus will go undefeated this season.

I don’t get it. Why not increase rosters or practice squads? Seems like a glorified football camp.

[AngeloV]

I don’t get it. Why not increase rosters or practice squads? Seems like a glorified football camp.

Does it really matter what they do? This league will not be well attended or viewed on TV. Any league that can't compete with the NFL in terms of salaries will never succeed down south. The USFL was the only league that had a chance, until the current POTUS' ego got in the way of it.

[gilthethrill]

XFL cut down day is today, and while the league did not list who was released, it did reveal team rosters. As expected, Argo neg list qb Luis Perez made the NY Guardians roster along with an Matt McGloin and former CFL qb Marquis Willliams.