XFL Summer Showcase Contract Candidates

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MikeMitchell
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XFL Summer Showcase Contract Candidates

Post by MikeMitchell »

7 down, 1 to go. The final XFL Summer Showcase takes place on 7/13 in Missouri.

XFL CEO Oliver Luck has gone on record stating that the league plans to sign anywhere between 250 to 300 players from these showcases. It could end up being more. With Tampa's huge turnout of invites, the league is on pace to work out more than their original number of 800 players. The league has currently worked out 738 players.

Just for the record. I would sign more of these players. I would probably be in that 500 range personally. There are players that I left off, that I would personally sign.

This is a list of players who have worked out thus far, who I feel are strong candidates for league contracts. It doesn't mean that they will all get contracts, or end up on opening day rosters. I am trying not to exceed 300 players, for the sake of the league's projection. I am trying to make this an even split between offensive and defensive players. 145 on offense, 145 on defense, 10 on special teams. Obviously the St. Louis Showcase will add more potential league signees to the list.

Quarterbacks (18)

Landry Jones, Ryan Mallett, BJ Daniels, De'Vante Kincade, Joe Callahan, Tanner Mangum, Marquise Williams, Darron Thomas, Jake Heaps, Matt Linehan, Alek Torgersen, Keith Price, Peter Pujals, Philip Nelson, Keller Chryst, Brad Mayes, Marcus McMaryion, Taryn Christion

Of this group, I see the first two names on the list as surefire starters. Some of the names on this list might exceed expectations though. It's mostly a young veteran group. Some of the QB's like Marquise Williams, Kincade and Nelson, actually have executives and coaches in the league, who they have worked with in the past. I left some quality undrafted quarterbacks off of this list. By my count, there are about of dozen of them that have worked out for the league so far. Most were in NFL rookie minicamps after April's draft.

Running Backs (27)

Christine Michael, Matt Jones, Branden Oliver, Andre Williams, Lance Dunbar, Kenny Hilliard, Daniel Lasco, Jhurell Pressley, Ja' Quan Gardner, Trey Williams, Terron Ward, Tarean Folston, Taku Lee, Bernard Pierce, Khiry Robinson, Ladarius Perkins, Daryl Richardson, Trey Watts, Joe Williams, Josh Robinson, Ty Isaac, Devine Redding, Marshaun Coprich, James Butler, Paul Harris, Tim Cook, Dominick Bragalone

It would not shock me if Michael and Jones are both starting feature backs in the league. This is mostly a veteran group of what appear to be solid backup runners, who can fill roles as thumpers or scat backs. Gardner and Lee intrigue me the most out of this group. There might be some veterans like Bernard Pierce, that make the league based on their veteran status alone. It doesn't mean that they will make the final rosters. A veteran presence helps in a training camp setting.

Fullbacks (2)

Aaron Ripkowski, Joe Protheroe

There have only been 5 fullbacks in total who have been invited to the Showcases thus far. It remains to be seen how prevalent the position, is in the league's offenses.

Wide Receivers (40)

Hakeem Nicks, Demarcus Ayers, Amba Etta-Tawo, Jacoby Ford, Taivon Jacobs, Mekale McKay, Gary McKnight, Robert Meachem, Alonzo Moore, Mikah Holder, Keith Mumphrey, Jalen Rowell, Nelson Spruce, Kasen Williams, DeAngelo Yancey, Jordan Westerkamp, Ervin Phillips, Rannell Hall, Tommy Streeter, Nyqwan Murphy, Stephen Hill, De'Quan Bowman, Trevon Brown, Devin Fuller, Keyarris Garrett, Chuck Jacobs, Treydonte Hill, Adonis Jennings, Freddie Martino, Aruto Nishimura, Daniel Williams, Ishmael Zamora, Tobias Palmer, Richard Mullaney, Durron Neal, Ed Eagan, De' Quan Hampton, Colby Pearson, Xavier Rush, Dalton Ponchillia

This will be a heavily targeted position. I think the league has their fingers crossed that the majority of these players don't get signed to NFL teams. Specifically Taivon Jacobs from Maryland. He's not in the NFL because, he's had two ACL injuries, and spent 6 years in college. Jacobs ran a 4.3 at the DC Showcase. Along with Amba Etta-Tawo and Gary McKnight. These are some of the fastest receivers in this group. Nicks, based on what I saw, will be an early round pick.

Tight Ends (22)

Brandon Barnes, Busta Anderson, Cam Clear, Fred Davis, Larry Donnell, Connor Davis, Colin Thompson, Khari Lee, Blake Mack, Adrien Robinson, Evan Rodriguez, Nick Truesdell, Scott Orndoff, Dimitrios Tsesmetzis, Wes Saxton, Kellen Davis, Colin Jeter, Kyle Carter, Zach Conque, Jake McGee, Connor Hamlett, Matt Weiser

For something that is supposed to fill the bottom half of the league's rosters. This is a pretty good group. There are a lot of talented young players at this position. The league has had a lot of good tight ends work out. It's a good mix and variety too. I am having a hard time chopping off names in this group.

Offensive Lineman (36)

Donald Hawkins, Ty Allen, Dillon Day, JJ Dielman, Patrick Lewis, Alex Balducci, Kirk Barron, Robert Myers, Terry Poole, Cyril Richardson, Andrew Tiller, Venzell Boulware, Leon Brown, Tre Jackson, Jakobi Smith, Brandon Washington, Isaiah Williams, Michael Bowie, Tayo Fabuluje, Avery Gennesy, Sean Hickey, Martin Ifedi, John Kling, Fred Lauina, Andrew McDonald, Anthony Morris, Brandon Pertile, Logan Tulley-Tillman, Maea Teuhema, Toby Weathersby, Xavier Dampeer, Jake Bennett, Jeremy Liggins, Blake Muir, Miguel Machado, Sean Krepsz

Kudos to the league's scouting department on this one. This is probably the most difficult area to find talent in a pro football league. It doesn't hurt that the AAF was in existence early this year, and helped some of these players get valuable game time. There's some vets in here, who probably passed on the Alliance, waiting for shots back into the NFL like Hawkins, Dielman and Lewis. Quite frankly, there are three areas that the XFL scouting department, has to get right, to produce quality football. It's QB, WR and O-Line.

Kicker/Punter/Long Snapper (10)

Nick Novak, Cole Tracy, Matt Mengel, Jeff Locke, Brad Wing, Sam Irwin-Hill, Jonathan Hernandez , Tanner Carew, Andrew Robinson, Drew Ferris

The one area, where it's not entirely necessary for a multitude of these types of players to work out. Simply because it can be done on an individual basis, leading up to training camp. I will state this however, the AAF had very good special teams for a league that was rushed. The one area, that can make a league look bad, is if there's wild snaps, or poor holds, or shanked kicks. The league does need 8 quality long snappers. They have worked out some really good players in that regard.

Defensive Lineman (40)

Devin Taylor, Kony Ealy, Frank Alexander, Tavaris Barnes, TJ Barnes, Ryan Delaire, Deiontrez Mount, Cedric Reed, Ian Seau, Corey Vereen, Paul Boyette, Alameda Ta'amu, Trenton Thompson, Khyri Thornton, Tani Tupou, Julius Warmsley, Jerel Worthy, Owen Williams, Greg Hall, George Johnson, Earl Okine, Giorgio Newberry, Anthony Johnson, Leon Orr, Toby Johnson, Courtel Jenkins, Jordan Wade, Izaah Lunsford, Kiante Anderson, Kaelin Burnett, Will Sutton , Rakim Cox, James Folston, Marcell Frazier, Dante Sawyer, Praise Martin-Oguike, Willie Mays, Tramond Lofton, Ryan Mueller, Corey Crawford

The Florida and Texas showcases produced quite a bit of talent. It's not easy finding great edge rushers. A couple of these players like Mount and Seau could be 3-4 outside linebackers, depending on which teams draft them. The interior group is pretty good.

Linebackers (40)

Antonio Morrison, Hau'oli Kikaha, Jeff Luc, Jonathan Massaquoi, Donnie Alexander, Khalil Bass, Carl Bradford, Richie Brown, DJ Calhoun, PJ Dawson, Ruben Demosthene, Josh Forrest, Terence Garvin, Quentin Gause, Taiwan Jones, John Lotulelei, Eric Pinkins, Hayes Pullard, Edmond Robinson, Ed Shockley, Korey Toomer, Scooby Wright, Xzavier Dickson, Reggie Northrop, Adrian Hubbard, Terrance Plummer, Nate Askew, Detric Bing-Dukes, Shawn Loiseau, Ro'Derrick Hoskins, KeShun Freeman, Jawuan Johnson, Javon Rolland-Jones, Cardell Rawlings, Jeremiah Spicer, Will Smith, Yawin Smallwood, Roman Pavlenko, Anthony Wheeler, Quincy Redmon

The league's going to have a good number of starters from this group. I think that if Kikaha doesn't end up back in the NFL, that there's a shot that he is drafted in the very early rounds. LA might be the best fit. Winston Moss and Pepper Johnson are known for the 3-4, and Kikaha could end up leading the league in sacks, if he can get through a full season healthy.

Cornerbacks (35)

Steve Williams, Ladarius Gunter, Kendall James, Dexter McDougle, Sterling Moore, Ryan White, Asantay Brown, Victor Hampton, Bryce Canady, Elijah Battle, Trey Caldwell, Marvin Hart, Jordan Holland, Titus Howard, Dashaun Phillips, Malik Reaves, Dante Redwood, Mohammed Seisay, Bradley Sylve, Arnold Tarpley, Abraham Wallace, Nick Watkins, Taelin Webb, Jamarkese Williams, Ian Wells, Darius Williams, Khalid Wooten, Jordan Wyatt, Shelton Lewis, Mark Myers, Marquez White, CJ Roberts, Raekwon Williams, Josh Jenkins, Rickey Jefferson

This will be by far, the most difficult position to fill for all 8 teams. There are a few quality vets in this group, but hitting on undrafted gems will be key. This is the one area where testing will win out. The workout numbers will decide who gets signed. From a league standpoint, average corner play is good for scoring, but these teams are trying to win. The team that does the best job of finding the hidden gems and coaching them up, is going to win a lot of games. There are some good young corners in this group. This is where the scouting of small schools comes in handy, because usually quality corners from big schools, don't slide through the cracks. It's the small schools, where you can find premium corners. They often get overlooked and dismissed base on the level of competition, they face.

Safeties (30)

Will Hill, Rahim Moore, Matt Elam, Brandon Dixon, Ahmad Dixon, Marqueston Huff, Ryan Murphy, Kimario McFadden, Robenson Therezie, Max Redfield, Stavros Katsontonis, Mandell Ray, Reid Miller, KJ Dillon, Tyson Graham, Micah Hannemann, Jah'Shawn Johnson, Hootie Jones, Al-Hajj Shabazz, Des Lawrence, Durell Eskridge, Devin Abraham, Demetrious Wright, Van Smith, Bobby Baker, Dashawn Benton, Garrett Davis, Jaleel Wadood, Brandon Maiden, DeShawn Capers-Smith

There are some front end starters in this group. I don't know where Elam's head is at. Hill and Moore are going to be two of the league's best defensive backs.

There is one wildcard in this group. The XFL has been pretty secretive in this department, but word leaked out that All Big 12 West Virginia Safety Kenny Robinson was at the DC Showcase. He is currently in the transfer portal. Could he be the first college player to take the plunge, and turn pro now.
Last edited by MikeMitchell on Wed Jul 17, 2019 12:19 pm, edited 4 times in total.
Shooter McGav1n
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Re: XFL Summer Showcase Contract Candidates

Post by Shooter McGav1n »

Judging from his absence on the list, i assume that Dominick Bragalone did not impress at the NY showcase?
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Re: XFL Summer Showcase Contract Candidates

Post by MikeMitchell »

Shooter McGav1n wrote: Mon Jul 01, 2019 7:39 am Judging from his absence on the list, i assume that Dominick Bragalone did not impress at the NY showcase?
No he did well. There are a lot of players who I left off the list. I’d probably sign him over one of the long snappers. I am trying to stay in the 300 range. The truth is there are probably a hundred more players who could get contracts. Out of the The 735 who have worked out. I was trying to do an equal distribution of positions to stock the player pool. The St. Louis Showcase is probably going to produce anywhere from 30 to 50 potential signees.

If the league’s intention is to sign up to 300 players. Then it comes down to about roughly 37 players signed per showcase.
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Re: XFL Summer Showcase Contract Candidates

Post by BengalErnst »

How do you guys think the XFL talent will compares to the AAF’s?
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Re: XFL Summer Showcase Contract Candidates

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BengalErnst wrote: Mon Jul 01, 2019 11:06 am How do you guys think the XFL talent will compares to the AAF’s?
I think it will be better. Based on a few things, the league’s wider net, when it comes to veterans and it’s heavy focus on the last couple of draft classes.

So far this is potentially the bottom half of the league’s rosters. I am kind of surprised with how many quality veterans have worked out. Not just the Nicks, Michael, Fred Davis, Meachem, Matt Jones etc... There are quite a few vets who passed on the AAF last year.

The AAF had mostly developmental style rosters with young players who had been out of the NFL for a couple of seasons.

The XFL showcases has had a lot of undrafted free agents from this years NFL draft class. Couple that with players from the AAF, CFL and arena league experience. The Alliance has a good number of players in NFL camps. In that 40 to 50 range but a good number of the league’s players, over 400 of them didn’t latch on with NFL teams.

One thing to remember, Oliver Luck said that there are players that are on the open market, that the league plans on signing, that they don’t feel that they needed to workout. That will probably lean towards Manziel, Richardson or any other prominent AAF players that you don’t see at these workouts. Like Luis Perez, Brandon Silvers etc
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Re: XFL Summer Showcase Contract Candidates

Post by Tank55 »

Agreed. They'll likely have access to all the AAF's players plus the players they can recruit with their higher salaries and just generally more professional setup, PLUS potentially any underclassmen they can recruit.
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Shooter McGav1n
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Re: XFL Summer Showcase Contract Candidates

Post by Shooter McGav1n »

BengalErnst wrote: Mon Jul 01, 2019 11:06 am How do you guys think the XFL talent will compares to the AAF’s?
They have no cash flow problems, a better business structure, more time to scout players, and are willing to offer premium talent more money than the AAF, so the talent level should be greater than that of the AAF. How much better is hard to say, it may be noticeably better, it may not.
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Re: XFL Summer Showcase Contract Candidates

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Tank55 wrote: Mon Jul 01, 2019 11:34 am Agreed. They'll likely have access to all the AAF's players plus the players they can recruit with their higher salaries and just generally more professional setup, PLUS potentially any underclassmen they can recruit.
It’s a wider net for sure. The AAF being in existence benefits the XFL in the respect of quality of play. They showed that there can be a quality second league of pro football play. Plus young players got some notoriety and game experience. That they wouldn’t have received anywhere else. The AAF players that make it in the XFL, will be better players than they were as a result.

For all their issues, what the AAF accomplished was not presenting garbage football. That’s the fear with these leagues. That’s not to state that there weren’t aspects of the style of play, that weren’t flawed, but not coming off as trash football was a victory. Especially considering how rushed the product was. The QB play wasn’t great. Some of the non blitzing rules took away from the big play potential, but overall, they did a good job in this department. In my opinion.
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Re: XFL Summer Showcase Contract Candidates

Post by XFLInSTL »

MikeMitchell wrote: Mon Jul 01, 2019 12:03 pm
Tank55 wrote: Mon Jul 01, 2019 11:34 am Agreed. They'll likely have access to all the AAF's players plus the players they can recruit with their higher salaries and just generally more professional setup, PLUS potentially any underclassmen they can recruit.
For all their issues, what the AAF accomplished was not presenting garbage football. That’s the fear with these leagues. That’s not to state that there weren’t aspects of the style of play, that weren’t flawed, but not coming off as trash football was a victory. Especially considering how rushed the product was. The QB play wasn’t great. Some of the non blitzing rules took away from the big play potential, but overall, they did a good job in this department. In my opinion.
I agree. The QBs who were good consistently were really good though.
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Re: XFL Summer Showcase Contract Candidates

Post by XFLInSTL »

[*]
MikeMitchell wrote: Mon Jul 01, 2019 12:06 am 7 down, 1 to go. The final XFL Summer Showcase takes place on 7/13 in Missouri.

XFL CEO Oliver Luck has gone on record stating that the league plans to sign anywhere between 250 to 300 players from these showcases. It could end up being more. With Tampa's huge turnout of invites, the league is on pace to work out more than their original number of 800 players. The league has currently worked out 735 players.

This is a list of players who have worked out thus far, who I feel are strong candidates for league contracts. It doesn't mean that they will all get contracts, or end up on opening day rosters. I am trying not to exceed 300 players, for the sake of the league's projection. I am trying to make this an even split between offensive and defensive players. 145 on offense, 145 on defense, 10 on special teams. Obviously the St. Louis Showcase will add more potential league signees to the list.

Quarterbacks (18)

Landry Jones, Ryan Mallett, BJ Daniels, De'Vante Kincade, Joe Callahan, Tanner Mangum, Marquise Williams*, Darron Thomas, Jake Heaps, Matt Linehan, Alek Torgersen, Keith Price*, Peter Pujals, Philip Nelson*, Keller Chryst, Brad Mayes, Marcus McMaryion, Taryn Christion

Of this group, I see the first two names on the list as surefire starters. Some of the names on this list might exceed expectations though. It's mostly a young veteran group. Some of the QB's like Marquise Williams, Kincade and Nelson, actually have executives and coaches in the league, who they have worked with in the past. I left some quality undrafted quarterbacks off of this list. By my count, there are about of dozen of them that have worked out for the league so far. Most were in NFL rookie minicamps after April's draft.

Running Backs (26)

Christine Michael, Matt Jones, Branden Oliver*, Andre Williams, Lance Dunbar, Kenny Hilliard*, Daniel Lasco, Jhurell Pressley*, Ja' Quan Gardner*, Trey Williams*, Terron Ward*, Tarean Folston*, Taku Lee, Bernard Pierce, Khiry Robinson, Ladarius Perkins, Daryl Richardson, Trey Watts, Joe Williams, Josh Robinson, Ty Isaac, Devine Redding, Marshaun Coprich, James Butler, Paul Harris, Tim Cook*

It would not shock me if Michael and Jones are both starting feature backs in the league. This is mostly a veteran group of what appear to be solid backup runners, who can fill roles as thumpers or scat backs. Gardner and Lee intrigue me the most out of this group. There might be some veterans like Bernard Pierce, that make the league based on their veteran status alone. It doesn't mean that they will make the final rosters. A veteran presence helps in a training camp setting.

Fullbacks (3)

Aaron Ripkowski, Joe Protheroe, JD Moore

There have only been 5 fullbacks in total who have been invited to the Showcases thus far. It remains to be seen how prevalent the position, is in the league's offenses.

Wide Receivers (40)

Hakeem Nicks, Demarcus Ayers*, Amba Etta-Tawo*, Jacoby Ford, Taivon Jacobs, Mekale McKay*, Gary McKnight, Robert Meachem, Alonzo Moore, Mikah Holder, Keith Mumphrey, Jalen Rowell, Nelson Spruce*, Kasen Williams, DeAngelo Yancey, Jordan Westerkamp, Ervin Phillips, Rannell Hall, Tommy Streeter, Nyqwan Murphy, Stephen Hill, De'Quan Bowman, Trevon Brown, Devin Fuller, Keyarris Garrett, Chuck Jacobs, Treydonte Hill, Adonis Jennings*, Freddie Martino, Aruto Nishimura, Daniel Williams, Ishmael Zamora, Tobias Palmer, Richard Mullaney, Durron Neal, Ed Eagan, De' Quan Hampton, Colby Pearson, Xavier Rush, Dalton Ponchillia

This will be a heavily targeted position. I think the league has their fingers crossed that the majority of these players don't get signed to NFL teams. Specifically Taivon Jacobs from Maryland. He's not in the NFL because, he's had two ACL injuries, and spent 6 years in college. Jacobs ran a 4.3 at the DC Showcase. Along with Amba Etta-Tawo and Gary McKnight. These are some of the fastest receivers in this group. Nicks, based on what I saw, will be an early round pick.

Tight Ends (22)

Brandon Barnes*, Busta Anderson, Cam Clear*, Fred Davis, Larry Donnell, Connor Davis, Colin Thompson, Khari Lee, Blake Mack, Adrien Robinson*, Evan Rodriguez*, Nick Truesdell*, Scott Orndoff*, Dimitrios Tsesmetzis, Wes Saxton*, Kellen Davis, Colin Jeter, Kyle Carter, Zach Conque, Jake McGee, Connor Hamlett, Matt Weiser

For something that is supposed to fill the bottom half of the league's rosters. This is a pretty good group. There are a lot of talented young players at this position. The league has had a lot of good tight ends work out. It's a good mix and variety too. I am having a hard time chopping off names in this group.

Offensive Lineman (36)

Donald Hawkins, Ty Allen, Dillon Day, JJ Dielman, Patrick Lewis, Alex Balducci, Kirk Barron, Robert Myers, Terry Poole, Cyril Richardson, Andrew Tiller, Venzell Boulware, Leon Brown, Tre Jackson, Jakobi Smith, Brandon Washington, Isaiah Williams, Michael Bowie, Tayo Fabuluje, Avery Gennesy, Sean Hickey, Martin Ifedi, John Kling*, Fred Lauina, Andrew McDonald, Anthony Morris*, Brandon Pertile, Logan Tulley-Tillman, Maea Teuhema, Toby Weathersby*, Xavier Dampeer, Jake Bennett, Jeremy Liggins, Blake Muir, Miguel Machado, Sean Krepsz

Kudos to the league's scouting department on this one. This is probably the most difficult area to find talent in a pro football league. It doesn't hurt that the AAF was in existence early this year, and helped some of these players get valuable game time. There's some vets in here, who probably passed on the Alliance, waiting for shots back into the NFL like Hawkins, Dielman and Lewis. Quite frankly, there are three areas that the XFL scouting department, has to get right, to produce quality football. It's QB, WR and O-Line.

Kicker/Punter/Long Snapper (10)

Nick Novak*, Cole Tracy, Chris Alleyne, Jeff Locke*, Brad Wing*, Sam Irwin-Hill*, Joseph Zema*, Tanner Carew, Andrew Robinson, Drew Ferris

The one area, where it's not entirely necessary for a multitude of these types of players to work out. Simply because it can be done on an individual basis, leading up to training camp. I will state this however, the AAF had very good special teams for a league that was rushed. The one area, that can make a league look bad, is if there's wild snaps, or poor holds, or shanked kicks. The league does need 8 quality long snappers. They have worked out some really good players in that regard.

Defensive Lineman (40)

Devin Taylor, Kony Ealy, Frank Alexander, Tavaris Barnes, TJ Barnes, Ryan Delaire, Deiontrez Mount, Cedric Reed, Ian Seau, Corey Vereen*, Paul Boyette, Alameda Ta'amu, Trenton Thompson, Khyri Thornton, Tani Tupou, Julius Warmsley*, Jerel Worthy, Owen Williams, Greg Hall, George Johnson, Earl Okine*, Giorgio Newberry, Anthony Johnson, Leon Orr, Toby Johnson, Courtel Jenkins, Jordan Wade, Izaah Lunsford, Kiante Anderson, Kaelin Burnett, Jonathan Calvin, Rakim Cox, James Folston, Marcell Frazier, Dante Sawyer, Praise Martin-Oguike, Willie Mays, Tramond Lofton, Ryan Mueller, Corey Crawford

The Florida and Texas showcases produced quite a bit of talent. It's not easy finding great edge rushers. A couple of these players like Mount and Seau could be 3-4 outside linebackers, depending on which teams draft them. The interior group is pretty good.

Linebackers (40)

Antonio Morrison, Hau'oli Kikaha, Jeff Luc*, Jonathan Massaquoi*, Donnie Alexander, Khalil Bass*, Carl Bradford, Richie Brown, DJ Calhoun, PJ Dawson, Ruben Demosthene, Josh Forrest, Terence Garvin*, Quentin Gause, Taiwan Jones, John Lotulelei, Eric Pinkins, Hayes Pullard, Edmond Robinson, Ed Shockley, Korey Toomer, Scooby Wright*, Xzavier Dickson*, Reggie Northrop, Adrian Hubbard, Terrance Plummer, Nate Askew, Detric Bing-Dukes, Shawn Loiseau, Ro'Derrick Hoskins, KeShun Freeman, Jawuan Johnson, Javon Rolland-Jones, Cardell Rawlings, Jeremiah Spicer, Will Smith, Yawin Smallwood, Roman Pavlenko, Anthony Wheeler, Quincy Redmon

The league's going to have a good number of starters from this group. I think that if Kikaha doesn't end up back in the NFL, that there's a shot that he is drafted in the very early rounds. LA might be the best fit. Winston Moss and Pepper Johnson are known for the 3-4, and Kikaha could end up leading the league in sacks, if he can get through a full season healthy.

Cornerbacks (35)

Steve Williams, Ladarius Gunter, Kendall James, Dexter McDougle*, Sterling Moore, Ryan White, Asantay Brown, Victor Hampton, Bryce Canady, Elijah Battle, Trey Caldwell, Marvin Hart, Jordan Holland, Titus Howard, Dashaun Phillips, Malik Reaves, Dante Redwood, Mohammed Seisay, Bradley Sylve, Arnold Tarpley*, Abraham Wallace, Nick Watkins, Taelin Webb, Jamarkese Williams, Ian Wells, Darius Williams, Khalid Wooten, Jordan Wyatt, Shelton Lewis, Mark Myers, Marquez White, CJ Roberts, Raekwon Williams, Josh Jenkins, Rickey Jefferson

This will be by far, the most difficult position to fill for all 8 teams. There are a few quality vets in this group, but hitting on undrafted gems will be key. This is the one area where testing will win out. The workout numbers will decide who gets signed. From a league standpoint, average corner play is good for scoring, but these teams are trying to win. The team that does the best job of finding the hidden gems and coaching them up, is going to win a lot of games. There are some good young corners in this group. This is where the scouting of small schools comes in handy, because usually quality corners from big schools, don't slide through the cracks. It's the small schools, where you can find premium corners. They often get overlooked and dismissed base on the level of competition, they face.

Safeties (30)

Will Hill*, Rahim Moore, Matt Elam, Brandon Dixon, Ahmad Dixon, Marqueston Huff, Ryan Murphy, Kimario McFadden, Robenson Therezie, Max Redfield*, Stavros Katsontonis, Mandell Ray, Reid Miller, KJ Dillon, Tyson Graham*, Micah Hannemann, Jah'Shawn Johnson, Hootie Jones, Al-Hajj Shabazz, Des Lawrence, Durell Eskridge, Devin Abraham, Demetrious Wright, Van Smith, Bobby Baker, Dashawn Benton, Garrett Davis, Jaleel Wadood, Brandon Maiden*, DeShawn Capers-Smith

There are some front end starters in this group. I don't know where Elam's head is at. Hill and Moore are going to be two of the league's best defensive backs.

There is one wildcard in this group. The XFL has been pretty secretive in this department, but word leaked out that All Big 12 West Virginia Safety Kenny Robinson was at the DC Showcase. He is currently in the transfer portal. Could he be the first college player to take the plunge, and turn pro now.
A ton of these guys played very well in the AAF, and as an AAF fan I'd love to see them play in the XFL. Some of them are probably starting caliber XFL players, like Ja'Quan Gardner, Terence Garvin, and Tyson Graham (arguably the best player for the Atlanta Legends franchise). Some of them are not as good, like Toby Weathersby and Anthony Morris.
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