Talent Comparison XFL 1.0 vs AAF vs XFL 2.0

[BengalErnst]

How does the talent from this league compare to the first iteration of the league, and the AAF from 2019?

Obviously, the 2001 XFL 1.0 league has the revisionist advantage of realizing that a few unknowns from that league became very good contributors in the NFL and CFL after their stint in the original league. Plus, the rise of Tommy Maddox to becoming the starter for the Pittsburgh Steelers for a few years.

But I want to compare, how we all think the talent matches up pre-kickoff for all three leagues.

The original XFL had a few former high draft picks at QBs such as Jim Druckenmiller, and Tommy Maddox. The league had former heisman trophy winner and first round pick in Rashaan Salaam, plus a few other highly drafted RBs such as John Avery.

So I was just wondering what your thoughts were on this topic. You guys are all a little more informed on these leagues than I am but I'm really interested and I want to try to describe the talent level to my coworkers, family and friends to entice them to watch as well.

Also, how do you feel the coaching talent level compares?

[MikeMitchell]

That’s a lot to take in.

College football is so much better now than it was two decades ago. In terms of overall player quality and depth. Plus the college and pro game are more similar now than they were in the 2000’s. So the player pool for a secondary league is better now than it was then.

XFL 1.0 had some good talent. There were dozens of players that made the NFL and CFL and had extended pro careers. The problem with that league was lack of cohesion, due to the rushed nature of the on field product. The rules didn’t help either, in terms of the quality of play.

The AAF had good talent. They couldn’t draw in the Landry Jones or Cardale Jones types. They weren’t paying six figures to Quarterbacks. The long snapper and quarterback made the same money. The AAF was a better rushed product on the field than the original XFL was.

The current XFL has a very strong player pool for a first-year league. The league itself has better coaching staffs and front offices than the original iteration. The net is wider too for finding talent. The league has convinced a handful of players to not take futures contracts with the NFL.

The real measure of the current XFL’s talent level will be year two. There are still players and agents, that are on the fence about the league. If the XFL proves to be viable, then more players will opt to play in the XFL in years two and three.

I suspect that with the XFL’s wide exposure, that at the very least 30 to 50 players will sign NFL contracts. It remains to be seen how many of them make NFL teams in September. Over 40 XFL draft picks in October signed on with NFL teams. That kind of gives you an idea, as to the quality of player that is available in 2020.

[steinerfhc]

I think Overall the XFL 2.0 talent will be better or is, for the reasons said. The talent level in College compared a two decade ago and compared to the AAF, the XFL 2.0 has more time to scout talent. The way it the teams drafted players, they didn't go after just any player who was in the NFL. I mean the fact a guy like Trent Richardson was passed over. There is something to be said how the teams of coaches looked at the pool of talent brought in.

O
m excited to see the first week of games. I'm sure it will be better than XFL 1.0 and I like to think it will be better than AAF.

[johnnyangryfuzzball]

I rank it somewhere below the UFL (which set the standard for the level of talent a second-tier pro league could get), slightly above the AAF and substantially above the FXFL. They've landed legit second-string NFL players and solid coaches.

The closest I can compare it to is arena football at its peak.

[Firecop]

I consider it more in line with the USFL talent wise; although Mike makes a very valid point about college talent being so much better and the pro/college game being much more similar than in days past.

[MGB01]

Legit star (or relative) talent, X1 sitting in the clubhouse: Maddox with his 2002 run, Rod Smart got a run as a kick returner, Kelly Herndon moved up and managed to play off Champ Bailey into a big FA deal (and had a big INT return in SB XL), Jeremaine Copeland was a multi-time CFL all-star, Paris Lenon was a solid special teams player who played into 2013 (last game was in SB XLVIII), even Paul McCallum--the answer to a couple trivia questions as well as scorer of the first points in XFL history--was still kicking in 2016.

But all-around rosters would be AAF and X2. That's kind of tough though because in 2001 you didn't have close to the interest in bottom roster guys you have now. As terrible as preseason supposedly is, there's still tons more interest in it than there was 20 years ago (for instance who among even the more-hardcore-than-average set remembers that Steve Gleason actually was a Colt in August 2000?), which is beneficial to these leagues. So it's almost an unfair argument.

Hell, I used to get in arguments with Scott Keith (now MMA/wrestling blogger for SI) over on his Netcop blog all the time, these "no-talent losers" being one of them.

But where the focus is this time around pretty much tells you, at least when it comes to the two XFLs, who's what.

[MikeMitchell]

I rank it somewhere below the UFL (which set the standard for the level of talent a second-tier pro league could get), slightly above the AAF and substantially above the FXFL. They've landed legit second-string NFL players and solid coaches.

The closest I can compare it to is arena football at its peak.

The UFL was interesting. First, they only had four teams in total in their soft launch. So it’s like if the XFL decided to shrink their league right now in half. That would make the league look even stronger.

The UFL also went with older veterans. Some of them were ok like Josh McCown and Josh Johnson, but most of the older vets like Simeon Rice, Dominic Rhodes and Dexter Jackson were on their last legs. They were kind of over the hill.

The UFL didn’t do a very good job finding hidden gems or rising young stars. Part of that was them playing in the fall side by side with the NFL. They didn’t attract top tier young talents as a result.

The lack of exposure hurt the UFL. To play in the league, you actually want people to see you play. Weeknight games on HD Net wasn’t going to cut it. The UFL salaries weren’t what they reported them to be. It ended up being 35k per season.

I would argue that the current XFL has better talent overall than the UFL and it will play out during the season, once people see the players play. While the Ahman Greens and Jeff Garcia look good on paper. At that stage of their careers, you got them at their lowest points.

[MGB01]

I rank it somewhere below the UFL (which set the standard for the level of talent a second-tier pro league could get), slightly above the AAF and substantially above the FXFL. They've landed legit second-string NFL players and solid coaches.

The closest I can compare it to is arena football at its peak.

The UFL was interesting. First, they only had four teams in total in their soft launch. So it’s like if the XFL decided to shrink their league right now in half. That would make the league look even stronger.

The UFL also went with older veterans. Some of them were ok like Josh McCown and Josh Johnson, but most of the older vets like Simeon Rice, Dominic Rhodes and Dexter Jackson were on their last legs. They were kind of over the hill.

The UFL didn’t do a very good job finding hidden gems or rising young stars. Part of that was them playing in the fall side by side with the NFL. They didn’t attract top tier young talents as a result.

The lack of exposure hurt the UFL. To play in the league, you actually want people to see you play. Weeknight games on HD Net wasn’t going to cut it. The UFL salaries weren’t what they reported them to be. It ended up being 35k per season.

I would argue that the current XFL has better talent overall than the UFL and it will play out during the season, once people see the players play. While the Ahman Greens and Jeff Garcia look good on paper. At that stage of their careers, you got them at their lowest points.

I remember Simeon Rice vowing to make QBs pay, then he had like what, half a sack in six games?

The UFL did actually have some rookies in the first year, and had more in year two, although the problems they would have attracting any decent college talent showed in 2011, when even during the lockout Mark Herzlich declined and Derrick Locke was a bit less gracious in doing so (I AIN'T PLAYIN IN THAT ****).

[nick1091]

I think Mike essentially got it on the head on a lot of his points. I think the AAF talent wise was likely better than XFL v1, and the new XFL is bumping up the level of talent with what they are willing to pay QBs. I also think with the new rules and the prep time and camps which allow for more acclimation, it should yield better results on the field.

I will say that at least on paper (what choice do we really have before the league launches) the AAF was able to really attract some top flight coaches, but they benefitted from location choices, with Spurrier in Florida and Martz agreeing to coach since the Fleet were based in San Diego.

[MikeMitchell]

I rank it somewhere below the UFL (which set the standard for the level of talent a second-tier pro league could get), slightly above the AAF and substantially above the FXFL. They've landed legit second-string NFL players and solid coaches.

The closest I can compare it to is arena football at its peak.

The UFL was interesting. First, they only had four teams in total in their soft launch. So it’s like if the XFL decided to shrink their league right now in half. That would make the league look even stronger.

The UFL also went with older veterans. Some of them were ok like Josh McCown and Josh Johnson, but most of the older vets like Simeon Rice, Dominic Rhodes and Dexter Jackson were on their last legs. They were kind of over the hill.

The UFL didn’t do a very good job finding hidden gems or rising young stars. Part of that was them playing in the fall side by side with the NFL. They didn’t attract top tier young talents as a result.

The lack of exposure hurt the UFL. To play in the league, you actually want people to see you play. Weeknight games on HD Net wasn’t going to cut it. The UFL salaries weren’t what they reported them to be. It ended up being 35k per season.

I would argue that the current XFL has better talent overall than the UFL and it will play out during the season, once people see the players play. While the Ahman Greens and Jeff Garcia look good on paper. At that stage of their careers, you got them at their lowest points.

I remember Simeon Rice vowing to make QBs pay, then he had like what, half a sack in six games?

The UFL did actually have some rookies in the first year, and had more in year two, although the problems they would have attracting any decent college talent showed in 2011, when even during the lockout Mark Herzlich declined and Derrick Locke was a bit less gracious in doing so (I AIN'T PLAYIN IN THAT ****).

You have to see the pipeline. The current XFL has a ton of very good young talents that were just on the edge of NFL rosters. Some like Jazz Ferguson with Dallas, were on NFL teams in September. He had a good preseason with Seattle. The guy was a monster after transferring from LSU.

The XFL has to produce breakout stars. Judging the rosters closely. I think they will. The UFL didn’t. Outside of Denzel Washington’s son, who is a good actor. No stars were produced. The UFL didn’t have dynamic young talents. No breakout stars.

It’s nice having some name recognition players but not if they can’t play at a respectable level anymore.

Most people don’t know this but Eric Galko was also a part of the UFL. He was a part of the team that put the rosters together. They went with name value to try and get exposure and attention but it didn’t work. No one wanted to see an old Simeon Rice playing 16 non effective snaps a game.

I think the biggest key is quality of quarterback and hitting on the players that just missed the NFL, and hitting on the players that the NFL missed. If you can do those three things. The quality of your league can be top notch.