Interesting XFL-related notes in Tyree Jackson story

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GregParks
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Interesting XFL-related notes in Tyree Jackson story

Post by GregParks »

Mike Kaye of NJ.com did a deep dive on Tyree Jackson, QB-turned-TE who is impressing in Eagles camp this summer after battling Cardale Jones for playing time with the DC Defenders:

https://www.nj.com/eagles/2021/08/step- ... weeks.html

The relevant XFL part:
When the XFL relaunched in early 2020, Jackson jumped at the opportunity to play in the spring league, and the D.C. Defenders selected Jackson in the ninth round. Gabriel, the Defenders’ personnel director, took Jackson despite having former Ohio State quarterback Cardale Jones on the roster.

“I felt [Jackson] should have stayed in school,” Gabriel told NJ Advance Media. “He had that one big year, but he needed to follow it up [as a senior], and that’s probably why he didn’t get drafted. But I still followed his career closely.”

Jones, as part of the XFL’s primary quarterback pool, was earning a larger salary, so Gabriel and head coach Pep Hamilton started him over Jackson to start the season: “He actually was playing better than [Jones],” Gabriel said. “But the other guy was getting money, so we had to go with him.”

Jackson eventually asked for a meeting with Gabriel, Hamilton and Director of Football Operations Gerald Dixon. With Jones struggling, Jackson told them he believed he should be the starter.

“I think we all liked that,” Gabriel said. “Pep promised him, ‘Hey, you’re going to get your chance,’ and he did.”

In Week 5, after consecutive losses in which the Defenders were outscored 64-9, Hamilton pulled Jones when he struggled against the St. Louis BattleHawks, and Jackson led the Defenders to a win.

Jackson likely would have been the Defenders’ starter for the final five games of the season, Gabriel said. But just as he was set to start against the Dallas Renegades, the XFL shut down because of the coronavirus pandemic.
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Re: Interesting XFL-related notes in Tyree Jackson story

Post by MGB01 »

There was some word two years ago that Tyree could have ended up at Wazzu. Of course TJ isn't really a Leach-style QB (closest he ever came was K.J. Costello last year) and probably would have ended up like Gage Gubrud, basically doing next to nothing anyway as AG ran the show

G2 retired and is now making good money in the private sector, TJ sounds like he's got a good chance (albeit with a position change) to stick in the NFL. I'd say they're both in a good place, even with all the turns
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Re: Interesting XFL-related notes in Tyree Jackson story

Post by Gopher123 »

I would venture to say that Jones wasn’t alone in being an XFL qb that received extra compensation for under performing on the field.
GregParks
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Re: Interesting XFL-related notes in Tyree Jackson story

Post by GregParks »

I guess I don't really understand the "he was being paid more so we had to play him" sentiment. If this was a team with an owner shelling out bucks for the players, I could see that edict coming down from the top. But the league was paying the salaries, not the individual teams; so who then was pressuring the team to play him? Luck/The XFL office? If so, that's them putting their fingers on the scale in a way they really should not have (though we already saw them do this with the Antonio Callaway situation).
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Re: Interesting XFL-related notes in Tyree Jackson story

Post by 4th&long »

GregParks wrote: Mon Aug 16, 2021 3:50 pm I guess I don't really understand the "he was being paid more so we had to play him" sentiment. If this was a team with an owner shelling out bucks for the players, I could see that edict coming down from the top. But the league was paying the salaries, not the individual teams; so who then was pressuring the team to play him? Luck/The XFL office? If so, that's them putting their fingers on the scale in a way they really should not have (though we already saw them do this with the Antonio Callaway situation).
Exactly GP

If they said Jones had a more recognizable name and following... and the league was looking for that, I could understand. But just paying what amounts to what 100k more? That would be silly.
Tank55
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Re: Interesting XFL-related notes in Tyree Jackson story

Post by Tank55 »

I'm sure DC and Dallas were under pressure to play the Joneses, since they were contributing from a marketing standpoint. And Cardale Jones definitely turned out some OSU fans in DC. Doesn't make it any less frustrating.

I remember the video the XFL put together of Pep and Cardale working together before the season started, and they went out to a restaurant and Pep's order was so much healthier than Cardale's. Pep acted good natured about it, but he surely must have been thinking that Cardale wasn't taking any of this as seriously as he ought to.

https://youtu.be/tqZZIH_77ek?t=353

All of which is to say, I'm not terribly surprised to read that the Defenders' brass was down on Cardale, even before he really started struggling on the field.
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Gopher123
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Re: Interesting XFL-related notes in Tyree Jackson story

Post by Gopher123 »

It’s quite possible that Cardale was handed a fair amount more money than we realize. He was coming off of a fairly impressive preseason with the Chargers and had been with the Seahawks not long before he was named to the Defenders. I don’t think many of the original 8 named qbs had been in an NFL camp more recently and had played more that preseason than Cardale did. Maybe OL and Co. needed to pay up to keep him out of the NFL as they felt like he was a quality qb score at the time. (I know I thought he was.)
GP mentioned the Callaway situation. If they paid up when faced with needing an upgrade at WR then I could see them as doing the same thing at the all important qb position. And yes, being marketable and having a fairly recognizable name didn’t hurt either.
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Re: Interesting XFL-related notes in Tyree Jackson story

Post by MGB01 »

Well this sucks

https://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2021/ ... -practice/

Either they keep him on through final cuts and then IR him (can pull him back at midseason) or they waive/injured him and almost assuredly lose him.

Having had several of these myself (including two weeks ago) these aren't fun. Good luck T
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