Month: April 2022

Even though four games were lopped off the normal 18-game regular season schedule, I was so excited to see the Canadian Football League return in 2021 after losing a season due to the pandemic.

I was hoping for wide-open, high-scoring games, capped off by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats lifting the Grey Cup.

Unfortunately for me, the Ti-Cats had to settle for the silver medal to Winnipeg’s gold (and blue), and high-scoring games were the exception instead of the norm.

Montreal averaged a league-leading 22.4 points per game last season, while Ottawa was last in scoring at 13 points per outing. And at 43.1 ppg combined, scoring was down almost 13 percent from the 2019 campaign.

But perhaps help is on the way.

The CFL announced several rule tweaks earlier in the week, most designed with offense in mind. One with the chance to have the most immediate impact involves moving the hash marks closer to the center of the field. Now, instead of being 24 yards from the nearest sideline, they’ll be 28 yards away.

“Moving the ball closer to center will encourage teams to use the entire field and their entire playbooks,” CFL commissioner Randy Ambrosie said. “Our football leaders told us the current hash marks too often had the effect of taking the 12^th man on the field – the receiver on the far side – out of the play. A throw to him was consistently seen as too risky. And that, in turn, was diluting the impact of our huge field, which is perhaps the most unique thing about Canadian football.”

Mike O’Shea, head coach of the two-time defending Grey Cup champion Blue Bombers, is a former linebacker and has a defense-first philosophy. However, he understands why the CFL made changes ahead of the 2022 schedule.

“Offensively, it (the hash mark changes) should open up the playbook a little more and allow you to use the entire field,” O’Shea said during a teleconference on Wednesday. “The hope is, it generates more excitement and I’m sure it’ll have some of the desired effect. It should be more exciting also in a variety of different aspects of the game.

“Nobody wants to watch 9-6, really. I mean, I like 9-6 games, because I’m a defender. But for the most part, the CFL’s a wide-open scoring game.”

Saskatchewan Roughriders coach Craig Dickenson says he likes the measured approach to the alterations, although they might not provide instant gratification.

“Is there a way we can increase scoring and somehow open the game up without drastically, in my opinion, changing things like the ratio? I think that’s why you see the hash marks (moving),” he said during his Thursday teleconference. “Do we know if it’s going to work? No, we don’t, but we’re willing to roll the dice and see what it does. I don’t think it’s going to change the game as we see it. The casual fan may not even notice it.”

Other changes include:

* After a made field goal or single point, drives will start from the 40-yard line instead of the 35-yard line. Teams kicking off for any reason will do so from their 30-yard line instead of the 35-yard line. The only exception is kickoffs following a safety: in 2022 they’ll be made from the 20-yard line instead of the 25-yard line.

* All no yards penalties – which are assigned when the cover team invades a five-yard halo around the returner as he fields a punt – will be 15 yards. Previously, a no yards penalty was 15 yards only if the ball had been fielded in the air – and only five yards if the punt had bounced. Also, any punt that sails out of bounds before it reaches an opponent’s 15-yard line will be assigned a penalty – instead of only punts that sail out of bounds before they reach the 20-yard line.

* Two quarterbacks will be allowed on the field at the same time, provided all other ratio rules are satisfied. 

* A “communications coordinator” from the officiating department, connected to the on-field officials via headset communication, will be imbedded on each team’s bench. 

* A penalty that occurs at the end of the first or third quarter will be assigned at the start of the next quarter, rather than triggering an extension of the quarter. 

* The circumstances under which the Command Centre is allowed to help on-field officials – without a coach’s challenge or an officials’ huddle – will be expanded to include possession rulings, boundary rulings and administrative rules such as a formation without an end or ineligible receivers downfield.

* Introduction of a new objectionable conduct penalty for quarterbacks who “fake” giving themselves up by pretending to initiate a slide while carrying the football. 

* Automatic ejection of any player guilty of two unnecessary roughness penalties or two objectionable conduct penalties (or a combination of the two for infractions that occur following a play).  

Among the “best of the rest” amended rules for 2022, I’m going with the 15-yard penalty that will now be levied when a punt returner’s five-yard halo is broken.

Let’s face it – in years past, it was worth a defender’s while to draw the flag because the penalty was much more palatable than allowing a guy to scoop and scoot.

Now there are consequences.

“Our coaches, general managers and team presidents all agreed that the kick return is an exciting and essential part of the Canadian game,” Ambrosie said. “When teams purposely commit an infraction to prevent any return, it takes away some of the excitement of our game, and it creates a stoppage in play while the penalty is assessed. We wanted to address that.”

As for the other rules, none made me cheer or jeer – although I truly had no idea two QBs couldn’t be on the field at the same time.

For those who wanted a seismic shift in the way the Canadian game is played (Four downs! Eleven players! Horses allowed in the backfield!), I’m sure these adjustments are met with shrugged shoulders. Personally, I think they’re steps in the right direction, even if they’re relatively small ones.

I’m just glad rookie camp opens May 11, training camp starts May 15, and the first preseason game is May 23 with Winnipeg playing at Saskatchewan.

Of course, with the new USFL in action and XFL 3.0 coming next February, football is heading for a year-round schedule.

For me, though, the dawn of the CFL season always feels like the “official” start of football.. And I’m truly looking forward to it – rule changes notwithstanding.

HOOVER – Heading into the third weekend of the United States Football League season, fans have seen everything from offensive fireworks to defensive standoffs – and quite a few last-minute victories.

Saturday night at Protective Stadium, they’ll see either Birmingham or New Orleans become the USFL’s lone unbeaten team.

The hometown Stallions (2-0) and Breakers (2-0) meet at 7 p.m., with the lead atop the South Division at stake as well as bragging rights as the only remaining squad sporting a perfect record. Birmingham coach Skip Holtz is quick to point out, however, that it’s hardly a make-or-break game for either side.

“Like I’ve told our players, we’ve got 20 percent of the season done,” Holtz said following today’s practice at the Hoover Met Complex. “After this game, it’ll be 30 percent, and the team that wins won’t win the division, and the team that loses won’t lose the division. The division continues, and we have to stay healthy and continue to get better as the year goes on. We go out and play our game on Saturday and we’ll see what we can do to get better the next week and then see where we are.

“I think when you get to about 70 percent of the season, you’ll get a whole lot better idea of where the teams stand because then, every game is going to be for keeps. But I would rather lose this game and win the rest than I would win this game and lose the rest.”

Birmingham followed up a 28-24 season-opening victory over New Jersey with a 33-28 win over Houston. Despite the fast start, Holtz knows his team has plenty of room for improvement.

“I’m more worried about us than any opponent right now,” he said. “Until we learn to get our defensive schemes right and do what we need to do on offense, we can’t be as good as we need to be.”

New Orleans’ conquests have come against Philadelphia (23-17) and Tampa Bay (34-3), and Holtz sees a team very much in the mold of their head coach, Larry Fedora.

“Larry is a fiery, passionate, energetic, competitive individual,” Holtz explains. “They’re well-coached and it does not surprise me that they’re in the boat they’re in, playing as well as they are. I think he’s great coach. I know when he was at Southern Miss and I was at Louisiana Tech, he and I used to have knockdown dragouts and some of the greatest games in the league.

“His teams there were physical, they were competitive, they were well-prepared. They’re well-coached. I’m hopeful we can match their intangibles, be as disciplined as his teams are and find a way to come out with a win on Saturday.”

The Stallions average 30.5 points per game – best in the USFL – and boast several players who are either tied or lead in various statistical categories.

CJ Marable has two rushing touchdowns; Osirus Mitchell has a pair of receiving touchdowns; Brandon Aubrey has the most kicking points (13); Victor Bolden Jr. is atop the kick return yardage (279 yards) and all-purpose yardage charts (368); and Lorenzo Burns has two interceptions.

“That was so great to see Lorenzo come in and get two picks last week,” said Stallions cornerback Brian Allen, who had a pick-six in the victory over Houston. “We have a lot of talented guys and great coaches, and everybody is stepping up.”

The Breakers have some impressive stats of their own, pacing the league in yards per game (347.5) and turnover margin (+4). And their 31-point beatdown of a talented Tampa Bay team last Sunday was the most dominating performance by any club to date.

Quarterback Kyle Sloter was 25-39-0 for two touchdowns and 266 yards, while Jonathan Adams caught five balls for 92 yards. Johnnie Dixon and Shawn Poindexter each reeled in scoring tosses.

The Bandits were limited to 194 yards of total offense and just one trip to the red zone.

“When you can keep a team out of the end zone for a full game, that’s pretty good,” Fedora said after the game.

Sloter was knocked around by the Tampa defense throughout the hot afternoon, but fought through every hit.

“Any time your quarterback shows a lot of grit and toughness. your team responds to it,” Fedora said. “He was banged up, but he kept going.”

As impressive as the all-around performance was, however, Fedora said his team hopes for even better against the Stallions.

“We were better this week than last week and hope to be even better (Saturday) in all three phases of the game,” he said.

Birmingham quarterback J’Mar Smith said he’s looking forward to the challenge the Breakers present, as well as the big game atmosphere. “They’re aggressive and really good, and have some great edge rushers, so we’ll have to play some really good football,” he said. “But man, this Saturday night showdown … it’s gonna be electric out there. We love the energy of our fans and we expect it to be packed out this time.”

As 2021 came to a close, I wrote a column accentuating the positive about the upcoming 2022 United States Football League season and the 2023 XFL relaunch.

Quoting myself:

I would absolutely love it if both leagues establish their own identities, challenging fans to pick a side. Do you watch the Birmingham Stallions play the Philadelphia Stars on Fox, or do you watch the St. Louis BattleHawks and Seattle Dragons on ABC?

Maybe that leads to a bidding war, and then interleague exhibitions featuring hybrid rules, and ultimately the Summer Bowl pitting the USFL and XFL champion in a game.

Whether or not that prediction is less Nostradamus and more Nostradumbass remains to be seen. But as far as the bidding war thing, that has always looked like a safe bet.

One advantage the USFL has in its “war” with the XFL is that it went to market first. It has a chance to win over fans who want to supplement traditional football with a spring version during a 10-week regular season and two-week postseason. The inaugural USFL campaign will be over seven months before the XFL plays its first game.

On the other hand, the XFL can watch and learn. And once RedBird Capital, Dany Garcia and Dwayne Johnson learned what USFL players were making, you had to know they were going to up the ante.

Kevin Seifert of ESPN.com reported recently that agents met virtually with top XFL officials and were told their league would offer higher pay and better benefits than the USFL.

Beyond that, active rosters would be set at 45, creating seven more jobs than are available on a USFL team (38 active and seven practice squad).

USFL players earn $4,500 per week (plus $850 per victory and a whopping $10,000 windfall for winning the league championship) but also play $75 per day for hotel rooms.

With the $45,000 regular season salary minus roughly $6,000 for lodging, that’s $39,000 on average.

The XFL will not only increase salaries, but also cover “full housing and meal costs.” How much of an increase is still unknown since the XFL has not officially commented on the report.

So, this means once the 2022 USFL season is done there’ll be a mass exodus to the XFL, right?

Nope.

Players under contract with the USFL this year are also under contract for the 2023 season – unless they’re signed by an NFL team. When that happens (and it will for several players), the USFL releases them from their obligations.

As of now, if the USFL returns for a second season and the third iteration of the XFL successfully launches, 664 professional football players will be on active spring league rosters. That’s great news for the players, who’ll have 16 more working opportunities outside the NFL and CFL.

And with the XFL already boasting an exclusive partnership with the NFL Alumni Academy, offering better pay, and starting their season in February – two months before the USFL – then perhaps it’ll be the league that moves to the head of the line among spring circuits.

But the USFL is owned by Fox, and if 2022 ratings are good enough to greenlight a 2023 season, maybe its stakeholders will decide they can match or better XFL salaries.

And if that happens, then the leagues will become part of the grand American tradition of sports spending battles.

It led to the NFL absorbing the entire AFL, the NBA taking in four ABA teams, and the NHL killing the WHA by grabbing its top four franchises.

In those cases, though, it was the older, richer leagues that won the wars.

With the USFL and XFL still in their infancy, there’s no real point of reference as to how that salary escalation might play out. Fans who have pledged their allegiance to one or the other shout you down when you dare say the word “merger,” and some suggest there’s a place on the spring sports landscape for both.

Maybe, maybe not.

Thing is, the last domestic outdoor pro spring league to make it through an entire season was the 2001 XFL (The Spring League was pay-to-play, so it doesn’t count). Assuming the USFL and XFL will ever reach a point where they can have a financial fight is assuming a lot.

But speculation doesn’t cost a thing, and if both leagues are still around in 2024, non-NFL players might see quite a boost to their bank accounts.