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The NFL and United Football League seem to be getting awfully chummy these days. And why not?
Now that Triple-A spring football seems to have found its footing with the merger of the USFL and XFL, the big league has a new – and steady – source of ready-to-play talent.
“The UFL has demonstrated to be a proven and effective product,” NFL executive vice president of football operations, Troy Vincent, said in a statement on Wednesday. “It provides an opportunity to develop, showcase and evolve the talent and quality of players, coaches, administrators, trainers and officials at the highest level of professional football.”
Whether the NFL and UFL develop an official working relationship remains to be seen, but it would make sense if they did.
The UFL announced this week that 21 players from its 2024 season are currently active in the NFL. Michigan Panthers kicker Jake Bates (Detroit Lions) and Arlington Renegades defensive tackle Jalen Redmond (Minnesota Vikings) earned 53-man roster spots leading up to the NFL’s 2024 season launch, and former DC Defenders wide receiver Chris Blair (Atlanta Falcons) was recently promoted to the active roster from the practice squad.
Entering the season’s second Sunday, 14 other spring veterans are signed to practice squads, while three have been placed on injured reserve.
“We knew that merging the two leagues would create more talented rosters, which in turn would create a more entertaining product on the field,” UFL executive vice president Daryl Johnston said. “This would provide our players the competitive platform needed to be seen by NFL teams. The number of workouts and signings we saw during NFL training camps speaks to the product we put on the field and the opportunity we created for our players as a league. This is what spring football represents, providing a non-traditional path to help players make it to football’s grandest stage.”
Johnston, of course, has been pushing for a pro pathway since before the UFL existed. He worked for the ill-fated Alliance of American Football in 2019, and before the USFL and XFL merged to form the current circuit earlier this year, he was president of football operations with the USFL. In July, 2023, he was talking up the benefits of a spring pipeline.
“When I was in the Alliance of American Football (as general manager of the San Antonio Commanders), Philadelphia was one of my teams,” Johnston, who was also director of player personnel for the XFL Dallas Renegades in 2020, said then. “Jeff Stoutland is the offensive line coach for the Eagles. I asked him, ‘Wouldn’t it be great for (tackle) Jordan Mailata to come to our league and actually play the game? He said, ‘Absolutely … but as soon as I let him go do that, I have to get into a bidding war with the other 31 teams to get him to come back, because everybody’s gonna see how talented he is. And we’ve got time and money invested in him right now and I don’t want to get into a competition for services by letting him go to that league.’ So, there are some things that we are hoping to start conversations with the NFL and allowing some free flow, and some different things that gives access but returns that player back to that team.”
Considering Johnston’s strong NFL ties (he was a three-time Super Bowl champion and two-time Pro Bowler with the Dallas Cowboys, and has served as an analyst on NFL telecasts for 24 seasons), one would have to assume those conversations continue as the eight-team UFL prepares for another season playing out of its Arlington, Texas, hub in 2025.
According to a UFL release, more than 250 of the 400 players (60 percent) who appeared in games for the UFL were called to the NFL for workouts, with 78 signing contracts to attend 30 NFL team training camps. Overall, 87 deals were struck with UFL players, including eight signing twice with the same team and one signing three times with different teams.
Among “legacy” USFL (2022-23) and XFL (2023) classes, 41 players were called up by the UFL for the 2024. Cowboys standout and former Birmingham Stallions kicker Brandon Aubrey – one of the NFL’s top players at that position – and teammate Kevontae Turpin (wide receiver for the USFL New Jersey Generals in 2022) are two of the 11 on 53-man rosters. Twenty-seven others have practice squad spots and three are on injured reserve.
Yet, while many are getting opportunities, only a handful are getting actual playing time in the fall. The UFL rectifies that problem, and it would be even better if the NFL could call players up and send others down (to get work) thanks to a streamlined partnership.
“The UFL has been an excellent tool for us as we build the roster,” Cowboys vice president of player personnel, Will McClay, said. “In the age of salary cap, player acquisition has become a year-round job. The UFL gives us an opportunity to evaluate players in a professional setting at crucial times when teams need to fill roster holes that may not have been addressed in the draft and free agency. The access that the UFL gives us to the players and process makes it a league that we will continue to scout and look for players to add to our roster. The bottom line is that football is a “rep” game and we feel like the more quality reps a player can get, the more they can improve their skill set and Football intelligence enough to compete for an NFL roster spot.”
Not trying to read too much into it, but the fact that the league sent out a press release with three NFL officials commenting on the UFL (Minnesota Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah also weighed in by saying, “Growth opportunities afforded players by the UFL can absolutely lead to better competition on NFL rosters”) suggests a more formal connection between the two would be a logical step.
“The NFL scouts agree that the UFL is a great proving ground for players to get more film and playing time to improve their game,” San Antonio Brahmas general manager Marc Lillibridge said. “When they’re not playing, it’s hard to see their development. When they’re in the UFL, they can see them developing under high level coaching and the results and growth in games.”
Short of an in-season farm system, an NFL/UFL alliance is the next best thing. And if the UFL can survive – and steady television ratings are encouraging – such a team-up would benefit both parties.
It’s certainly something to keep an eye on.