Fantasy Football

If the AAF was to fold, it would be horrible for football, and the players trying to make it to the NFL

The AAF has been a huge platform for many players who were not getting the call from NFL teams. Now their film will help earn them another shot at an NFL roster, if this league folds it would be a huge loss for football, and players everywhere.

The only people hoping for the new league Alliance of American Football League to fail are haters because if you have been in this industry for as long as I have you have to be pumped that the league has made it through almost one season. The AAF has been a huge platform for many players. Several AAF players are going to be signed after the first AAF season. This week the majority owner Tom Dundon came out and said the league could fold very soon.

“If the players union is not going to give us young players, we can’t be a development league,” Dundon told USA Today Sports. “We are looking at our options, one of which is discontinuing the league.”

I feel like deep down inside this was more of a power move to try to get the NFLPA to bite into their league before the XFL comes into play in 2020. The XFL is getting ready to take off in 2020 and that will be a huge competition. I feel Dundon wanted to show that the AAF has been successful and tried to get an agreement with the NFLPA, but that power move will not likely happen.

Dundon says unsigned NFL players, including practice-squad players, are free to join the AAF at any time. But the AAF would need the NFLPA’s cooperation to acquire a practice-squad player who currently is signed to a futures contract with an NFL team. There are so many problems with this because they want to be able to use the better quarterbacks and offensive lineman that are stacked on the 10 man practice squads. I feel the move is not smart though because every year before the start of the season, a thousand plus players are released from the NFL rosters. They cut the rosters from 90 to 53. That is a great pool to grab from, and they need to focus more on those players than the players on the practice squads.

Dundon, who also owns the NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes, made a $250 million investment in the AAF last month after the league reportedly was in danger of not making payroll.

The eight-team AAF billed as a development league, kicked off the weekend following the Super Bowl. The league is seven games into its 10-game regular season, and if they fold before the playoffs with the success they are having it would be a shame. I would be very upset.

If Tom Dundon is smart, he will at least keep the league going through the next few weeks and let the players get more additional film before he cancels if he does plan on cancelling the season. Give the kids a chance to create more film for another shot at the NFL.

Damond Talbot

NFL Draft Diamonds was created to assist the underdogs playing the sport. We call them diamonds in the rough. My name is Damond Talbot, I have worked extremely hard to help hundreds of small school players over the past several years, and will continue my mission. We have several contributors on this site, and if they contribute their name and contact will be in the piece above. You can email me at nfldraftdiamonds@gmail.com

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