It’s a week where all NFL teams are doing the final touches on their own rosters to get ready for the 2019 season next weekend. Players on the bubble find out their destiny… if their NFL dreams will play out. Some players will make the practice squad. A pool of players will be sent home and most of them will have to find new work. This group of castoffs could still have their football dreams stay alive and get scooped up by the XFL. Canada and Arena leagues already established could be ideas to still play football. The AAF had many NFL castoffs and lots of young talent that played solid football before the league folded. Many of the AAF players were picked up by NFL teams. Could the XFL be the same way?

In the 90’s Vince McMahon launched his first football league. All the team names were intimidating, like the Demons, Hitmen, Rage, Berzerk, Enforcers, and Outlaws. They had logos like a crazy person in the rubber room would draw.

Vince McMahon’s league in the 90’s was a mixed version of football and wrestling. He had wrestlers doing the play by play in the TV booth. Instead of a coin flip, they had a mad scramble for the ball. Resulted in the first week a player getting injured and dislocating his shoulder. On the back of the jerseys, players got to write nick names. Rod Smart was well known around the league as he had, “HE HATE ME” on the back of his jersey. The league was trying to be tougher than any other league, like no fair catches. Less penalties. Back then the league had a mix of NFL players that you remembered like all these leagues have. Players look for a second shot to get back to the NFL. Sometimes I think players want to actually play the game and not just ride the bench in the NFL.The pay structure was interesting because if you won games, you would be paid more. They had a base salary, but to make more money you needed to win and hit bonuses for your own play. All this crazy lasted for one year. They did play the whole season and the playoffs, not like the AAF just earlier this year.

Vince McMahon in part two of his XFL, promises his league will be about the product on the field. Playing the game of football. The AAF had that down to a science, as the season went on the games got better. The AAF had some stupid rules like how many you can blitz and no kickoffs. The XFL has not completed their new rule books. I’m sure they might have some of their own rules which could be stupid or perhaps a good thing. They too want to speed up the game. In football, hearing that baffles me. Less commericals is the solution, not play clocks. We don’t need a drive thru football game.

The XFL had eight cities, now they have 8 cities with nick names as things are heating up as the season is getting closer.

Dallas Renegades, DC Defenders, Houston Roughnecks, LA Wild Cats, New York Guardians, Seattle Dragons, St.Louis Battle Hawks, and the Tampa Bay Vipers. I like all these logos better than the crap they used in the 1990’s.

The Renegades looks very familiar as the old Dallas team from the arena league. The Defenders looks like a Captain America shield. I’d rather see the old Atari game called Defender where the city blows up.

Houston Roughnecks looks like resurrection of the old Houston Oilers.

The LA. Wild Cats, I have to think of Goldie Hawn in the movie Wildcats .

Of course LA does it’s normal lettering of L & A, real geniuses there.

What is a New York Guardian?

Could a Guardian be the key master or the gate keeper?

Seattle Dragons is the monster from Great Lakes brewing.

Maybe the beast swam from Cleveland to Seattle.

St.Louis Battle Hawks reminds me of the cone of silence.

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Somebody tell Control headquarters Ziggy is alive, running a football team in St. Louis and Kaos is planning something big.

Tampa Bay Vipers has to have the Cobra Commander as their owner.

All the logos are ten times better than any of the ones from the 1990s.

The XFL already has their first Gunslinger signed, Landry Jones, former Big Ben back up in Steel Country.

You think Landry Jones should be on a NFL roster. My conclusion is the man wants to play football, not watch his career go by backing up Big Ben in Pittsburgh. These next few weeks the XFL will be starting to pick off the scrap heap of players that the NFL does not need.

Hopefully Vince McMahon has learned from his first go around not to mix oil and water. Wrestling and football do not mix. Hopefully he has learned to have money in the bank for the long haul of the season, so they do not have any AAF reruns. Vince McMahon says he has enough money for three football seasons. We will believe it when we see it. If they keep it simple and just play the game of football, they should have no problems. I will be watching and then waiting. If this thing is a success, I expect to be paid and awarded a team in Chicago.