Tag: aaf

New Broncos kicker Elliott Fry had a perfect season in the AAF in 2019

Become jumping to the NFL, kicker Elliott Fry went 14-of-14 on field goal attempts in the AAF during the 2019 season.

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After playing college football at South Carolina, kicker Elliott Fry did not immediately get an opportunity in the NFL.

Fry first spent a season in the Alliance of American Football with the Orlando Apollos in 2019. He was a perfect 14-of-14 on field goal attempts in his lone season in the now-defunct AAF. The league did not utilize traditional extra-point attempts to Fry was limited to field goals that spring.

After his impressive AAF season that included a long of 47 yards, Fry was signed by the Chicago Bears. Fry failed to make Chicago’s 53-man roster and he went on to spend time with the Baltimore Ravens, Carolina Panthers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Atlanta Falcons, Kansas City Chiefs, Green Bay Packers, Cincinnati Bengals, Jacksonville Jaguars and Arizona Cardinals from 2019-2023.

After being cut by the Cards last month, Fry was signed by the Broncos following the release of Brandon McManus.

Fry has appeared in three regular-season games in his career — one with the Falcons (2020), one with the Bengals (2021) and one with the Chiefs (2021). Fry is 5-of-6 on field goal attempts in the NFL and 5-of-7 on extra point attempts.

Even after signing Fry, the Broncos will continue monitoring the kicker market as other teams prepare to cut and trade kickers in the coming months.

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DeMarquis Gates of Bears has mind-boggling football resume

DeMarquis Gates is looking to stick with the Chicago Bears after a long football odyssey

Football leagues seem to come and go, except for the NFL. And that creates opportunities for players looking to continue the dream of their earning a living as a pro football player.

DeMarquis Gates is in Chicago Bears camp and the journey he took to get a chance to stick with the NFC North team in 2022 is mind-blowing.

Check this out via Gates’ Wikipedia page:

  • Cleveland Browns

After going undrafted in the 2018 NFL draft, Gates was signed by the Cleveland Browns on May 22, 2018. He was waived on June 14.

  • Memphis Express

Gates joined the Memphis Express of the Alliance of American Football  On March 28, 2019, Gates was named AAF Defensive Player of the Week. The AAF abruptly folded on April 2 after eight games. Gates led the AAF in tackles with 52 and forced fumbles with five.

  • Washington 

On April 11, Gates was signed by Washington. He was waived on June 11.

  • Houston Roughnecks

Gates was selected by the Houston Roughnecks in Phase 3 Round 8 of the 2020 XFL Draft. Before the season was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic, Gates had 32 tackles (second on the team) and 2.0 sacks (tied for the team lead) for the Roughnecks. He had a game-winning fumble recovery against the Dallas Renegades and forced a fumble late versus the Seattle Dragons. He had his contract terminated when the league suspended operations on April 10, 2020.

  1. Minnesota Vikings

On March 25, Gates signed with the Minnesota Vikings. He was waived on August 13, 2020.

  • TSL Blues

Gates was selected by the Blues of The Spring League during its player selection draft on October 12, 2020.

  • Saskatchewan Roughriders

He signed with the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the CFL on December 17, 2020.

  • Birmingham Stallions

Gates was selected with the second pick of the 29th round of the 2022 USFL Draft by the Birmingham Stallions. He was ruled inactive for the team’s game against the Tampa Bay Bandits on May 7, 2022. He was moved back to the active roster on May 14.

  • Chicago Bears

On August 6, 2022, Gates signed with the Chicago Bears.

Gates had four tackles against the Kansas City Chiefs on Saturday in the Bears’ first preseason game, including a tackle for loss.

The former Ole Miss player is getting his shot and it would be nice to see him find a home with an NFL team in the regular season

Johnny Manziel will continue his football career in the Fan Controlled Football league

He’s back.

Johnny Manziel’s football career will continue, though not in quite the same way we’ve seen in the past.

Manziel will make the fourth stop in his pro football career with the Fan Controlled Football, according to ESPN’s Kevin Seifert.

FCF — a start-up football league — combines the sport with elements of esports. It’ll be quite different from the conventional football games he’s played in. The league features 7-on-7 games where fans do everything from setting the roster and lineups to calling actual plays. The league begins in February and games will be streamed on Twitch.

Manziel said he wasn’t trying to return to football anytime soon, but was convinced by the league’s founders to join.

“Life gives you opportunities sometimes to do something that you would still like to do if it was in a different capacity. This has a lot of potential to just be a good time and still be football-centric. They’re going to let the people [who] join this league be who they are and have fun with it and be a little bit more free than what football is sometimes. That’s definitely what appealed to me. They don’t want me to change who I am or anything else. They want to come out, put a good product out and be fun with it.”

This is the fourth stop in his pro football career. Here’s a quick look back at the first three.

Dallas Cowboys sign Garrett Gilbert from Cleveland Browns practice squad

According to Tom Pelissero, former Texas quarterback Garrett Gilbert has been signed by the Dallas Cowboys off Cleveland’s practice squad.

According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, former Texas Longhorns quarterback Garrett Gilbert has been signed by the Dallas Cowboys off the Cleveland Browns‘ practice squad. This move comes after Dak Prescott suffered a season-ending ankle injury in Sunday’s matchup against the New York Giants.

Gilbert will serve as Dallas’ third-string quarterback once the move is completed. Former TCU star Andy Dalton will take over as the Cowboys’ starter while rookie Ben DiNucci will serve as the backup.

After transferring to SMU in 2012, Glibert was a sixth-round pick of the St. Louis Rams in the 2014 NFL Draft. Gilbert has played for six NFL teams and was a player in the brief Alliance of American Football for the Orlando Apollos.

Gilbert is the AAF’s all-time leader in passing yards and has the highest passer rating in league history. More impressively, the veteran quarterback was a Super Bowl champion with the New England Patriots in 2015.

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Former Saints linebackers Will Compton, Jayrone Elliott sign with new teams

More players who once suited up for the New Orleans Saints have earned new NFL opportunities: linebackers Will Compton and Jayrone Elliott.

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Two one-time members of the New Orleans Saints linebacker corps have earned new NFL opportunities: Will Compton signed with the Tennessee Titans (where he played in 2018) while Jayrone Elliott reunited with the Pittsburgh Steelers (who teamed up with him for five games in 2019).

Compton caught on with the Saints in the middle of training camp last summer, but was waived with an injury designation after getting hurt in a preseason game. He later joined the then-Oakland Raiders and started a few games down the stretch. Back in Tennessee, he has a shot at cracking the roster with strong practice performance.

Elliott became a Saints fan-favorite for his pass-rush upside in the 2018 preseason, but he didn’t make the team and ended up starring in the short-lived Alliance of American Football. He led the AAF in sacks for the San Antonio Commanders and briefly joined the Miami Dolphins last year, though he got more action with the Steelers. His familiarity with the system may give him an edge even late in training camp.

This is just the latest example of how deep this year’s Saints roster is. Players who once competed for real minutes in their defense have instead gotten looks with other teams, which has become something of a theme this summer. Cornerbacks who started games for the Saints like Ken Crawley and B.W. Webb are competing for backup jobs with the Arizona Cardinals. Half the players the Saints released at the start of training camp have already signed with new teams.

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NFL owners will vote on 4th-and-15 attempt replacing onside kicks

The NFL owners need 75% yes votes to install a rule allowing teams to attempt a 4th-and-15 from their own 25 yard line to retain possession.

The NFL owners are set to vote on Thursday for a proposal which will effectively eliminate the onside kick, instead allowing teams a chance to keep possession late in the game by giving them one chance to convert a first down on 4th-and-15 from their own 25 yard line.

This proposal went to a vote last year and the competition committee voted 7-1 in favor, but the owners voted it down.

For it to pass this year, the league’s owners will need a 75% yes vote, meaning 24 of the 32 owners will need to approve the proposal.

The proposal would allow a team to use the 4th-and-15 rule twice per game, after any scoring play – including a safety. It would be used primarily in late game situations, as the risk of not picking up a first down is huge, giving the other team the ball in scoring position.

This rule was put into place in the short-lived Alliance of American Football (AAF) league in 2018, with the first team to attempt it successfully converting a first down.

Onside kicks are borderline unobtainable with the NFL’s new rules on kickoffs. In 2019, only 12.5% of onside kicks were recovered by the kicking team, while 4th-and-15 chances were converted 28.6% of the time, and 24.1% of the time dating back to 2015.

The league allowed this rule to go into effect during last year’s Pro Bowl, and the NFC team – coached by Pete Carroll – attempted one late in the game, a pass from Kirk Cousins intended for Kenny Golladay that was instead intercepted by former Seahawks safety Earl Thomas.

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What attracts the Steelers to the crop of former XFL players?

The Pittsburgh Steelers have signed more XFL players than any other team.

The Pittsburgh Steelers have signed more former XFL players than any other team in the league.

Wide receiver Saeed Blacknall became the sixth player inked to the Steelers from the now-defunct league on Monday.

Blacknall joins offensive tackle Jarron Jones, defensive tackle Cavon Walker, defensive tackle Dewayne Hendrix, safety Tyree Kinnel and long snapper/linebacker Christian Kuntz.

There will be more XFL players who sign NFL deals and get a look in training camp — so far there have been 15. When the Alliance of American Football folded in 2019, more than 50 players signed NFL contracts, but less than half ended up making a team’s roster or practice squad.

So, why are the Steelers attracted to the league’s former players?

Due to the scouting restrictions and challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, post-draft college free agency is going to be chaotic, which is partially why general manager Kevin Colbert was a proponent of expanding the 2020 NFL Draft by three rounds — a suggestion that was shot down by the NFL.

Colbert feels more comfortable in signing former XFL players because of access to medicals, game footage, and recent scouting reports.

“It was good that [XFL] players are made available to us because going through this draft as we are with some limited information, that could curtail some of the college free agents that we’re able to sign just on a knowledge of who they are type basis,” Colbert said in a recent Steelers Nation Unite Huddle.

“So, knowing these players a little bit better, we feel it was important to add as many as we thought could help us in terms of being competitive players for training camp.”

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Former Browns QB Johnny Manziel takes shots at XFL, AAF

As the XFL made its much-anticipated return over the weekend — and to good viewership numbers — former Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel was taking shots at the league.

As the XFL made its much-anticipated return over the weekend — and to good viewership numbers — former Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel was taking shots at the league.

Ex-Jets coach fired from XFL job after just one game

Former Jets defensive line coach Pepper Johnson was fired by the XFL’s Wildcats after just one game.

A former Jets coach has been shown the door in the XFL.

According to Pick Wise’s Alex Alarcon, the Los Angeles Wildcats have fired Pepper Johnson, their defensive coordinator and linebackers coach, after just one game. The Wildcats have yet to name his replacement.

The Wildcats allowed 37 points, 315 total net yards and 5.6 yards per play in their 37-17 loss to the Houston Roughnecks in Week 1 of the XFL season.

Johnson spent time with the Jets as a player and a coach before he joined the rebooted XFL. He was a linebacker for the Jets for two seasons in 1997 and 1998. He then served as the Jets defensive line coach in 2015 and 2016 when Todd Bowles was New York’s head coach.

The 55-year-old Johnson was a player in the NFL for 13 seasons with four different teams, including the Giants, Browns, Lions and Jets. He was a two-time Super Bowl champ with Big Blue and made the Pro Bowl twice during his career.

After retiring from the league, Johnson got into coaching with the Patriots. He was with New England from 2000-2013, mainly working with the defensive line and linebackers. He then joined the Bills in 2014 as their defensive line coach before going to the Jets in 2015. Johnson was out of coaching for three years until the Memphis Express of the now-defunct AAF hired him as their defensive line coach in December 2018. That league folded midway through its inaugural season in 2019.

Johnson was hired by the Wildcats in June.

Built to last: Reborn XFL has what AAF was missing

For football fans not ready to start the long offseason, the opening weekend of the new XFL was a potent fix to fuel the football addiction. The spring football league dominated social media, the stadiums were filled with passionate supporters …

For football fans not ready to start the long offseason, the opening weekend of the new XFL was a potent fix to fuel the football addiction.

The spring football league dominated social media, the stadiums were filled with passionate supporters developing their fandom, and the overnight television ratings reflected its success.

But, the Alliance of American Football enjoyed similar success on its opening weekend exactly 12 months earlier, and it lasted only eight weeks before the money ran out and bankruptcy ensued.

Football skeptics question whether the XFL can sustain its success in a way the AAF couldn’t, but the brainchild of Vince McMahon and Oliver Luck has what last year’s startup was missing: quarterbacks.

The name recognition won’t be there for the average NFL viewer, but the performances across the first four games of the XFL gave fans all the excitement they needed.

Former Ohio State fourth-round pick Cardale Jones continued his undefeated record as a starting quarterback with the weekend’s highest passer rating of 116.7 (16-of-26 for 235 yards and two touchdowns) for the D.C. Defenders.

Houston Roughnecks quarterback P.J. Walker earned some attention with 272 yards and four touchdowns, and one of the league’s headliners, former Pittsburgh Steeler Landry Jones, didn’t play for his Dallas Renegades because of injury.

The different for the XFL isn’t just the talent at the position. It’s the rule changes and system in place to eliminate some of the barriers to effective passing.

The league put headsets in the helmets of every offensive skill position player, and they don’t turn off, so coaches can talk directly to their players on the field.

It was designed to increase the speed of the game and make an abbreviated play clock more manageable, but the byproduct was extra guidance in the ear of the quarterbacks and receivers.

They still have to make accurate throws, but the increased communication seems to mitigate some playbook and decision-making issues that often plague ineffective passers.

It wasn’t a universal solution to poor quarterbacking — Aaron Murray of the Tampa Bay Vipers completed less than 50 percent of his passes — but seven of the eight offenses executed scoring drives well enough to keep fans engaged.

The AAF saw four of its eight teams make quarterback changes in last year’s opening weekend, and 15 different players attempted more than 30 passes over the course of the spring. When the league folded, only two teams had a positive touchdown-to-interception ratio.

XFL quarterbacks are making plenty of mistakes too. If they were polished passers, they’d still have NFL contracts. But even the ones on the losing side of the scoreboard showed a baseline consistency that was lacking in the Alliance.

Pair this improved passing with stronger television deals and a more publicized build-up, and the XFL is in a great position to learn from the failures of the past and entrench itself as a spring football staple.