Buffalo716 Posted January 18, 2019 Posted January 18, 2019 3 minutes ago, Limeaid said: Development issues for offense linemen is due to the NFLPA. It is the position which needs most development. It will not be an issue with the new development league unless the players are very, very stupid. Plenty of players developed late - CFL, NFLE and Arena ball - and most of those opportunities are gone. There is no way all of the cream of the crop are in NFL as proved by these players coming in and excelling. The top .5% of those leagues can play in the NFL... 100% of NFL players would be very good players if not studs in those leagues
Mr. WEO Posted January 18, 2019 Posted January 18, 2019 On September 27, 2018 at 12:50 PM, PromoTheRobot said: Spring ball won't succeed until the NFL signs off on a league that they run or at least support. There's definitely a market for spring football, but it needs massive marketing and TV exposure. The NFL can provide both. There is no market for Spring pro football. This has already been proven at least twice--the USFL and the XFL's utterly disastrous previous incarnation (NBC lost $35 MILLION). The TV contract is a joke. One game will nationally televised per week on CBS. The players will be guys who cannot otherwise find jobs that pay over $75K a year.
ButchCT Posted January 18, 2019 Posted January 18, 2019 It is possible thay both can succeed since they are aiming for different audiences but hard to see it happening. XFL may die out from the stigma of being a WWE product. As the WFL and USFL proved, cant compete with the NFL. There's people who feel the USFL could have succeeded if it stayed in the spring. I have no opinion myself on that. But there most definitely is a gaping market in the spring for some markets that would only have baseball, such as AAF markets. And also a potential for minor league football to develop and succeed at this point in time. I'd say the AAF has the best plan.
The Real Buffalo Joe Posted January 18, 2019 Author Posted January 18, 2019 14 hours ago, Mr. WEO said: There is no market for Spring pro football. This has already been proven at least twice--the USFL and the XFL's utterly disastrous previous incarnation (NBC lost $35 MILLION). The TV contract is a joke. One game will nationally televised per week on CBS. The players will be guys who cannot otherwise find jobs that pay over $75K a year. But the USFL was successful as a spring league. The reason it failed was because it decided to become a fall league and compete directly with the NFL. That's never gonna happen. The reason the AFL was successful, was because they were mostly placed in cities that didn't have an NFL team at the time.
PromoTheRobot Posted January 18, 2019 Posted January 18, 2019 11 hours ago, ButchCT said: It is possible thay both can succeed since they are aiming for different audiences but hard to see it happening. XFL may die out from the stigma of being a WWE product. As the WFL and USFL proved, cant compete with the NFL. There's people who feel the USFL could have succeeded if it stayed in the spring. I have no opinion myself on that. But there most definitely is a gaping market in the spring for some markets that would only have baseball, such as AAF markets. And also a potential for minor league football to develop and succeed at this point in time. I'd say the AAF has the best plan. 12 minutes ago, The Real Buffalo Joe said: But the USFL was successful as a spring league. The reason it failed was because it decided to become a fall league and compete directly with the NFL. That's never gonna happen. The reason the AFL was successful, was because they were mostly placed in cities that didn't have an NFL team at the time. The USFL actually proved (to ESPN and ABC who carried their games) that there indeed was a market for spring football. Their downfall came when the owner of the New Jersey Generals (you might have heard of him) decided to try and force a merger with the NFL (ala WHA) by moving into the fall and suing the NFL for antitrust. (The USFL actually won...a whole $3 in damages. Smooth move, Donny.) Of course at the time the USFL aggressively went after top draft picks and had some real talent on their teams. And about half the cities drew crowds that rivaled the NFL. Could the USFL kept that up? No doubt player costs would have kept climbing with two leagues bidding for players, and despite decent TV ratings and attendance, the league was not profitable. But a league that, maybe not endorsed by the NFL but works as a minor league to it, with manageable operating costs, can succeed. As RBJ noted, colleges don't give certain positions enough pro development. A halfway stop league where marginal college players can keep developing seems like a no-brainer. 2
Mr. WEO Posted January 18, 2019 Posted January 18, 2019 28 minutes ago, The Real Buffalo Joe said: But the USFL was successful as a spring league. The reason it failed was because it decided to become a fall league and compete directly with the NFL. That's never gonna happen. The reason the AFL was successful, was because they were mostly placed in cities that didn't have an NFL team at the time. The USFL never played a Fall game. By the second Spring season, many teams were hemorrhaging money. Teams merged , folded or changed hands. It was a mess. Only the first season saw decent numbers (average attendance 25,000 per game).
The Real Buffalo Joe Posted January 18, 2019 Author Posted January 18, 2019 13 minutes ago, PromoTheRobot said: The USFL actually proved (to ESPN and ABC who carried their games) that there indeed was a market for spring football. Their downfall came when the owner of the New Jersey Generals (you might have heard of him) decided to try and force a merger with the NFL (ala WHA) by moving into the fall and suing the NFL for antitrust. (The USFL actually won...a whole $3 in damages. Smooth move, Donny.) Of course at the time the USFL aggressively went after top draft picks and had some real talent on their teams. And about half the cities drew crowds that rivaled the NFL. Could the USFL kept that up? No doubt player costs would have kept climbing with two leagues bidding for players, and despite decent TV ratings and attendance, the league was not profitable. But a league that, maybe not endorsed by the NFL but works as a minor league to it, with manageable operating costs, can succeed. As RBJ noted, colleges don't give certain positions enough pro development. A halfway stop league where marginal college players can keep developing seems like a no-brainer. I think the success of the AAF will depend on what kind of partnership, or at least endorsement they get from the NFL. They already know they're a developmental league, and aren't trying to compete with the NFL. There are rumors that Vince McMahon won't let his players break their contract if they get an NFL offer.
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