It sounds like the NFL and AAF might be forming a partnership sometime down the road.
USA Today reported the following late Wednesday afternoon:
Alliance of American Football co-founder and head of football Bill Polian said Wednesday there have been informal discussions about the possibility of NFL teams loaning younger players to AAF teams in the future.
“The talk is ramping up – I’ll say that,” Polian said.
Polian there have been no formal talks, “but lots of NFL people have bandied about that thought with lots of us.”
The idea would be for NFL teams to assign their No. 3 quarterback and other players from the bottom half of their roster and developmental squads to gain more playing time under quality coaches.
It seems like this has always been the goal of the Alliance of American Football. The league doesn’t exist to compete with the NFL. It exists to help the NFL and serve as kind of a developmental program. Naturally, the end goal was almost always to have the two form a kind of a partnership. It sounds like that’s exactly what could happen in the future.
This is also a great idea if you’re Roger Goodell and other executives at the highest level of football. Third-string guys don’t really get reps at all in games, and they get far fewer in practice than guys who actually see the field.
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Their chances to develop would skyrocket if they could play in the AAF in the spring and actually see the field. The only question would be how the contracts would work. Would they make AAF-level salaries, which is around $80,000 a season, or would they get paid like they’re in the NFL? (RELATED: AAF Coach Rules Out Signing Johnny Manziel)
I have a feeling the latter option would be the answer. I can’t see many NFL guys, even third stringers, agreeing to play for a pay cut. That’s just not smart business.
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If I had to bet on what will happen, I think you’ll see some lower-level NFL guys in the Alliance of American Football league sooner than later.
The AAF has proven that it has quality football, and that might ease a lot of concerns. I hope it works out well. That’d be great news for football fans everywhere.