October 15, 1999
It has been 2 months since the Memphis Showboats held aloft the John Bassett Trophy after winning their first USFL Championship, a month since the NFL-USFL Transfer Window closed, and three days since the jaw-dropping news that one of the league’s best players was retiring in his prime after another stellar season. So, here we are, early USFL offseason and there is so much to report. We have player movement, retirements, coaching hires, and a few intriguing trades for you as the offseason has truly been a hot stove this year. Time to figure out where your team stands and what they need to do to dethrone or retain the crown in the new millennium, assuming, of course, that Y2K does not end the world.
We start with the news that the last of the head coaching vacancies has been filled. Oakland joins Atlanta, New Orleans, Philadelphia, and Portland among the ranks of the “restarts” with a new coach. It appears that the reason the Invaders needed to delay their decision was that the man they wanted still had work to do with his old team. One week after the Summer Bowl, the Invaders announced that Denver Gold defensive coordinator Dom Capers would be the new leader of the franchise. Capers, who had helped to build up the Carolina Panthers in the NFL and whose defense helped Denver reach their third Summer Bowl, comes to Oakland with a big task to achieve, to rebuild a team that fell from 9-7 to 4-12 last season, a defense that ranked 23rd in the league in points allowed and dead last against the rush, while also rebuilding the ego of hot-headed QB Ryan Leaf, who also saw a huge drop-off in production, from 5,432 yards, 43 TDs and a 97.6 rating in his rookie year to an injury-plagued 1,892 yards, 11 TDs and 59.2 rating last year.
Capers has some talent on the Invaders squad, including Leaf, HB Siran Stacy, wideouts Ed McCaffrey and Marty Booker, and defensive stalwarts such as DE Eric Curry, backers Chris Spielman and Kailee Wong, CB Bobby Taylor and SS John Lynch, but he also has major holes to fill and a team culture to get back on track after a season pretty much everyone wants to forget. Capers is no stranger to building a team up after serving as the first head coach of an expansion club in the NFL. He will have to take that same approach here, making some moves and some risks to bring Oakland back after a truly bad decline in 1999.
Capers joins fellow new hires Bobby Petrino (ATL), Mike Nolan (NOR), Jim Mora Jr. (PHI), and Ray Rhodes (POR) on the hotseat that is the USFL head coaching stage. Which of these coaches is in the best positioned for a speedy turnaround? That is a tough question to answer. In Oakland and Philly we have two clubs that were in the playoffs in 1998, only to collapse in 1999, so there may be enough in the pantry there to mix up something good. While in Atlanta the cupboard has been bare ever since the club came into the league in ’95. New Orleans has a potential superstar in HB Ricky Williams, but what else do the Breakers bring to the table? While in Portland, it looks like a total overhaul may be in the works as the Thunder lose the face of their franchise and now look at a 2nd year QB to lead them to a new identity.
THUNDEROUS NEWS!
Every offseason brings with it a wave of retirements as players reach that point in their lives where either their bodies or their hearts tell them that it is time to move on. Ordinarilly these are decisions we see coming from a mile away, a player whose talents are diminishing or who essentially tells us that a season will be their swan song, but every once in a while we are shocked, and that is what happened this past September, when Portland Thunder halfback and 3-time league rushing leader Robert Drummond announced that he was leaving the game.
Drummond, who had come back from a devastating ACL injury in 1997 to provide 1,000 yard seasons for the Thunder in both 1998 and 1999, against all the predictions, has opted to call it a career after 11 seasons in the USFL. The Syracuse product is leaving the game despite coming out of 1999 with a very strong 1,150 yards, 9 TDs and 4.8 YPC season. Yes, he had seen his work load reduced from an average of nearly 300 carries a season down to 233 in 1998 and 241 in 1999, but he was still the driving force in the Portland offense. Perhaps the loss of Vince Tobin at the helm was a piece of the puzzle, perhaps his 32 year old ankles, knees, and hips were a factor as well. The surefire first-ballot HOF back leaves Portland with a huge hole to fill.
Over his career with the Thunder, Drummond has rushed for 12,824 yards, 91 touchdowns, and a 4.6 yards per carry average, all among the best in league history. He finishes his career 6th all time in rush attempts, 4th in rushing yards, 4th in touchdowns, and holds the 4th and 6th best rushing seasons in league history. His departure leaves Portland with only Darius Turner and June Henley in the backfield, two backs who combined for only 209 yards rushing and 51 attempts in 1999. He also leaves the club without a face for the franchise. Rookie Akili Smith did not wow fans in the Pacific Northwest with his rookie campaign (2,792 yards, 13-15 TD-INT ratio), and the defense has been mediocre even in its best years. A tough opening month for new head coach Ray Rhodes, but a chance to start from scratch it would seem.
RETIREMENT ROSTER
While Robert Drummond’s announcement was the biggest shock in the retiremen roster this year, it certainly is not going to be the only departure that deeply impacts a USFL club. Let’s run through the most impactful retirements of the offseason and how their club might try to deal with the absence.
DE Reggie White (MEM): Not really a shocker that with his first title in hand, and after a record-setting 16-season career, the Minister of Defense would go out on top. White retires with 259 sacks in his illustrious career, a per season average of 16 per season over a decade and a half. The total has him standing all alone among USFL passrushers, over 70 sacks ahead of Phil Hansen in 2nd. White came to the USFL in the league’s 2nd year of existence and the first year for the expansion Showboats. He would play his entire career in Memphis, beginning with an 18-sack debut season. A model of consistency, his only season without double-digit sacks would be an injury-shortened 1991 campaign. His high mark was 21 sacks in a season, achieved in both 1990 and 1992, bracketing the injury. He is a certain HOF first-ballot entrant and will almost certainly remain a frequently-seen face in and around Memphis as he serves the community and has several local spokesperson deals in place.
So how does Memphis deal with the loss? That is not an easy question. Over the years the Showboats have tried to put someone opposite White to draw off some blockers, but rarely has this worked. Their current bench depth is not ideal. Without White, Tony Hill, with 6 sacks, is the next best member of the D-line, but he is more naturally on the other side of the line from White. They have Raylee Johnson and Sedrick Clark on the bench as well, but neither of them have been able to acquire significant playing time over their short careers. So it looks like Memphis will either have to ply the Free Agency waters in search of a pressure edge rusher, or look to the draft. This year’s rookie crop does offer a few potential starting points in Penn State’s Courtney Brown, Tennessee’s Shaun Ellis, and South Carolina’s John Abraham. Ellis, coming from not only Memphis’s back yard, but the same school as White, seems a natural fit, but he would risk the immediate comparisons to White, which seems unfair from the start. Free agency, at least within the USFL, does not seem to hold the answer either, with the best prospects being Denver’s Jon Carter, LA’s Santana Dotson, and New Jersey’s Marcellus Wiley, good players all, but not the production monsters like White. So, we shall see what we see, but the loss in Memphis will be felt both on the field and in the locker room as White was a giant in the league and certainly for the league champion Showboats.
WR Cris Carter (PHI): Another likely future HOF performer, Carter split his time in the USFL between the Portland Thunder (1990-1993) and the Stars (93-99), after starting his career in the NFL with the Eagles. He retires with 12,024 yards receiving and 66 touchdowns on 1,019 career receptions, and he leaves on top, at least statistically, with career highs in receptions (125) and yards (1,374) in his final campaign, a frustrating one that saw the Stars drop from the top of their division to the basement.
Carter, like White, was a locker room leader and a mentor for younger players. Those players are now going to have to step up to fill a pretty big void in the passing game. Carter’s retirement likely means that Troy Brown will step into the #1 receiver spot in his 6th season. Kevin Dyson, Alex Van Dyke, Stepfret Williams, and Na Brown sit behind Brown on the roster, but Philly is already looking to do more. They have made two signings at the position in hopes of replicating a fraction of Carter’s production. During the transfer window the Stars reached into the NFL ranks to sign former Bear wideout Bobby Engram, and within the USFL free agent pool they stepped up and signed Seattle wideout Courtney Hawkins. Neither one of these receivers has the production of Carter, but perhaps by spreading the ball around, QB Bobby Hebert can find a way to replicate the results.
LB Andre Collins (PHI): In what is clearly a rebuilding year, Philadelphia, and their new head coach Jim Mora Jr., also loses LB Andre Collins to retirement. A leader on the defensive side since coming to the Stars in 1990, Collins was known as a sideline to sideline player and a smart defender who was particularly good in coverage and run pursuit. He retires with 646 tackles (85 behind the line of scrimmage), 31 sacks and 9 interceptions in 156 games played. The Stars have already made a move to try to replace Collins, signing LA Express linebacker George Koonce, though it is unknown if Koonce will take over Collins’s slot or replace fellow backer Bryce Paup, who left to Portland in free agency.
LB Dino Hacket (NJ): Just up I-95 another USFL club is dealing with the retirement of their defensive playcaller as Dino Hacket announced his retirement after 14 seasons roaming the field, with his first 6 in Pittsburgh and then 8 more in the Meadowlands. Hacket was a punishing hitter and a wiley field marshal for the Generals’ defense. He retires with 966 tackles (169 for a loss), 41 sacks, 9 picks, two All-USFL nods, the 1986 Defensive ROTY award and the 1993 Defensive Player of the Year award, a year in which he made 118 tackles and 8 sacks. New Jersey has already dipped into free agency to sign a linebacker, but interestingly they signed outside backer Lorenzo Styles, which likely means that they are looking for Paul McGown to step into the MLB role, likely with Styles and Bobby Howard outside him. The ageless Kevin Greene will likely remain a 3rd down entrant into the lineup, specializing in pass rush.
LB Mike Junkin (JAX): Staying with the linebacker run, Jacksonville will say goodbye to Mike Junkin, the 35-year old longtime member of the Memphis Showboats. Junkin came to Jacksonville on a one year deal, after short stints in Portland, Baltimore, and Orlando. He played in all 16 games this year, but started only 5, producing 12 tackles. In his career, mostly with Memphis, he amassed 677 tackles, 47 sacks and 10 interceptions. Jacksonville used Junkin mostly in spot play to deal with injuries or fatigue among their 3 starting backers (Bruschi, Brandon, and Armstead). While Junkin will be missed in that role, the larger issue for Jacksonville is the departure of Tedi Bruschi via free agency. With Bruschi headed to Texas to play for the Outlaws, Jacksonville needs to find a new MLB to run their 4-3 defense. There are several options out there in free agency still, though we think there is really only 1 top choice, Portland’s Mike Vrabel would be a perfect fit for the Bulls.
CB Robert Massey (OHI): We finish with one more defender, Ohio’s top corner, Robert Massey. Massey leaves the Glory after only 1 season in Columbus. The former Chicago Machine and Seattle Dragons star retires with 174 games played (163 starts), in which he amassed 870 tackles, 234 passes defended and 31 picks. In his final season, his only year with the Glory, he had 79 tackles and 5 picks, leading the team in takeaways. With his departure Vince Buck is likely to take over the #1 spot, opposite each team’s best receiver, with Corey Raymond or Ty Howard battling for the 2nd spot. Expect Ohio to use an early draft pick to try to fill in behind these three.
Other retirements of note include Washington CB Derrick Beasley, Portland DE Anthony Pleasant, Chicago guard Mike Zordich, Baltimore HB Derrick Fenner, Chicago LB Michael Brooks, Arizona TE Keith Cash, and St. Louis WR/KR Anthony Miller.
OFF TO THE FALL
As if retirements were not a big enough impact on the USFL each year, there is also the inevitable give and take across the NFL-USFL divide, and this offseason saw quite a few notable names heading from Spring to Fall or vice versa. Let’s start with the departures from the USFL first, and there are several which are sure to cause USFL coaches and GM’s some white hairs.
We start on the offensive line where two elite tackles are jumping to the NFL. Atlanta’s Eugene Chung and Baltimore’s Jumbo Elliott are both headed straight from a USFL season into the NFL fall season. That means big trouble for both the QBs who had counted on them for protection. On the interior of the line the two biggest defections are center Kevin Mawae from the Renegades and guard Larry Allen from the Texas Outlaws. Allen is staying in state with the Cowboys while Mawae also heads to Texas, playing for the Oilers in Houston.
Among offensive skill positions, we saw no notable QBs switch from USFL to NFL, but the same cannot be said for the halfback, tight end, and wideout position, in which 4 players of significant impact are leaving for the fall league. We start with the biggest departure, TE Keith Jackson of Denver. The Gold’s best receiver by far, and a favorite target of Mark Brunell, Jackson led all tight ends (and most wideouts) with 125 receptions in 1999, helping Denver reach the Summer Bowl. He leaves the USFL after 12 seasons (6 each in Memphis and Denver) and will now likely finish his career with the NFL Eagles.
Another pass catcher, Brian Blades, long the top receiver for Jacksonville, is headed to the Seattle Seahawks, while HB Charlie Garner, Philadelphia’s leading rusher since the 1995 season, is off to the LA Raiders. Blades had been overtaken as the #1 target in Jacksonville by Terrell Owens these past 2 years, but still was a huge part of the Bulls’ offense, bringing in 82 receptions for 973 yards and 8 TDs this season.
Garner, who suffered a major knee injury and missed most of this year, is a bit of a surprise, as the Raiders are taking a big chance that he can have a Robert Drummond-like recovery. Philadelphia had brought in Darrell Thompson to replace Garner, but he is off to Ohio in free agency, so the Stars will need to think HB either in the draft or free agency. Rumors have the Stars in negotiations with free agent Stephen Davis, the Stallions’ primary back.
The other back to leave for the NFL was Tampa Bay’s James Stewart. Stewart was never able to get a lot of carries in the Tampa Bay pass-first offense, and was usually only a change of pace when Errict Rhett was winded from all the screens and swing passes he caught. He heads to the Detroit Lions after a 5-year career in Tampa that saw him rush for only 497 yards.
Looking at the defensive side of the ball, the big names no longer roaming the USFL include Birmingham free safety Blaine Bishop, Houston defensive tackle Luther Ellis, and St. Louis backer Trev Alberts. It was well known that Ellis was likely to be a salary cap victim in Houston as the Gamblers need funds to resign DE Michael Sinclair, but it had been hoped that he would remain a USFL talent. However, the offer from the Detroit Lions was too lucrative for most USFL teams to match in a year when the salary cap is tight for many clubs. Bishop and Alberts are also players whose departures will be felt, however, this is a good draft for the safety position, and Birmingham has already boosted their secondary with an NFL signing that shook both leagues (see below for the exciting details). In St. Louis, the departure of Alberts was met with consternation, but the Knights are looking at several prospects in the draft, and are also likely to provide more playing time to Mike Caldwell at the position.
SPRING FORWARD
Before fans of the USFL get too depressed about the players headed to the senior league in the fall, we should remind you all that the NFL-USFL Transfer Window is a 2 way street. Just as the USFL lost several big name players to the fall, the NFL saw several of their highly-coveted free agents bolt to the spring league.
No name shifting leagues was bigger than the acquisition the Birmingham Stallions made for their defense. Prime Time!!! Neon Deion is headed to Legion Field!! That’s right, Deion Sanders, arguably one of the best corners to ever play the game is the newest member of the Birmingham Stallions. After a stunning debut with the Atlanta Falcons and a career that saw him delight fans in San Francisco and Dallas, the wettest Gerry curl in pro football heads to the USFL on a 3-year deal that will likely see him finish his career as a Stallion.
This is a huge get for Birmingham, who have lived on offensive firepower over the past half decade. Sanders is a true shut down corner, capable of cutting the field in half for opposing QBs. He instantly upgrades a secondary that needs upgrading. Sure, he may not still be the dynamic return man he once was, but he still terrorizes QBs with his ballhawking style. A huge get for a small city team in the USFL.
A second big get on the defensive side of the ball is more of a homecoming as LB Hardy Nickerson is returning to the Michigan Panthers after a 2-year hiatus in the NFL. Nickerson, who became a star in Pontiac after arriving as a rookie in 1987, already has over 900 tackles and 41 sacks for the Panthers. After leaving for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 1998, he is back in Panther burgundy, champagne and blue. He has signed a 3-year deal, but most expect him to perhaps play 1-2 years into that contract. That is a short term solution for the Panthers’ D, but it is a welcome one nonetheless.
Pittsburgh hoped to provide Charlie Batch with some weapons this offseason and it looks like they have done that, signing WR Jake Reed away from the Minnesota Vikings. Reed will line up opposite Andre Rison in the Mauler formation and is expected to serve as a key 3rd down and possession receiver, though he is also more than capable of going deep.
Portland too looked to help out its offense, though we are not exactly sure if they succeeded. Coach Rhodes was only on the job for 2 weeks when the Thunder signed QB Rick Mirer, last seen in a NY Jets uniform in the NFL. Mirer, who was a big star for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, started off well in his first few years with the Seattle Seahawks, but his pro career seemed to fizzle, leading to a move to New York, where he also struggled. We still expect Akili Smith to be the starter in Portland, and Mirer’s skill set parallels that of the mobile Smith, so the Thunder now have a viable backup, but is Mirer the type of mentor who can bring the best out of Smith? That seems a tall order to us.
OK, our last highlighted NFL player jumping to the USFL is just one of about 35 who made the leap, but the only other player we would consider immediately impactful. With starting free safety Joe King likely headed elsewhere in free agency, Baltimore needed to find a solid replacement, and one who would come at a lower cost. They believe they have done this by signing former 49er and current Cleveland Brown Marquez Pope. Pope started his career as a corner with the Chargers before transitioning to safety in his final years in San Francisco and then last year, on a 1 year deal with Cleveland. He comes to Baltimore with a chance to win the starting job at the position, with only backup Leomont Evans to beat out. Even with the signing, don’t be surprised if the Blitz also use a mid-round pick to sign a potential heir at the position.
Once the NFL-USFL Transfer window closed (another will open in January), the action around the USFL turned to the internal free agent market and the trading block. While we typically do not see a lot of major trades until the weeks right before the late-January draft, this year we did get a few that could be substantial for the clubs involved.
Houston worked to deal with issues they had at center by making a deal with the New Jersey Generals. It was a costly deal, sending CB Merlon Kerner plus a 3rd round draft pick to the Generals, but they got the man they wanted, big roadgrater Olin Kreutz. Kreutz will immediately be pencilled in at the pivot position and will be a significant upgade for the Gamblers, while New Jersey gets much-needed speed at the corner and an extra pick to boot.
New Orleans also looked to improve in the secondary while Chicago hoped to upgrade their notabley weak receiving corps with a player for player swap. The Breakers send Johnnie Morton off to the Windy City and in return they get Latin Berry, Chicago’s designated nickel back. Berry comes to New Orleans likely to be moved outside as either the #1 or #2 alongside Mike Riley. Chicago will likely continue to build their receiving corps, which was an issue all year for Alex Van Pelt and then Jeff George. Morton was targeted 77 times by Jamie Martin in New Orleans but finished the year with only 35 receptions for 372 yards. Whether or not George and the Machine offense under Marty Mornhinweg will be able to get more out of the 7th year receiver is the big question among Machine fans, but with Ricky Proehl also likely gone to free agency and neither Floyd Turner or David Dunn looking like a true starter, Morton will certainly get a shot, but don’t be surprised if Chicago looks to add a true #1 either through the draft or free agency. Could Odessa Turner fit the bill or will Chicago look at rookie options like Peter Warrick (FSU) or Plaxico Burress (Michigan State)?
Oakland’s new head coach Dom Capers wasted no time trying to upgrade a defense deeply in need of interior strength. His 24th ranked run defense will certainly be upgraded with the addition of former Orlando Renegade DT Tracy Rocker. Rocker, who rotated with Pat Williams and Joel Steed in the Orlando 4-3, will be an immediate upgrade, and will likely take over a nose tackle position if we get the 3-4 alignment we expect from Capers. In return for the physical Rocker, Orlando receives offensive line help in the form of center Mike Devlin and a 4th round pick from the Invaders, who hold the #2 position each round. Devlin was expendable thanks to the emergence of 2nd year player Jeff Saturday as an All-USFL candidate. Devlin, demoted to a swing lineman, will once again get a chance to start in Orlando, while Rucker will step in as the clear #1 at DT for Oakland.
Unlike the 1 month limit of the August and January NFL-USFL free agency periods, the internal market for free agents is open all offseason, and we have already seen some pretty strong action as clubs work to deal with likely salary cap issues, departures, and needs. We have already mentioned several of the players changing uniforms this year, players like HB Darrell Thompson to Ohio, Linebackers Lorenzo Styles to New Jersey, Ted Bruschi to Texas, and George Koonce to Philly, and Bryce Paup to Portland. We also saw wideout Courtney Hawkins move from Seattle to Philly. These are certainly not the only moves. Here are several more that we think could have a big impact on the 2000 season.
CB Aeneas Williams moves from Oakland to Arizona. Williams is a ballhawk who could fit well with Art Shell’s aggressive style on defense.
Portland continues to enhance their defense by signing Clyde Simmons away from the Bandits. Simmons has been largely ineffective in Tampa Bay, but the powerful pass rusher could see a lot of the defensive line play in Portland designed to free him up to be more of a force. Ray Rhodes should know how to get the big man matched up without the double teams he so often saw in Tampa Bay.
Washington looks to return their defense to its former glory and a big step in that direction was the signing of nose tackle Dan Saleamua. Put him alongside Jerome Brown and you may have the best interior DL in the league.
Baltimore also gets into the DT market, signing Michael Dean Perry away from the Bulls. Perry is clearly on the downside of his career arc, but can still be effective as a 1st and 2nd down run stuffer.
Orlando not only provide Terry Kirby with a breather, but takes away a key weapon from a division rival as they sign Moe Williams away from league champion Memphis. Williams will likely be more of a short yardage and change of pace back behind Kirby in Orlando.
Another back changing zip codes is Rodney Thomas, who likely goes from being the clear #2 behind Reggie Cobb in Texas to a potential #1 in Birmingham. This move almost certainly means that Stephen Davis’s time in Birmingham is over, and with rumors having him headed to Philly, it makes sense that the Stallions would invest in a back with a lot of untapped potential like Rodney. The question now is whether or not the Stallions will also make a run at a local star in Alabama star HB Shaun Alexander.
While several teams are looking for linebackers, including the moves we cited above, Seattle thinks they have found who they need in former Texas outside linebacker Levon Kirkland. They inked him to a 4-year deal.
The QB market has been slow, with few potential starters among the bunch. The best option right now may be Jim Miller of St. Louis, who looked very good filling in for an injured Todd Collins this year. Outside of him, you have players like Bill Musgrave, Mike Pawlowski, Tony Sacca, and Chuck Clements. The only one signed so far, and an interesting signing at that, is Jeff Lewis, the Denver backup to Mark Brunell, who goes to New Jersey.
There is significant noise in New Jersey that Coach Schottenheimer is not enamored of starter Spence Fischer, and bringing in Lewis, an athletic if somewhat untested option, could be a sign that Schottenheimer might be looking to challenge Fischer. We honestly would not be surprised as well if the Generals took a shot at one of the early-round QB options in the draft. There is no sure fire starter in this year’s rookie QB class, but someone like Chad Pennington, Gionvannie Carmazzi, or Chris Redman could be another pressure point to try to get the best out of Fischer or provide insurance if he buckles under the pressure.
Ohio snagged a big name among tackles by signing Emory Yates away from Philadelphia. Yates’s days as an All-USFL starting LT may be over, but he could be a very valuable swing tackle or potentially move over to the right side for Ohio, allowing Jerry Wunsch or Rome Oben to take over the LT position.
With Keith Jackson surprisingly jumping to the NFL, the two best tight ends on the board were Atlanta’s Frank Wycheck and Memphis’s O.J. Santiago. Both have now found new homes. Wycheck will take his special teams prowess and swiss army knife skill set to LA to pair with Rookie of the Year Cade McNown. Santiago also heads out west. He will step into the role which had been filled for so long by the ageless Terry Orr, who apparently has age after all, retiring this year. Santiago is a big target and a step or 5 faster than Orr these last few years. This could be a very good option for Jake Plummer as he scrambles out of pressure.
Looking at the wideout slot, we have seen some movement, mostly among potential slot or 2nd receivers. Washington added Houston’s J.J. Stokes, a speedster who was simply unable to use his talents well in Houston. Texas added depth in Arizona’s Darnay Scott, and Ohio did the same, still trying to find someone to take pressure off of Joey Galloway. The Glory added Cedrick Tillman, last of Michigan but better known for his time in St. Louis and Birmingham.
Finally, we don’t want to forget about special teams, so a shout out to the Pittsburgh Maulers who upgraded by signing punter Tom Rouen from the Wranglers. It is rare for a punter to get a decent payday from free agency, but the Maulers signed the 9-year veteran as the highest paid punter in the league.
A lot happening among the front offices of the league’s 24 clubs, but player personnel decisions were not the only news coming out of the league during these past 2 months. We have news from the league owner’s meeting as well. The news was not good for those groups seeking to join the USFL as the owners, by a 19-4 vote, with New Jersey mysteriously abstaining, voted to delay any expansion to 2005 at the earliest. We all expect that this will lead to several groups likely making inquiries into the purchase and relocation of a current franchise, and this will certainly be an issue for the league, but it seems clear that with this decision the league is primarily considering the issue of alignment, scheduling and their TV contracts.
The other big piece of news that ties into this decision is the creation of a select committee of 6 owners who are tasked with doing a viability study of a potential realignment and schedule adjustment for the 2002 season. This is the same issue that ripped the league apart only a couple of years ago when issues of contract negation and fair compensation led the USFLPA to push a strike that caused the owners to buckle and retain a 16-game season. Once again momentum seems to be building to shorten the season to 14 games to allow for larger buffers between the NFL and USFL seasons. This would be paired with a realignment from 4 divisions of 6 teams to one with 6 divisions each with 4 teams. With TV negotiations likely to produce contracts that run through 2003 or later well underway, it seems an odd time to push this agenda, but clearly this is still very much an unresolved issue among ownership.
Finally, the USFL Competition Committee proposed an interesting flashback, a proposition to return to a territorial draft in which each team would have exclusive rights to players from a select pool of local colleges. This style of draft was eliminated prior to the 1995 expansion based on concerns about inequity about the regional markets. A return to expanding the draft with a territorial selection phase would have to address that issue if it wants votes from owners in regions where college talent is not as plentiful. After all, New Jersey and Philadelphia are certainly not going to be pulling the same talent pool as a Birmingham, Los Angeles, or Houston can use, at least not if all schools in the T-Draft are geographically tied to the USFL franchise.
That is it for this month’s report. Join us in December as we look ahead to the draft and update you on USFL trades and free agency.