USA Today, November 14, 1986
After much speculation, maneuvering, and some hard decisions, the USFL went a step further towards expanding from 16 to 20 franchises for the 1987 season as the four expansion teams—Chicago, Oklahoma, Orlando, and San Antonio—stocked their rosters from players under contract with the returning franchises. Each team had 25 rounds to find talent from across the league, and while most of the top names in the USFL were not available, protected on each team’s 8-player reserve list, there was certainly talent to be had.
Several USFL teams left top name players unprotected, either with the expectation that the expansion teams would not want to take on some of the larger contracts in the league, or that they would look towards younger players rather than more established veterans. Quarterbacks like Tony Eason, Greg Landry, Bob Lane, Blair Kiel, and Todd Blackledge were left unprotected, as were comparably talented players at most positions as the 16 continuing USFL franchises had to make tough decisions about the 8 players they would initially protect.
Many of these players came off the boards for the expansion clubs as with each player they chose, the team which lost a player was able to protect one more player, shrinking the pool of potential signings with each round of the draft. The format did provide each of the expansion clubs with several top flight players, but also meant that the end of the draft was filled largely with career backups, a format which won’t produce any juggernauts from the expansion clubs, but which will help them maintain the league’s $38M salary cap intact.
The Draft’s first round started with an unexpected but shrewd pick as the San Antonio Gunslingers selected talented LA Express left tackle Rene Dudley with the first pick. Dudley was almost certainly a pick heralded by Gunslinger QB Rick Neuheisel, but does not exactly stir emotions of fans in the Alamo City. Orlando was next and their selection of LB Greg Gerkin from Denver will certainly help them build a defense. Denver, having traded MLB Putt Choate, now finds itself with concerns in its linebacking corps. Oklahoma was next, and they opted to add a defensive stalwart in Arizona DT Kit Lathrop. Chicago followed San Antonio’s lead and signed a left tackle to protect recently signed Chuck Long. They chose Pittsburgh tackle Lawrence Pressley. This may also be a signal towards coach Joe Bugel’s desire to mount a smashmouth power running offense, as Pressley has proven to be more of a run game bulldozer than a pass protection specialist.
Chicago made that possibility abundantly clear with their second pick (the draft used a zipper format in which the order of the draft reversed each round), when the Machine selected Oakland HB Albert Bentley. Bentley was a 1,000 yard rusher in 1985, in a year when starter Arthur Whittington was sidelined by injury, so Chicago knows the potential it has in Bentley as their workhorse RB. Rather than run through every pick, let’s highlight each team’s most noteworthy picks in hoping to paint a picture of the type of team each club is attempting to build.
In Chicago, run game and defense appear to be the focus for Coach Bugel and the Machine. In addition to Pressley and Bentley, the Machine chose CB Warren Hannah (HOU), DT Bob Nelson (BLT), FS Mike Fox (LA), LB Gary Reasons (JAX) and DE Eric Dorsey (NJ) in early rounds. They also started to form their wideout corps, selecting both Philadelphia wideout Willie Collier and Baltimore’s Reggie Langhorne. Other names of note in the Chicago draft include QB Todd Blackledge, benched in Pittsburgh and likely to back up Long, guard Mike Munchak, LB Eric Scroggins, SS Mike Zordich, and Birmingham TE Lonnie Parker.
San Antonio followed up its pick of T Rene Dudley by selecting CB Everson Walls with its second pick. They stayed focused on defense as well with many early picks, including SS Glen Edwards (JAX), LB John Curtis (MEM), DE Bob Buczkowski (PIT), and CB Gregg Butler (WSH). In the mix on offense were several linemen, as well as Michigan RB Ken Lacy, Arizona wideout Aubrey Matthews, Memphis backup QB Damon Allen, and Denver HB Scott Stamper. Many feel they got a steal in Philly DE James Painter in the 15th round, as well as Houston receiver Gerald McNeil in the 16th.
Orlando, having already traded for QB Reggie Collier and HB Curtis Bledsoe of Washington, continued to focus on offense. Their 2nd pick was WR Wamon Buggs of Arizona, followed closely by tackle Robert Curry(NOR), guard David Navarro (HOU), WR Vic James (DEN), and QB Jimmie Jordan from Tampa. They sprinkled in some notable defensive names as well, such as DE Cedric Hardman (OAK), DT Ike Reardon (WSH), and LB Tim Blanchette (LA), but the Renegades definitely looked like a team hoping to build a high-flying offense for Coach Schnellenberger.
Oklahoma, the last team to the expansion party after plans for a San Diego franchise fell through, made huge waves in a sign & trade deal with Jacksonville to get QB Doug Williams to Tulsa. In the draft they sought to build around him, balancing offensive support with some quality defensive players. After signing DT Kit Lathrop in the first round, Oklahoma continued to build their defense, selecting NJ corner Antonio Gibson, Stars LB John Bunting, Birmingham safety Brian Bronson, and Bulls LB Garth Jax. On offense, they focused several picks on linemen, but also selected Tampa TE Mike Tice (expendable after Tampa traded for Sam Bowers), Breakers WR Frank Lockett, Houston reserve WR Richard Johnson, and Arizona’s starting HB from 1986, former Husker Owen Gill. They backed up Williams by signing Baltimore QB Blair Kiel as well.
There are still plenty of holes on these expansion rosters, and we expect a significant number of free agent siginings over the next few weeks. In December these 4 teams will have picks within the top 8 on a rotating basis during the Open Collegiate Draft, as well as 3 additional rounds of picks after the other 16 clubs reach their 7 round limit. They will also have the Territorial Draft, which has once again been recalibrated and which provides each of these clubs with some top tier schools to choose from. The Outlaws will have both Oklahoma and Oklahoma State and many wonder whether they will take a shot at signing Sooner LB Brian Bosworth. Orlando will be able to look over the talent-laden rosters of Miami and Clemson, which would give them the chance to sign QB Vinnie Testaverded if they so chose. San Antonio can select from Texas and Baylor, while the Chicago Machine now own the rights to select from both Notre Dame and Purdue, giving them the option to draft Steve Beuerlein if they choose, or to take a shot at CB Rod Woodson of the Boilermakers.
For the 16 continuing USFL franchises, their rosters now have holes to fill as most teams lost 7-8 players to the expansion draft. Some were lucky, as New Orleans still has their full QB compliment despite leaving both Matt Robinson and Tony Eason unprotected. Others lost some significant talent in key areas, such as Philly and Denver at linebacker or Houston at wideout. The draft is coming, and that may be the best chance for teams to restock their rosters with top talent. The USFL Free Agency Pool is limited, and with the NFL season well underway, there will be no more league to league transfers this year.