the new XFL

[8/3/20] The Rock is part of group to buy XFL

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When the XFL debuts in February, it will take a "Star Trek" approach of going where no football league has gone before.

The eight-team league will have options for extra points worth one, two or three points. It will allow double forward passes behind the line of scrimmage.

Kickoffs will look way different, in the name of both safety and excitement. Overtime will look like the NHL's version of settling matters with a "shootout.'' No coin tosses here, with each team getting up to five shots to score from the 5-yard line — similar to World Cup soccer shootouts.

Is it a catch at the sideline? Well, the officiating calls might be easier because the XFL will use the college rule of receivers needing only one foot in bounds rather than the NFL's two-feet rule.

Speaking of officiating, there will be a dedicated ball spotter to ensure a faster tempo that comes with a 25-second play clock. A running clock, too, except in the final two minutes of each half. All replay reviews will be initiated by an officiating booth, with no coaches challenges.

To XFL Commissioner Oliver Luck, a former NFL quarterback and longtime football executive, a speedier game means a more entertaining one.

"From research we had done, fans think there's too much downtime and dead time. I suppose games have gotten longer," Luck says. "We wanted to take a step forward by going back to games under three hours based on all our fan research. More action and more plays speed it up.

"Our data analysts looked at hundreds of games. This makes sense from a flow perspective, TV perspective and fan perspective. And I am looking forward to as we launch, will our players be required to be in better shape? They'll be moving fast and playing with tempo. That is going to be neat; conditioning may play more of a role in our game."

The XFL kicks off on Feb. 8, the weekend after the Super Bowl, seeking more success than its predecessor in 2001 (one season) and last year's Alliance of American Football (less than a season). Its innovations could be a turn-on for fans who never tire of football. Or they could come off as gimmicks, though the XFL mantra is "no gimmicks — ever."

Luck and Fox analyst Dean Blandino, the former head of NFL officiating now overseeing XFL officiating, believe these and other changes are worth a try.

Such as the double forward pass.

"My thought as I watch the game develop, there are more quarterbacks out of the shotgun and already 6 yards back from the line," Luck explains. "You aren't wanting to throw a lateral to a receiver who would have to be 7 yards or more behind the line of scrimmage. I thought to myself that the traditional trick plays would be enhanced. ... We are excited to have that in the repertoire."

The one-foot-in-bounds completions should ease the strain on pass catchers — and officials.

"When you look at the college rule versus the NFL," Blandino says, "it definitely is still a skilled play, but an easier play. But I will say there will be less replay reviews; it's easier to officiate looking for that one body part. I see less controversy in terms of catch/no catch."

Adds Luck: "As we went through this process, we had to keep in mind that players in our league will have played in college, and a vast majority spent time in the NFL, some in the CFL. We had to be somewhat selective in terms of innovations to adopt. They need to be teachable to our players to play fast. We have had our coaches working with the players on all these innovations to make sure they don't black out and think they are in a different league or back in college."

Luck and Blandino also note that the one-foot catch is safer because the receiver is not dragging his second foot, so he can roll to the ground in a true football fall.

Where fans (and bettors and fantasy players — yes, the XFL is likely to have those, too) might be most intrigued is after touchdowns are scored. There will be no PAT kicks in the XFL. Rather, a scoring team can go for one point from the 2-yard line, two points from the 5 or three points from 10.

Yep, a nine-point lead can be a one-possession game.

"I think it brings strategy into a play that historically has been a simple decision," Luck says. "Even with the NFL moving the extra point kick further away, it's still a 93.6% success rate. A fait accompli.

"We think the tiered extra point brings an element of strategy that will be fascinating to watch. Potential points on the board are exciting plays and will add an exciting element to our game.

"One coach said he is thinking if his team scores on defense it is such a shift in momentum, and he would use those opportunities to go for three, even if in the first quarter."

Are all of the XFL’s changes going to be an enticement for fans? Luck, Blandino and company will begin finding out in a month.

*** [2/5/20] ***

It was a professional football league that lasted for one season 19 years ago, but memories of the XFL are surprisingly vivid for fans over 30: He Hate Me, Jesse Ventura, no fair catches, the Memphis Maniax.

So when the XFL returns this weekend with a new eight-team league, again owned by Vince McMahon of World Wrestling Entertainment, can fans expect more of the same?

The answer, said Commissioner Oliver Luck, is no. “Aside from the name, there is nothing in common that we will have with the league in 2001,” he said.

Rather than razzle-dazzle or ratings-grabbing stunts, “we are focusing 100 percent on the quality of play,” he said.

The old XFL celebrated its edginess, even promising glimpses into the cheerleaders’ locker rooms.
“We are gimmick-free,” the new league president, Jeffrey Pollack, said. “And we don’t even have cheerleaders.”

The league has landed every one of its games on television, on ABC, ESPN, Fox and FS1 and 2, as well as on Spanish-language stations. And the newfound mellowness extends to its announcers. While broadcasts in 2001 featured the colorful likes of Ventura, Brian Bosworth and Jerry (the King) Lawler, the lead play-by-play man for XFL 2020 will be a reliable pro, Steve Levy.

Even the most memorable aspect of the old league has been scrapped. Players’ jerseys will have plain old last names, rather than nicknames like He Hate Me (Rod Smart) and Death Blow (Jamal Duff).

The team nicknames have similarly been tempered, with extreme names like, well, the Los Angeles Xtreme and the Maniax (which drew the ire of some mental health advocates) giving way to the more conventional Dallas Renegades and Los Angeles Wildcats.

Pollack acknowledged that despite the XFL abandoning many of its former distinctive features, the old league does buy some good will for the new. “We’re launching a 100-year brand that also has 20 years of equity built in.”

To the extent that the new league is pushing the football envelope, it comes in several unusual rules innovations.

For one, kickoffs will be dramatically different in the new XFL. The kicker will boot the ball from his own 25-yard line, but he will be a lonely figure. His 10 teammates will be lined up 40 yards away at the opposing team’s 35. The returning team will be at its 30. Only once the ball is caught by the returner will players on either side be allowed to move. “It’s effectively a play from scrimmage,” Luck said.

The league has been testing the new kickoff and expects to see more kickoff run backs, exciting plays that have been dying out in football, but without the injuries that are often caused by large men colliding after a 35- to 40-yard sprint.

(This concern for safety is another departure from the original XFL, which billed itself as manly football: It did not allow fair catches, for example. The new league emphasizes that it sought good football players who were also of good character.)

The league has also added a strategic decision that may prove intriguing. After a touchdown, teams cannot kick an extra point. They can go for a single point with a play from scrimmage at the 2-yard line, or go for 2 points from the 5-yard line. They can even go for 3 with a play from the 10. Effectively, the rule makes a 9-point game a one-score game.

Should a game go to overtime, it will end with a contest that operates much like a soccer or hockey shootout. Each team will get five tries to score from the 5-yard line. Whichever team scores more times wins the game. “Let’s have the position players decide overtime,” Luck said.

The league said it wanted to avoid one team getting the ball, scoring and immediately ending the game. But at the same time, it wanted an overtime that would wrap up in seven or eight minutes.

The league, which will play a 10-week season followed by a four-team playoff ending in late April, has opted for big stadiums for its games, including CenturyLink Field, home of the Seattle Seahawks; Raymond James Stadium, home of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers; and MetLife Stadium, where the Giants and Jets play.

Despite the danger of having some empty seats, Pollack said: “We’re playing in eight cities that have a love of football. We want to be in big markets with world-class venues.”

Because of the N.F.L., of course, world-class names are in much shorter supply. Hard-core fans might recognize quarterbacks like Landry Jones (Dallas Renegades), Matt McGloin (New York Guardians) and Cardale Jones (D.C. Defenders). But other unemployed players who might have joined the league, fancifully or not, like Johnny Manziel, Colin Kaepernick, Chad Johnson and Tim Tebow, are absent.

Star power was not a major consideration, the league said. “Our goal was to get the best players who want to play in our league,” Luck said. “We think we’ve got the best 400 or so players that aren’t under contract elsewhere.”

Unlike the N.F.L., the new league will allow its broadcaster to talk about point spreads. “A lot of fans enjoy gaming, playing fantasy, placing legal bets,” Pollack said. “We want to support all of that activity. We see it as a way of increasing fan engagement.”

Though none of the teams have played a game, bookmakers already have opinions. In three of the four opening games, the home team is favored, as might be expected. The exception is the New York team, which is a 2½-point underdog at home to the Tampa Bay Vipers. Perhaps some mojo from the recent-vintage Jets and Giants is rubbing off.

Numerous other professional leagues have been started and have failed in recent years (all were men’s leagues; women do play football, but a high-profile investment in a women’s league is still awaited). Why does the new XFL think it will be different?

Pollack spoke of a “100-year brand,” but will the league even surpass the United Football League (four seasons), the Fall Experimental Football League (two seasons) or the Alliance of American Football (less than a season, just last year)?

Luck said it would, because “the caliber of play is better than any previous league.” Pollack cited two years of research and development, every game being on TV and “ownership that is dedicated to long-term brand building.”

But he admitted the league was taking nothing for granted: “It’s going to take time to build the XFL. Fandom is earned, not given.”