Ask Tusker House :: Bye Week Edition, Part I

Here are the answers to your questions.  Thanks to everyone that submitted!  Part I’s questions come from the questions submitted in the comments.  Tomorrow I’ll have the questions submitted on UFL Access.

How much talk do you hear about Haslett heading back to the NFL?  Who would go with him if he does?

I haven’t heard a lot of talk about Haslett returning to the NFL, but the little I have heard centers around him going to Washington to be the latest coach in the great Redskins debacle.  I honestly hope he sticks around, because anyone that takes the Redskins job is doomed as long as Daniel Snyder is the owner. 

As far as his staff is concerned, I have no idea who would go with him.  Being an Orlando Predators fan, I personally hope Jay Gruden decides to stick around in Florida with the Tuskers.  Gruden’s pulled double duty with the Bucs and Preds in the past, and hopefully he’d be interested in doing the same thing when the Predators return this spring with Arena Football 1.

When will the UFL’s 2010 draft take place?

It is my understanding that the draft is scheduled for April.  An exact date is still up in the air.  Logic says you wait until after the NFL draft is over to pick up the guys that were passed over, something the UFL is supposed to be based on.  At the same time, I’ve heard rumblings for a while that the draft might actually take place before the NFL draft.  I’m guessing this would be a PR move to get some ESPN exposure but there could be some benefits.

Keep in mind the UFL isn’t planning on stealing superstar players away like the USFL did.  Still, you could see some relatively big name college players from BCS schools get plucked from the NFL draft before it happens. These guys would probably have some question marks surrounding them, guys the NFL teams would hesitate to pick up.  The one exception to that would be if the league went after Tim Tebow and offered him a chance to develop as a pro quarterback, something the NFL has been reluctant to consider so far.

Will the two new teams fill a roster from a list of eligible players first, with the draft to follow?

Most recently the NFL held their expansion draft two months before the main NFL draft.  I’d expect the UFL to follow suit.  Most expansion teams are able to sign players once the signing period for all teams begins as well.  There’s no reason for the UFL to do things any differently.

Tuskers vs. Bucs, who wins?

Tuskers, hands down.  The Bucs are terrible this year, and things are about to get worse as they attempt to develop their rookie QB for the future.

Should UFL be Major or Minor?

I honestly believe the UFL’s place in the world of American football is as a developmental league for the NFL.  All too often, rookies spend time stuck on the bench, “learning their craft.”  With the UFL, those same players can do so at game speed.  The UFL gives those fringe players and those not quite ready for the NFL’s style of play a chance to ease in without all of the pressure.  As the league grows, I hope the NFL takes a serious interest in working with the UFL as an official developmental partner like the NBA has with the NBDL.

Football needs something other than the NFL and college.  There are too many players tossed to the curb because its cheaper to play a rookie than it is a fourth year veteran.  The guys that get tossed aren’t bad players, they’re just victims of the numbers game and the NFL’s salary cap structure.