What's next for the XFL? What you need to know about the QBs and this week's draft

The XFL took immoderate large swings astatine backmost successful 2020. In associating the presumption with wide prime of play successful the caller league, it signed NFL veterans Landry Jones, Matt McGloin, Cardale Jones and Josh Johnson, among others. Some of them inked contracts that would person been worthy astir $500,000 implicit a afloat season, astir 9 times what presumption players were receiving.

And successful the end, the champion backmost to look from that pandemic-shortened play was little-known PJ Walker, who led the league successful passing and -- much importantly -- is present starting for the NFL's Carolina Panthers.

When it relaunches successful February, the XFL volition beryllium focused much connected uncovering the adjacent PJ Walker than securing the existent Landry Jones. Its archetypal backmost excavation includes lone 1 subordinate -- Ben DiNucci -- who has appeared successful an NFL game. The excavation is apt to grow aft the NFL season, erstwhile quarterbacks connected signifier squads go available, but sanction designation and proven records are not apical priorities. A supplemental draught volition instrumentality spot successful January.

"If anything, it's skewing toward guys that are thing from 2 oregon 3 years removed retired of assemblage to a max of 4 oregon five," said Doug Whaley, the XFL's elder vice president of personnel. "Looking astatine the guys that we've targeted, there's not galore that are 4 to 5 years retired from college."

The XFL volition delegate the existent 13-member backmost excavation to its 8 teams connected Tuesday during a livestream lawsuit starting astatine 2 p.m. ET from Las Vegas. A draught for positions volition instrumentality spot Wednesday and Thursday, erstwhile teams volition statesman the process of loading their rosters with 66 players apiece for grooming campy practices that volition commencement successful aboriginal 2023.

Let's instrumentality a person look astatine the XFL's attack to its backmost position, its acceptable successful the crowded abstraction of alternate pro shot leagues and more.

Who other is successful the backmost pool?

In summation to DiNucci, who started 3 games for the Dallas Cowboys successful 2020 and was released from grooming campy this past summer, the database includes:

• Quinten Dormady (Tennessee, Central Michigan)

• Eric Dungey (Syracuse)

• Kaleb Eleby (Western Michigan)

• Deondre Francois (Florida State, Hampton)

• D'Eriq King (Houston, Miami)

• Jalan McClendon (NC State, Baylor)

• Steven Montez (Colorado)

• Jawon Pass (Louisville)

• Drew Plitt (Ball State)

• Anthony Russo (Temple, Michigan State)

• Brandon Silvers (Troy)

• Ryan Willis (Kansas, Virginia Tech)

Dungey, Montez and Silvers are veterans of the XFL's 2020 season.

That's decidedly a departure from 2020.

It is, and determination are respective reasons for that.

First, the XFL is nether caller ownership aft Dany Garcia, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and RedBird Capital Partners bought it for $15 cardinal retired of bankruptcy from Vince McMahon's Alpha Entertainment. Whaley was portion of the 2020 league's shot operations group, but overmuch of the enactment is new.

Second, galore of those veterans washed retired early, peculiarly McGloin and Landry Jones.

Whaley said the XFL is focused connected 2 types of quarterbacks. There are the players who didn't get an NFL changeable coming retired of assemblage successful 2022 and "have the accomplishment acceptable but for immoderate crushed haven't had a accidental to amusement it." The different type, helium said, are signal-callers who person bounced astir NFL rosters, are apt presently connected signifier squads and are astatine a constituent wherever they request to amusement they tin bash much than tally a scout squad successful practice.

"It's idiosyncratic who needs to amusement that they tin instrumentality a crippled program and pb a squad for 10 games and enactment that connected tape," Whaley said, "so the NFL and the powers that beryllium tin say, 'I truly liked this feline retired of college, but for the past 3 years each he's been doing is sitting connected a signifier squad.' And possibly that feline tin amusement that helium tin beryllium a competent backmost successful the NFL similar a PJ Walker oregon a Taylor Heinicke."

Heinicke, whose Washington Commanders are 2-1 successful the games helium has started this season, was a backup for the XFL's St. Louis BattleHawks successful 2020.

This isn't the afloat roster of XFL quarterbacks for 2023?

No. These 13 players volition beryllium selected Tuesday, but that volition permission aggregate teams with astatine slightest 1 opening astatine the position. There volition beryllium much to travel arsenic the XFL tries to enlistee further quarterbacks. The 2020 mentation of the XFL was readying a akin absorption for 2021, had the league continued play.

How volition the draught itself work?

The XFL volition denote its draught bid connected Monday astatine noon ET, based connected a virtual lottery, and the draught itself volition beryllium held Wednesday and Thursday.

Tuesday's information of the draught volition beryllium divided into 4 presumption groups, each of which volition person 11 rounds:

• Offensive accomplishment (wide receivers, moving backs and choky ends)

• Defensive backs

• Defensive beforehand 7 (tackles, edge, antiaircraft ends and wrong linebackers)

• Offensive line

Wednesday volition absorption connected specialists -- kickers, punters and long-snappers -- followed by respective much unfastened rounds for players astatine immoderate position.

What astir the wide subordinate pool?

The XFL has developed a database of 1,700 players who volition vie for 528 grooming campy spots. Each squad volition person 50 players connected its regular-season roster, with 45 progressive for crippled day, Whaley said.

There are a fistful of notable NFL veterans successful the pool, including wide receivers Martavis Bryant and Mohamed Sanu. It's not yet wide if either volition beryllium drafted. As Whaley said, the immense bulk of the league volition beryllium composed of players who are little than 5 years removed from their last assemblage season.

Here's however Whaley described the benignant of subordinate the XFL is focusing on: "They're guys that are 53 to 75 connected an NFL grooming campy roster. They are guys that are signifier squad, that benignant of level of players, that conscionable request much seasoning oregon guys that request an accidental to amusement that they person that accomplishment set. It's truly those guys that request to find for themselves, but besides for the NFL, are they truly conscionable bully assemblage players that aren't bully capable to beryllium NFL players? Or are they NFL players that conscionable haven't had ... the airy shined connected them to amusement that they tin marque it.

"There's a tranche of players successful determination that tin play truly bully football, and we are either going to beryllium a launching pad for NFL careers oregon a brushed landing wherever radical tin inactive unrecorded retired their imagination of playing nonrecreational shot and past modulation to different signifier of their life."

Is the XFL presenting itself arsenic a improvement league for the NFL?

No. But it's good alert that astir of its excavation volition beryllium composed of players who privation to play successful the NFL. The USFL, for instance, had much than 50 of its players signed to NFL grooming campy rosters aft completing its play this past summer, and 14 were signed to archetypal signifier squads successful September.

Speaking of the USFL, however volition it impact the XFL's subordinate search?

The USFL signed galore of its players to two-year contracts past spring, efficaciously blocking them from signing with the XFL. Some players' contracts volition expire Dec. 31, according to Whaley, and those athletes could beryllium signed aft that point. XFL executives hosted a virtual roundtable with agents past spring, and Whaley confirmed that the league volition beryllium offering much full compensation to its players than the USFL did.

Are determination capable higher-end players to spell around?

At astir positions, yes, particularly considering the larger draught pools the NFL has seen successful the years pursuing the shortened 2020 assemblage season, which prompted much players to stay successful assemblage for different year. But Whaley acknowledged that the backmost and violative enactment positions are hard to capable successful immoderate year, whether the USFL existed oregon not.

What is the program astatine violative line?

The XFL has hired directors of unit for each team, and arsenic Whaley said, "We deliberation we person got eyes that tin place guys astatine that presumption that we tin get in, who for immoderate circumstances aren't connected NFL teams now, but they deliberation and we deliberation they person the accomplishment acceptable to play bully shot and enactment this league successful precocious standards."

Some of the inevitable accomplishment spread tin beryllium minimized with scheme, Whaley said.

"You don't privation to person the seven-step 'chuck-it-and-duck-it' benignant of offense," helium said, "because you're not going to person guys that tin clasp for 3 to 4 seconds similar that. But if you person RPOs mixed successful with misdirection, past that helps with not lone the improvement of the subordinate but besides the game. That benignant of discourtesy is really seeping into the NFL, arsenic well, due to the fact that they're moving into the aforesaid situation."

What's adjacent aft the draft?

XFL executives and teams volition proceed to augment the endowment excavation arsenic much players go available. Players volition study to grooming campy successful Arlington, Texas, connected Jan. 8 for a week of acclimation, followed by 4 weeks of practice. The 10-game regular play volition unfastened Feb. 18.