The NFL reached a deal with the XFL on Monday to use the fledgling league as a testing ground for potential new rules and equipment, and developing officials and coaches.
As XFL president Russ Brandon told ESPN, the XFL can provide a “Petri dish” for the NFL to experiment.
Brandon is a former executive with the Buffalo Bills.
“People would ask, ‘What are the opportunities to look at the game through a different lens from a player development standpoint?'” Brandon told ESPN. “‘How can you be an incubator or an accelerant in many different verticals, from officiating to rules innovations to playing surfaces, to player development?’ You can go on and on.
The alliance will also aim at health and safety improvements as well as the sharing of game trends and data.
Brandon made it clear the XFL is not a player development league for the NFL.
“That’s a no. We are a spring league. We will play at the highest level in the spring. There is not the anticipation of any player sharing that changes the dynamic. That’s not how we’re executing our vision.”
The XFL is scheduled to resume play in February 2023. The league’s most recent reincarnation attempt was canceled in May 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic and bankruptcy.
Vince McMahon was behind the first two attempts – the first in 2000 – but is not involved in Round 3. The new owners are actor Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Dany Garcia and RedBird Capital Partners.
–Field Level Media
