How do you create a successful developmental league for the NFL?
1) Familiarity - create teams by using a large percentage of local "known" players for each state team. This is the MOST important factor for the success of any minor league system, but it is always overlooked or dismissed. Fans need to care about watching the games, which is why high school and college football are still successful even though the product is not as good as any minor league team. To help accomplish this goal, each state team needs to partner with local colleges to help them market the new minor league team to their fan base and to contact former players who might be interested in playing in the new league (read “Team Structure” section below)
2) Ownership - sell partial ownership to the fans by using www.startengine.com which makes fans more connected, more loyal, and ultimately more interested in following the team (read “Financing Structure” section below)
3) Team Access - allowing unparalleled access to players, teams, and coaches through message boards, radio shows, and a sports gaming app (read “Team Access” section below)
4) Reality TV - helps football and non football fans will get to know each of the players stories and struggles, which builds more fan interest for any NFL team if they add one of these players to their team (fan following). This also has the potential of converting non-sports fans to sports fans (read “Team Access” section below)
5) Timing - not competing with college football or the NFL (use the spring & summer months like XFL and NFL Europe), but start the regular season after the NCAA basketball tournament because most of the fans will probably be college sports fans (read “League Structure” and “Season Structure” sections below)
The first 4 points on the list above are interconnected because they help connect fans to the team, which ultimately makes them care more about watching games. In addition, the unique game structure will feature higher scoring and more exciting games
League Structure
- NFL development league called "Showtime Football League" (SFL) so it is not looked down upon by fans with names like "Minor Leagues," "D League," or "Development League"
- the "Showtime Football League" is where players and coaches are given opportunities to showcase their talents and abilities
- the league slogan is "My Time. Showtime."
- NFL teams can send practice players and coaches to help work with the position coach for their player, but for the NFL player to be eligible they must have played in less than half of the games during the regular season (however the preseason and postseason do not count) and those NFL practice players must play for the developmental team in the same state as the NFL team or the state where they went to college or for the same conference they played in college
- get NFL draft moved to late February (one round per day with only 4 rounds with teams getting 10 minutes per team and starting at 7:00pm EST on Thursday & Friday and 3pm on Saturday & Sunday) and all undrafted players cannot be contacted until after Showtime season is over (so teams don't have to worry about evaluating fringe players)
- those drafted in NFL in rounds 1, 2, 3, or 4 get 20-30% of money guaranteed upfront and 1-4 year contracts with cap amounts per round
- NFL draft restarts after the developmental league season ends (the draft resumes in mid July with rounds 5, 6, 7) and players can sign 1-3 year deals with 5-15% of money guaranteed upfront (with cap amounts per round)
- changes can be made to the Showtime league rules if two thirds of the teams agree and it must be accepted (ratified) by a majority vote from the shareholders after the season
Game Structure
- no kickoff or punt returns. This would put a greater emphasis on player safety and put the games in the hands of the players we actually paid to see and not a kicker or punter
- the field would be 80 yards (the 40 yard line is midfield) with 20 yard end zones (to help with scoring)
- if an 80 yard field is used with no kickers, each team gets to pick where their offense starts as long as it is beyond midfield (40 yard line). Based on where a team starts is how many points that drive is worth. For example, if they start on the:
40 (midfield) = 4 points for a TD
own 35 (45 yard drive) = 5 points
own 30 (50 yard drive) = 6 points
own 25 (55 yard drive) = 7 points
own 20 (60 yard drive) = 8 points
own 15 (65 yard drive) = 9 points
own 10 (70 yard drive) = 10 points
- a regular 100 yard field could still be used and so could kickers, but some modifications to the rules above would be needed. For example, teams could start anywhere beyond the 50 yard line, which would be worth 5 points for a TD. A field goal could still be kicked anywhere for 3 points and after a TD teams could still go for a 1 or 2 point conversion. However, a team could even start on their own 10 yard line and drive 90 yards for a TD worth 9 points plus the extra point conversion
- when there's a turnover or turnover-on-downs the other team would have the choice of where they want to place the ball to start their drive OR they can try to score from the spot of the ball where their opponent turned the ball over (for the same amount of points their opponent was trying to score)
- there will be 4 divisions (north, south, east, and west) with 6 teams per division for a total of 24 teams and 12 games per week for 10 weeks (no bye weeks)
- for fan convenience games are only played on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday
- two games picked for Friday night at 7:00pm CST (two games total)
- one game from each division is played on Saturday at 11am, 2:30pm, 6pm, 9:30pm CST (four games total)
- two games played on Sunday at 3:30pm and two games on Sunday at 7:00pm CST (four games total)
- the Saturday 11am games are only west coast teams and the Saturday 9:30pm games are only east coast teams
- for overtime games (1st, 2nd, and 3rd overtimes) each team takes turns by starting at their choice of field position. If a team scores from that starting position they can receive the following points:
10 yard line = 1 point
20 yard line = 2 points
30 yard line = 3 points
- if there is a 4th overtime each team only gets one play to score and they can select where the ball starts:
1 yard line = 1 point
2 yard line = 2 points
3 yard line = 3 points
Season Structure
- first two preseason games will be non divisional games (1 away + 1 home) against another division (east versus north & south + west versus north & south)
- power polls come out after second game is played
- after the two preseason games teams will only play teams from same division during regular season (until playoffs), which means each team plays every team in their division at home and away (creating incredible rivalry games like the NFL and similar to the state rivalry games witnessed at college football games)
- season 13 weeks long including training camp or possible 15 with playoffs
- tryouts and training camp starts in March (lasts 3 weeks)
- season April-June (10 games) + 2 postseason playoff games (mid June)
- top 4 teams in playoffs (top teams from each division)
- all playoff games are held at neutral sites that rotate from year-to-year like the Super Bowl
1) Familiarity - create teams by using a large percentage of local "known" players for each state team. This is the MOST important factor for the success of any minor league system, but it is always overlooked or dismissed. Fans need to care about watching the games, which is why high school and college football are still successful even though the product is not as good as any minor league team. To help accomplish this goal, each state team needs to partner with local colleges to help them market the new minor league team to their fan base and to contact former players who might be interested in playing in the new league (read “Team Structure” section below)
2) Ownership - sell partial ownership to the fans by using www.startengine.com which makes fans more connected, more loyal, and ultimately more interested in following the team (read “Financing Structure” section below)
3) Team Access - allowing unparalleled access to players, teams, and coaches through message boards, radio shows, and a sports gaming app (read “Team Access” section below)
4) Reality TV - helps football and non football fans will get to know each of the players stories and struggles, which builds more fan interest for any NFL team if they add one of these players to their team (fan following). This also has the potential of converting non-sports fans to sports fans (read “Team Access” section below)
5) Timing - not competing with college football or the NFL (use the spring & summer months like XFL and NFL Europe), but start the regular season after the NCAA basketball tournament because most of the fans will probably be college sports fans (read “League Structure” and “Season Structure” sections below)
The first 4 points on the list above are interconnected because they help connect fans to the team, which ultimately makes them care more about watching games. In addition, the unique game structure will feature higher scoring and more exciting games
League Structure
- NFL development league called "Showtime Football League" (SFL) so it is not looked down upon by fans with names like "Minor Leagues," "D League," or "Development League"
- the "Showtime Football League" is where players and coaches are given opportunities to showcase their talents and abilities
- the league slogan is "My Time. Showtime."
- NFL teams can send practice players and coaches to help work with the position coach for their player, but for the NFL player to be eligible they must have played in less than half of the games during the regular season (however the preseason and postseason do not count) and those NFL practice players must play for the developmental team in the same state as the NFL team or the state where they went to college or for the same conference they played in college
- get NFL draft moved to late February (one round per day with only 4 rounds with teams getting 10 minutes per team and starting at 7:00pm EST on Thursday & Friday and 3pm on Saturday & Sunday) and all undrafted players cannot be contacted until after Showtime season is over (so teams don't have to worry about evaluating fringe players)
- those drafted in NFL in rounds 1, 2, 3, or 4 get 20-30% of money guaranteed upfront and 1-4 year contracts with cap amounts per round
- NFL draft restarts after the developmental league season ends (the draft resumes in mid July with rounds 5, 6, 7) and players can sign 1-3 year deals with 5-15% of money guaranteed upfront (with cap amounts per round)
- changes can be made to the Showtime league rules if two thirds of the teams agree and it must be accepted (ratified) by a majority vote from the shareholders after the season
Game Structure
- no kickoff or punt returns. This would put a greater emphasis on player safety and put the games in the hands of the players we actually paid to see and not a kicker or punter
- the field would be 80 yards (the 40 yard line is midfield) with 20 yard end zones (to help with scoring)
- if an 80 yard field is used with no kickers, each team gets to pick where their offense starts as long as it is beyond midfield (40 yard line). Based on where a team starts is how many points that drive is worth. For example, if they start on the:
40 (midfield) = 4 points for a TD
own 35 (45 yard drive) = 5 points
own 30 (50 yard drive) = 6 points
own 25 (55 yard drive) = 7 points
own 20 (60 yard drive) = 8 points
own 15 (65 yard drive) = 9 points
own 10 (70 yard drive) = 10 points
- a regular 100 yard field could still be used and so could kickers, but some modifications to the rules above would be needed. For example, teams could start anywhere beyond the 50 yard line, which would be worth 5 points for a TD. A field goal could still be kicked anywhere for 3 points and after a TD teams could still go for a 1 or 2 point conversion. However, a team could even start on their own 10 yard line and drive 90 yards for a TD worth 9 points plus the extra point conversion
- when there's a turnover or turnover-on-downs the other team would have the choice of where they want to place the ball to start their drive OR they can try to score from the spot of the ball where their opponent turned the ball over (for the same amount of points their opponent was trying to score)
- there will be 4 divisions (north, south, east, and west) with 6 teams per division for a total of 24 teams and 12 games per week for 10 weeks (no bye weeks)
- for fan convenience games are only played on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday
- two games picked for Friday night at 7:00pm CST (two games total)
- one game from each division is played on Saturday at 11am, 2:30pm, 6pm, 9:30pm CST (four games total)
- two games played on Sunday at 3:30pm and two games on Sunday at 7:00pm CST (four games total)
- the Saturday 11am games are only west coast teams and the Saturday 9:30pm games are only east coast teams
- for overtime games (1st, 2nd, and 3rd overtimes) each team takes turns by starting at their choice of field position. If a team scores from that starting position they can receive the following points:
10 yard line = 1 point
20 yard line = 2 points
30 yard line = 3 points
- if there is a 4th overtime each team only gets one play to score and they can select where the ball starts:
1 yard line = 1 point
2 yard line = 2 points
3 yard line = 3 points
Season Structure
- first two preseason games will be non divisional games (1 away + 1 home) against another division (east versus north & south + west versus north & south)
- power polls come out after second game is played
- after the two preseason games teams will only play teams from same division during regular season (until playoffs), which means each team plays every team in their division at home and away (creating incredible rivalry games like the NFL and similar to the state rivalry games witnessed at college football games)
- season 13 weeks long including training camp or possible 15 with playoffs
- tryouts and training camp starts in March (lasts 3 weeks)
- season April-June (10 games) + 2 postseason playoff games (mid June)
- top 4 teams in playoffs (top teams from each division)
- all playoff games are held at neutral sites that rotate from year-to-year like the Super Bowl
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