It ’s hard to peruse the laundry list of thing the NFL has done wrong recently without coming to the conclusion that we are witnessing the conference ’s nadir . Theirtreatmentof retired and ailing actor , the mounting evidence of their willfulignorancetowards the effects of concussions , their begrudging and scattershot reaction to sheath ofdomestic fierceness — these things are n’t but blips , but rather representative of a formula of behavior .
Amazingly , there was a time when the NFL was comprehend to be so staid and honorable that NBC Universal and WWE big businessman Vince McMahon paired up to gift some $ 100 million in a rowdy , " bad - boy " contender . The XFL was the plot of football drenched in a healthy heaping of pro - hand-to-hand struggle ’s posture and , naturally , it did n’t make it beyond its inaugural 2001 time of year .
Some of the game are still available on YouTube , and the footage is something else . The quality of play is on equality with an above - average high school biz , yet overblown production values make it expect like a football set musical composition in a Michael Bay movie . It ’s the sports world’sIdiocracy , except that it actually happened .
But while the XFL tried to be an " uttermost " version of the NFL , it seem , in anamnesis , like the literal NFL with its pompous solemnities and platitudes remove . Could the arrogant and thoughtless i d jabbing from beneath the skull of the modern twenty-four hours NFL be misguided for this short - lived experimentation ? I watched as many XFL game as I could in decree to obtain out .
So let ’s travel back , shall we , to what prognosticate to be the future of football game .
The Opening Game
The XFL premiere on February 3 , 2001 — the first Saturday after the Super Bowl — and it was an honorable - to - goodnessevent . While they talk a gravid game about going top dog - to - head with the NFL , all Vince McMahon and co. really wanted to do was be an offseason accompaniment to the big sports league in America . Other football league had tried before , but the XFL was unlike — the XFL was IN YOUR FACE , and they certainly did n’t waste any time attempt to prove that .
The very first broadcast pitted the Las Vegas Outlaws against the New York / New Jersey Hitmen . It opened with Dwayne " The Rock " Johnson turn in a pre - recorded spoken communication that was displayed on the Sam Boyd Stadium jumbotron .
A brief transcript of this cold open :
It goes on like that for a while .
Vince McMahonstomps out(in person , unlike The Rock ) to invite everyone to savor " our make of football . " He growl , " This is the XFL ! " and then fireworks go off andmy goodnessdid this rile that Vegas crowd together up . If there ’s one thing professional grappling promoters know how to do , it ’s whip a live audience into a frenzy .
The home team is greeted to strident cheers when they take the field , but when the New York / New Jersey Hitmen come run out , the boos reign down something boisterous .
God , I hate those New York / New Jersey Hitmen more than anything even though this is literally the first clock time I ’ve ever hear of them .
Before the time of year set out , promotional efforts for the XFL teased exciting rule change * that ( they order ) would drastically change the way the secret plan of football was toy . One of these variety was examine right on off the cricket bat — the league shun a coin flip at the start of all game in party favor of a " scamper " for the ball . Dick Butkus , the XFL ’s " Director of Competition , " hosted this exciting consequence :
In the XFL , you receive ta take in it ! Even at risk to your wellness and your vocation , as was the display case with Orlando Rage rubber Hassan Shamsid - Deen , who painfullyseparated his shoulderduring the scramble before the cult ’s first game ( which was being play at the same time as the ceremonial opening night biz in Las Vegas ) .
While the XFL was able to lure some talented players who had already played or would finally playact in the NFL to its ranks , it was n’t enough to make for an entertaining product . team did n’t have preseason game , which put the athlete at a huge disadvantage and coiffure them up for loser . In increase , the player and refs seemed unprepared for the rule change .
[ * The rule changes really were n’t all that dissimilar from the NFL . They take into account for " bump and lead " reportage , which smart the passing game so much the conference abandoned it after a few games . There was a much - advertised " NO FAIR CATCH " rule , which was supposed to deliver BIG CRUNCHING HITS . The rule came attached with a 5 - yard aureole , or " danger zone , " to guarantee that , you have it away , the returners did n’t die . ]
Despite all this , Vegas bookmaker bring off to calculate betting odds for these games which were nonchalantly read aloud during broadcasts . This was disgraceful not because it was so very un - NFL ( what McMahon want you to think ) , but because of the worries that a football league run by the World Wrestling Federation would be rigged ( what McMahon did n’t require you to think ) .
For the unfastener , oddsmakers had the New York / New Jersey Hitmen as five and a half gunpoint favorites . The game finished 19 - 0 in favor of Las Vegas and no points were scored in the second half . After watching a slew of XFL games 13 years remove , it is quite obvious that the game were in no way set up , although they could ’ve benefit from some meddling for entertainment ’s sake .
Because most of that first game was unwatchable , the broadcast switch to the Orlando Rage ’s game against the Chicago Enforcers , hosted by wrestling announcers Jim Ross and Jerry " The King " Lawler :
" You ’re here for the football game , J.R. , I ’m here for the cheerleader — WHOA ! Check ‘em out ! " – Jerry Lawler
The play would improve somewhat as the season wore on , but not nearly enough to lure an consultation as viewers dropped off at a infuriated rate . In fact , thebest secret plan in XFL historywound up offend the conference . The workweek two showdown between the Chicago Enforcers and L.A. Xtreme endure to double extra time , whichdelayedthe start of an episode ofSaturday Night Livestarring Jennifer Lopez . Lorne Michaels was infuriated , and the XFL had to plant rules to ensure biz would n’t run past 11 pm ( when they ’d be foreshorten off , no matter what ) .
The Broadcasts
Getty Images
The first thing you notice about an XFL game is that it look more likeMaddenfor Xbox than it doesMonday Night Football . The conference pioneer the use of skycam ( they called it " X Cam")—a camera attached to wires that hover over the field . It ’s a pretty standard action replay view today for NFL programme , but the XFL swear on it for a large pct of in - plot angle during the unfastener ( its use was reduced as the season wore on ) . When introduce X Cam , the announcer gleefully called it " intrusive , " which seems to be what the XFL was going for with their coverage .
Throughout the games , armored cameramen ran onto the field forthwith after ( and sometimes during ) play to get jarring up - close visuals . When the broadcast root for away from these shots and into X Cam ’s persuasion , these cameramen , plume in black , looked like stagehand arrest striking a set when the business firm lights were still on .
XFL players and coaches were hard mic’d up and the league hoped to enchant some scrumptious chalk lecture after every big smash or broken - up mountain pass , ( rally penalties were non - existing ) .
Despite all the engineering science at their disposal , the XFL did n’t use the single most important procession in football game broadcast medium of the past 30 years : the digital yellowness first down line . Watching football game without it is beyond frustrative .
The Players
Before the undoer , commentators Matt Vasgersian ( who was relieved of his duties after the game for reasons we ’ll get to later on ) and Jesse " The Body " Ventura ( who was the acting Governor of Minnesota at the time ) extolled why the XFL justmeantmore than the alternative .
" Let me utter about the players for a second and the sacrifice they ’ve had to make to play the game that they love , " Ventura state . " Many of them left jobs , leave loved ones , and they put it all on the line because practice bug out in November . They got pay not one nickel note to go through these practicesto arrive here tonight . They put it all on the short letter . " ( stress mine , but really also Ventura ’s because he was scream . ) Not paying these players to exercise is exploitative and cruel , yet the XFL actually had the gall to hold it up as an model of why its league was so great .
The XFL was intensely majestic that they did n’t pay their players a lot of money . Hence this graphic , which appeared on screen before any other graphics explaining the rule change that feign genuine gameplay :
This matted salary scale may catch the attention of any Marxist theorists out there , while NFL team owners will bet at it and salivate over their dream CBA . Everyone else will just express mirth at the kickers ' wage . ( kicker ' job were reduced in the XFL as PATs were against the rules ) .
Despite being valuate as interchangeable trade good who were no more important than the positioning they played , XFL participant were encourage to be grown personality , something the NFL bends over backwards to void ( with the exception of a few photographic camera - friendly star take for desirable of appearing in commercials ) .
Before their first series on offense or defence , the rest home team fend on - playing area , helmets take away , andintroduced themselvesone - by - one , their voice hyperbolize by the stadium ’s PA system . Outlaws QB and former University of Miami Hurricane Ryan Clement was the first XFL player to have this honour , and he used the opportunity to squall , " BCS is a imposter " into the microphone ( this was objectively wonderful ) .
During his intro , running back Rod Smart provided what would become the most famous moment in XFL chronicle :
If you bring up the XFL to someone in conversation , there is a 100 % chance that " He Hate Me " will be the first thing they mention . I have no approximation why the nickname resonated so much , but Smart ( who finally made it to the NFL and played in the Super Bowl for the Carolina Panthers ) deal to make a pan - cultural phenomenon out of thin air . Re - follow the first appearance , Vasgersian and Ventura seem to catch on that this was a defining second , although they reflexivelymake funof Smart in reaction .
This all brings to light an interesting dichotomy within the XFL that can be hear in the modern day NFL . While the players are revered as stars , their disposability is also lionise . " Next man up " is / was a usual chorus in both leagues , and the XFL effortlessly moves fromlook how niggling we pay these brutestotheir love of the game is inspiring . This was never more unmistakable than when someone got hurt .
Injuries
football game is an insanely violent mutant . This news is not unexampled , although the long - condition effects of said fury — specifically , concussion — are only just becoming public cognition despite the fact that they had been known by the NFL for decade .
What the XFL know about all this is anyone ’s guess , but seeing how they responded to a distrust concussion during their much ballyhooed first biz leads me to believe that the broadcast team had n’t been well - drilled in the scientific discipline of concussions , the specter of chronic traumatic encephalopathy , or the machinist of introductory human empathy .
In the third quartern , Hitmen QB Charles Puleri istackledafter seek a throw and stays crumpled on the ground . He eventually hobbles off as a disgusted Jesse Ventura keen his short swordplay . We eventually cut live to Puleri ’s mic’d upconcussion test , complete with track commentary from Ventura . In retrospect , this was as ridiculous as a 1950s coffin nail advertising where a doctor recommends his favorite brand .
“ I can experience my zygomatic bone ring , " a visibly daze Puleri says while following the flight simulator ’s finger’s breadth . Ventura deadpans , “ I think he ’s hypnotizing him , Matt … I cerebrate he needs to do something to get a windup . "
" Naw , his gong ’s ringing , " Vasgersian react . The trainer tries to get Puleri to follow his finger’s breadth to the periphery , and Ventura chortle , " look like a sobriety mental test , do n’t it ? " Puleri looks forth from the trainer and says , shakily , " I ’m having a problematical time paying attention . "
They show thereplayof the hit he had sustained before coming out and Ventura moans , " He did n’t get hit that hard ! He did n’t even take one to the head ! " Keep in mind Puleri had been getting hit all night .
Earlier in the game , both reviewer talked about how Puleri was a tough cat from the Bronx—“Not a New York glamour athlete . " By the third after part , their opinion had changed .
The Hitmen at least had the sense to pull him from the biz , but shortly after the commercial prison-breaking , spare-time activity reporter Mike Adamle sits next to Puleri on the terrace for aninterview .
Adamle : You got your ship’s bell rung a few times , has that hampered some of the signal - career ability?Puleri : Uh , no . It ’s just that when thing go wrongly , it ’s pretty hard to turn them around .
The consultation ends , and Jesse Ventura bellow , " you’re able to say it all over his face , he ’s quittin ' already . "
That they forced someone who was perhaps concussed to do an on - tv camera interview about his " rung bell " is beyond insane . The XFL had promised unprecedented access , and this is what that looked like .
The on - field camera crew provided faze close - ups of spite player . Because they were mic’d up , you could hear their screams , too :
NFL broadcasts are masterclasses of colour over injuries . When a participant goes down , they toy the sober piano ting of the web ’s football theme , which has been remixed for injuries , and then go to commercial . Upon their restitution , the thespian has been whip away , out of sight and out of mind until a sideline reporter pop up with the news that he is " not expected to return . "
The XFL either did n’t have the power to do this or they calculate overt reportage of injuries made the league seem " sturdy . " Either way of life , it resulted in images like this , taken from the workweek two game between Chicago and L.A. after nauseous lineman Octavious Bishop went down with a serious leg injury :
[ Bishop retired after the incident . He is presently gravel his PhD in Neuropsychology at the University of Texas and is work onconcussion researchwith attentiveness to athlete . ]
The XFL consider injury to be a part of the fan experience . You could argue that this is more ethical than how the NFL handles them in that they give viewers an uncompromising look at the risks these athletes take while magnifying the import of what it means to support such a violent sportsman . Youcouldargue that , until you are do by to this " fan experience " first hand , in the form of amid - game interviewfrom the stall with a Las Vegas Outlaws supporter shortly after Charles Puleri ’s trauma .
" Do you think more serviceman will be acquit off the field ? " the interviewer excitedly ask .
" I do n’t really care , " responds the fan . " It ’s extreme football game * , it ’s all about being uttermost . That ’s all it is , it ’s all about being utmost . If you ’re not extreme , do n’t take on , do n’t seek to play . " The television camera footle on him some more , forcing him to stay on . " That ’s all it boils down to : If you ’re not extreme , do n’t play . "
[ * Due to a trademark snafu , the ' X ' in XFL did n’t actually stand for " eXtreme . " It evidently did n’t stand foranything , which could be perceive as an apt metaphor for the conference itself if one felt the need to drag literary subtleties into all this . ]
In the XFL , the rooter had the final say and the fan was King . And what do the rooter need more than anything ? allot to the powers that ran the league , the fans desire …
Cheerleaders
Even before the season begin , the XFL gleefully declare its cheerleader as important a feature as any other in the league .
Vince McMahon repeatedly refer how the XFL would permit the cheerleader ' personality beam . " We said right out front that we were going to have cheerleaders , " he told Bob Costas during acontentious interview , " squeamish looking Lady that you were hold out toget to love — unlike the NFL . "
In a way , this was on-key . The NFL thrusts its cheerleaders into the limelight while gather them away and snub them at the same time ( while alsounderpayingthem andcontrollingthem … ) . The XFL promised to care for these women as real flesh - and - blood human beings .
This mostly add up to brief skits star the cheerleaders that air before commercial . These ranged from clunky yetwell - meaning(“Hi , I ’m Paula . By solar day I ’m a law student , but at night [ removes glass , unfurls fuzz ] I ’m an XFL cheerleader " ) to embarrassing ( " Quarterback Ryan Clementknowshow to score … " ) .
When they were n’t performing in these vignettes , they were dancing , and an entire original dissertation on sexual repression and female representation in American sportswoman could be written about the Outlaws cheerleaders’first danceduring the time of year undoer , which was place to a song with these lyrics :
“ I care miss … I wish girls , I wish girls , I like giiiiiiiiirls/ I really really really , really really really , REALLY REALLY REALLY REALLY like girl . ”
In a showing of real - time objectification that would pre - date Twitter by over a decade , fans were give posting with numbers print on them so they could act as " cheerleader judges " :
This brand of leering was n’t limited to the stands — it was apparently party policy , as this 2001Wall Street Journalpieceexplains :
you’re able to see that event transpire in real - timehere .
As the season wore on and ratings fell , the XFL leaned more and more on the cheerleaders to sell its product . This culminate in a much - boost , intellect - bogglingly sexist week six rating catch that promised to send a cameraman into the cheerleaders ' locker room :
By then , the conference was as safe as deadened and its military rank were beyond saving . Still , they had a championship secret plan to play .
The Million Dollar Game
You did n’t have to wait beyond the very first sentence of the XFL ’s " Million Dollar Game ’s " frigid opening to make love that the country had lose all interest in the conference . " Some would have you believe tonight ’s XFL title game is nonmeaningful , " the gravely , fauxNFL Filmsnarrator says . He then talks about a few torturing account lines in which select players had overcome adversity . It ’s a script the NFL have a go at it and performs to paragon and , by week 12 , the XFL had reverted to mimicking it after months of attempt to rudely body their room into the world of professional football game .
bet in a sparsely fill up Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles , the XFL ’s Million Dollar plot featured the L.A. Xtreme ( quarterbacked by XFL MVP and future Pittsburgh Steeler Tommy Maddox ) and the San Francisco Demons . The secret plan looks almost nothing like that bombastic opener in Vegas . The armored cameraman scarcely unravel on the field to becharm the action up closely , the cheerleaders are seen only for a few brief saltation issue , and Vince McMahon does n’t even make an appearance .
Despite declaring it the " Million Dollar Game " ( the winning team would split a one million buck purse ) , the league was get out and those in ascendency know there would n’t be another XFL game . So what does an utmost football conference look like when it has nothing to go for and nothing to show ? It looks exactly like a average NFL biz . The Xtreme beat the Demons 38 - 6 and split the million dollar amongst themselves . They would each pocket around $ 26,000 , assuming they grant Jose Cortez , the kicker and championship game MVP , an equal parcel .
The experiment fail and the XFL subsequently fold up before the next NFL season even began . The latter ’s experimentation is ongoing .
[ Thanks to YouTube userXFL 2001for all the majuscule footage ]
