Introducing … the NFL on the Olympic stage.
That is so inviting if you’re Roger Goodell, Justin Jefferson, Tyreek Hill and among many others, organizers bent on making the L.A. Summer Games in 2028 even more of an event to remember. Sponsors also can undoubtedly envision a field day. Nothing sells like the flag. Wrap that around the USA’s most popular sports league and it is, well, solid gold.
Listen to Jefferson, the Minnesota Vikings’ star receiver, endorse the idea of repping the USA in the world of flag football: “Just to think about the chance of playing in the Olympics and getting a gold medal is a dream.”
So, here comes an NFL version of the “Dream Team” to not only prove to the world that football, American football, is ours to dominate … but to also sell to the rest of Earth.
And hey, maybe nothing will boost the NFL’s fine product to the international market like the flag, as in flag football. The NFL has been all-in on flag football for quite a while, as it provides an entry point for growing fans. Yet aligning with the Olympics is like a Magic-to-MJ slam dunk (can’t help the flashback to the original ‘Dream Team”) for Roger & Co.
As team owners unanimously passed the resolution this week to allow NFL players to compete in the Olympics, it was no coincidence that Goodell, the revenue-driving NFL commissioner, voiced the expectation that within five years the NFL will play 17 games abroad.
This season, the league will stage a record seven international games, three shy of the number in a season already covered in the collective bargaining agreement (CBA) with the players. To get to 17 abroad, the NFL will have it on its checklist, along with the 18-game season, when it negotiates the next CBA with the NFL Players Association (NFLPA).
As it stands now, the NFLPA whole-heartedly endorses the league’s flag football vision, pending some details, such as the mesh with the NFL calendar, standards for playing surfaces and equipment, and insuring the contracts for the real jobs. And why not? NFL growth flowing from flag football – the dots connect to expanding the consumer base with greater appeal to women and the younger generation, at home and abroad – translates to fatter wallets for players.
In my opinion, Team USA probably could still dominate if it filled its roster with 10 recently retired players. Yet apparently there is no shortage of active NFL players – and definitely a robust number of wide receivers, I’m told – who want this. After all, on top of the gold, it would be so cool to represent the country.
Hill, the electric Miami Dolphins receiver, has made no secret of his desire to be a part of Team USA. Shoot, he might even be prone to celebrate with a backflip on the medal stand. Just what you’d expect from a home-run threat who carries the moniker, “The Cheetah.”
Then there’s Travis Hunter, the reigning Heisman Trophy winner seeking to go both ways as a receiver and cornerback with the Jacksonville Jaguars like he did for Coach Prime at Colorado. I’m not sure if Hunter wants in, but I’m guessing that any guy who is wired to play more than 100 snaps every game would be, well, golden for another layer of multi-tasking.
Still, is chasing the gold worth the risk?
You know the risk. Blowing out a knee on a cutback move. Tearing up an ankle on a spin move. Snapping a hamstring on a sprint to pay dirt. Think of the non-contact injuries that occasionally pop up on a football field. There are no guarantees they can’t happen on an Olympic stage.
USA! USA! US Ouch!
“I’d love it if we kept the NFL players out of it,” Green Bay Packers GM Brian Gutekunst, alluding to the injury risk, told team beat writers during the league meetings in March.
If you’re aiming to win a Super Bowl, it might be a bit nerve-wracking to consider your hopes could be derailed by some freak injury. Typically, NFL players are contractually prevented from engaging in ventures that involve extra risk (think skydiving, for example), but for flag football there’s a pass.
“I’m afraid I have a quarterback that’d probably be pretty good at it,” Baltimore Ravens coach John Harbaugh told reporters during the league meetings in March. “So, no, I’m not excited about that in all honesty. I believe in America. I want gold medals, but…”
Maybe Harbaugh can rest easy on this matter. While Lamar Jackson would be at the top of the list for Team USA attractions – and growing up, he played flag football at the Boys and Girls Club – he seemingly has no interest.
Asked about the prospect last summer on “The Lounge” podcast, Jackson said: “I doubt it. I’m a professional NFL player. So, I’m just going to stay over here and let those guys have fun.”
When reached by USA TODAY Sports on Wednesday, Harbaugh was not exactly sweating in hypotheticals. Asked what his comfort level would be if Jackson wanted to play in the ’28 Olympics, Harbaugh replied in a text, “Hmmm. The reality is that’s a football lifetime from now.”
You might expect that NFL teams, interested in protecting their most valuable assets, would be hesitant. But no, this is bigger than that in another context, considering the chance for the league to put down a major international footprint.
Remember, the resolution passed with a 32-0 vote.
“I absolutely think it’s a great opportunity for the league and it’ll be a great opportunity for some of the players who participate,” Pittsburgh Steelers owner Art Rooney II told USA TODAY Sports.
I asked Rooney if he would have any hesitation if one of Pittsburgh’s key players, say, star receiver DK Metcalf, wound up on Team USA. He pointed out that the resolution limited teams from losing more than one player to any single Olympic squad, although theoretically a team could lose up to three players if one played for Team USA and one or two played for other countries.
“That’s part of what the proposal is all about,” Rooney said. “To kind of limit the exposure that one team might have, having more than one of their star players get injured in something like this.
“Look, I think the risk of injury in flag football is low. I’m overall comfortable with it. But I think this proposal is just an effort to manage, to make sure that no one team bears too heavy of a burden of having more than one or two players participate.”
In the eyes of the NFL, the reward is far greater than the risk.
Follow Jarrett Bell on social media: @JarrettBell