It's no secret the NFL has been through a rough couple of seasons, and now Vince McMahon is thinking about capitalizing on it.
A rumor popped up on Friday stating McMahon would announce the return of the XFL soon. While we're not quite there yet, we can't say that it's not happening, either.
The XFL was an 8-team league -- with nicknames like the Xtreme, Maniax and Hitmen -- jointly owned by the WWE and NBC. It was, uh, different. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PvN4mOkZ3fo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VYhjpYKlWms Backed by the marketing power of the WWE with a built-in media reach through NBC, the XFL drew considerable hype before it was shuttled after just one season. While the XFL was ahead of its time in terms of marketing and production, Smart Football's Chris Brown pointed out that the actual football missed an opportunity to also push the envelope.
The XFL built its football around wrestling-style "toughness," but the public appetite is much different in 2017 than it was in 2001. It would be interesting to see how McMahon evolved his product if indeed the XFL 2.0 is a reality.