Lists of starting quarterbacks in the UFL

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In American football, the starting quarterback is typically viewed as the leader of a team. [1] The quarterback is considered the most important position on the field and among the most important positions in team sports. [2] [3] They are among the most high-profile athletes in North America and have been described as akin to A-list celebrities; [4] in the United Football League, such quarterbacks benefit from national television exposure and in-game action that they may not get as backup or practice squad quarterbacks in the National Football League; former New York Guardians starter Matt McGloin, former Dallas Renegades starting quarterback Landry Jones and current St. Louis Battlehawks quarterback AJ McCarron all cited the ability to have their friends and family see them play professional football as reasons why they chose to play in the league. [5] [6] [7] The success of an American football team often rests on the quarterback; thus, teams will go to great lengths to find a franchise quarterback to build around for the long-term goals of the team. This page contains the lists of starting quarterbacks for the eight teams that played in the XFL, a league that operated for 1½ seasons as a standalone league in 2020 and 2023. This page also contains the lists of starting quarterbacks for the nine teams that played in the United States Football League (USFL), a league that operated for 2 seasons as a standalone league in 2022 and 2023. Four teams from each league now constitute the XFL and USFL conferences respectively of the UFL.

Contents

Starting quarterbacks in the XFL received a substantially higher salary than backups and other position players. In the 2020 season, the salary for an XFL starting quarterback was $495,000 plus a $2,222 bonus for every game won as a member of the team; [8] the "average quarterback" on a 2020 XFL roster was reputed to make $125,000, compared to $55,000 for other position players, with both figures including bonuses. [9] The presumed starting quarterbacks were also assigned by the league office and not subject to the 2020 XFL Draft, though this did not guarantee they would start. [10] For 2023, the highest paid XFL starting quarterback, Brett Hundley, earned $200,000 in base salary, [11] while Jordan Ta'amu and McCarron both made over $100,000, in addition to win bonuses. [12] The XFL structure stood in contrast to the USFL, which purposely chose an egalitarian structure paying all players equally regardless of position; [13] as a result, McCarron and Ta'amu were initially hesitant to stay with their teams as they transitioned to the UFL, which operates under the USFL's collective bargaining agreement (CBA). [14] The USFL's players' union, United Steelworkers Local 9004, gave its permission for the league to sign players at a higher salary, stating that it would only enforce the relevant clause in the CBA as a minimum salary, not a hard salary cap, and openly encouraged the league to sign McCarron, offering to make union dues optional. [15]

XFL Division

Arlington Renegades

Season(s)Regular seasonPlayoffs
Dallas Renegades
2020 Landry Jones (3) / Philip Nelson (2)
2021–2022Suspended operations
Arlington Renegades
2023 Kyle Sloter (4) / Drew Plitt (3) / Luis Perez (3)Luis Perez (2)
2024 Luis Perez (10)

DC Defenders

Season(s)Regular seasonPlayoffs
2020 Cardale Jones (5)
2021–2022Suspended operations
2023 Jordan Ta'amu (10)Jordan Ta'amu (2)
2024 Jordan Ta'amu (10)

St. Louis Battlehawks

Season(s)Regular seasonPlayoffs
2020 Jordan Ta'amu (5)
2021–2022Suspended operations
2023 A. J. McCarron (9) / Nick Tiano (1)
2024 A. J. McCarron (8) / Manny Wilkins (2)A. J. McCarron (1)

San Antonio Brahmas

Season(s)Regular seasonPlayoffs
2023 Jack Coan (7) / Reid Sinnett (1) / Jawon Pass (1) / Kurt Benkert (1)
2024 Quinten Dormady (6) / Chase Garbers (4)Chase Garbers (2)

USFL Division

Birmingham Stallions

Season(s)Regular seasonPlayoffs
2022 J'Mar Smith (7) / Alex McGough (3)J'Mar Smith (2)
2023 Alex McGough (9) / J'Mar Smith (1)Alex McGough (2)
2024 Adrian Martinez (7) / Matt Corral (3)Adrian Martinez (2)

Houston Roughnecks

Season(s)Regular season
Houston Gamblers
2022 Clayton Thorson (7) / Kenji Bahar (3)
2023 Kenji Bahar (9) / Terry Wilson (1)
Houston Roughnecks
2024 Reid Sinnett (5) / Jarrett Guarantano (3) / Nolan Henderson (2)

Memphis Showboats

Season(s)Regular season
2023 Cole Kelley (8) / Brady White (2)
2024 Case Cookus (6) / Troy Williams (3) / Josh Love (1)

Michigan Panthers

Season(s)Regular seasonPlayoffs
2022 Shea Patterson (5) / Paxton Lynch (3) / Josh Love (2)
2023 Josh Love (9) / E. J. Perry (1)E. J. Perry (1)
2024 E. J. Perry (4) / Danny Etling (4) / Brian Lewerke (2)Danny Etling (1)

Defunct XFL teams

Houston Roughnecks (2020)

Season(s)Regular seasonPlayoffs
2020 P. J. Walker (5)
2021–2022Suspended operations
2023 Brandon Silvers (8) / Cole McDonald (2)Brandon Silvers (1)

Los Angeles Wildcats

Season(s)Regular season
2020 Josh Johnson (4) / Chad Kanoff (1)

Orlando Guardians

Season(s)Regular season
New York Guardians
2020 Matt McGloin (3) / Luis Perez (2)
2021–2022Suspended operations
Orlando Guardians
2023 Paxton Lynch (5) / Quinten Dormady (4) / Deondre Francois (1)

Seattle Sea Dragons

Season(s)Regular seasonPlayoffs
Seattle Dragons
2020 Brandon Silvers (4) / B. J. Daniels (1)
2021–2022Suspended operations
Seattle Sea Dragons
2023 Ben DiNucci (10)Ben DiNucci (1)

Vegas Vipers

Season(s)Regular season
Tampa Bay Vipers
2020 Taylor Cornelius (4) / Aaron Murray (1)
2021–2022Suspended operations
Vegas Vipers
2023 Luis Perez (4) / Jalan McClendon (4) / Brett Hundley (2)

Defunct USFL teams

New Jersey Generals

Season(s)Regular seasonPlayoffs
2022 Luis Perez (6) / De'Andre Johnson (4)Luis Perez (1)
2023 De'Andre Johnson (7) / Kyle Lauletta (3)

New Orleans Breakers

Season(s)Regular seasonPlayoffs
2022 Kyle Sloter (9) / Zach Smith (1)Kyle Sloter (1)
2023 McLeod Bethel-Thompson (10)McLeod Bethel-Thompson (1)

Philadelphia Stars

Season(s)Regular seasonPlayoffs
2022 Case Cookus (7) / Bryan Scott (3)Case Cookus (2)
2023 Case Cookus (10)

Pittsburgh Maulers

Season(s)Regular seasonPlayoffs
2022 Vad Lee (4) / Josh Love (3) / Kyle Lauletta (2) / Roland Rivers III (1)
2023 Troy Williams (8) / James Morgan (2)Troy Williams (2)

Tampa Bay Bandits

Season(s)Regular season
2022 Jordan Ta'amu (10)

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References

  1. ↑ Wertheim, Jon; Sommers, Sam (February 3, 2016). "Ranking starting quarterbacks by perceived leadership". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved December 11, 2016.
  2. ↑ "Steve Young: Quarterback is the most important position in football". Los Angeles Times. January 28, 2012. Retrieved October 5, 2021.
  3. ↑ Brooks, Bucky (July 27, 2015). "Ranking each position's importance, from quarterback to returner". NFL.com. Retrieved October 5, 2021.
  4. ↑ La Canfora, Jason (June 7, 2016). "Here are the 7 tiers of NFL quarterbacks and where all 32 starters fit in". CBS Sports. Retrieved October 5, 2021.
  5. ↑ Chavkin, Daniel (February 24, 2023). "AJ McCarron After Back-to-Back XFL Comeback Wins: 'This Is Special'". Sports Illustrated . Retrieved February 24, 2023.
  6. ↑ Stolar, Landon (2020-04-12). "Matt McGloin reflects on his time in XFL, as league folds". wnep.com. Retrieved 2024-12-03.
  7. ↑ Meyer, Brendan (February 6, 2020). "Landry Jones is the face of the XFL. Does he want to be?". ESPN.com. Retrieved February 6, 2020.
  8. ↑ Manza-Young, Shalise (October 11, 2019). XFL quarterbacks will make 10 times the salary of their teammates. Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved October 13, 2019.
  9. ↑ Seifert, Kevin (November 22, 2019). "Veteran backup Josh Johnson among three QBs signed by XFL". ESPN. Retrieved November 22, 2019.
  10. ↑ "XFL draft: What we learned about the Tampa Bay Vipers". Tampa Bay Times.
  11. ↑ Mosqueda, Justis (2023-02-06). "Former Packers QB Brett Hundley set to be XFL's highest-paid player". Acme Packing Company. Retrieved 2024-03-15.
  12. ↑ Mitchell, Mike (2024-01-05). "D.C. Defenders: Jordan Ta'amu Fate, Changes, Dispersal Draft Options". Sports Illustrated UFL on FanNation News, Analysis and More. Retrieved 2024-03-15.
  13. ↑ Seifert, Kevin (2024-02-24). "Welcome to the UFL! Laying out the new(ish) league heading into the 2024 season". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2024-02-28.
  14. ↑ Miller, Anthony (January 31, 2024). "AJ McCarron Unsure About Playing for UFL, St. Louis Battlehawks". Sports Illustrated UFL on FanNation News, Analysis and More. Retrieved February 3, 2024.
  15. ↑ https://twitter.com/TheUFLPA/status/1752763400675790963
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