The Olympics are coming to Los Angeles in four years. When that happens, flag football will be an official event, for the first time ever.
That development has caused plenty of NFL players to propose horning in on the action. A recent promo had Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts throwing a flaming ball over the cauldron at the top of the L.A. Coliseum.
The folks who have been toiling away in flag-football anonymity don’t like it.
“I think it’s disrespectful that they just automatically assume that they’re able to just join the Olympic team because of the person that they are — they didn’t help grow this game to get to the Olympics,” current quarterback of the U.S. national flag team Darrell “Housh” Doucette said, via TheGuardian.com. “Give the guys who helped this game get to where it’s at their respect.”
Giving them their respect means requiring NFL players to earn their spots on the flag team.
“We just don’t think they’re going to be able to walk on the field and make the Olympic team because of the name, right?” Doucette said. “They still have to go out there and compete.”
Besides, the United States can win gold without players on loan from Big Shield.
“It’s not that we need these guys,” Doucette said. “Because we’re already great with who we have.”
The NFL will surely want NFL players to play in the Olympics. The individual teams might not be thrilled about handing over one or more players from July 14 to July 30. Even if they won’t miss much of training camp, they risk getting injured.
And if they’ll be required to earn their spots on the U.S. team, that process could create additional opportunities to get injured.
Along the way, however, there could be a compelling flag football game between the official U.S. team and a team of NFL players, with the winner securing the right to represent the red, white, and blue in L.A.
However it plays out, there should be a full and fair competition to determine the best flag football players in the nation. It’s not the same as tackle football. To assume the best tackle football players can just show up and thrive in flag football would be a mistake.