By José Miguel Romero
Seattle Times staff reporter
The NFL’s developmental league in Europe was many things to many people. For quarterback Gibran Hamdan and those who played overseas, it was about more than the 10 games, 10 chances to crack pads in the spring and summer.
And now it’s gone.
The NFL, citing a lack of return on its investment, ceased 15 years of operations last month in Europe to focus on presenting the NFL brand to the widest possible global audience. That focus includes staging regular-season games outside of the U.S., including a game in London this fall.
The decision put many players, coaches and support staff out of work, leaving the NFL to consider other ways it can develop players like Hamdan, a seventh-round draft pick, and others who relied on NFL Europa to gain experience.
For the Europa players, the camaraderie of daily practices, games and living out of a hotel is also gone. Hamdan spent three years in Europe, more than most players.
“I’d be remiss if I said it didn’t affect me more than the other guys,” said Hamdan, who played for the Amsterdam Admirals and was named the league’s offensive most valuable player in 2006. “It really helped me develop as a player. More than anything, we all built great friendships, and you get to see another part of the world.”
Hamdan is one of the lucky ones. He has managed to hang around the NFL community for several years, spending time in training camps and on practice squads for the Seahawks, Washington, San Francisco and now Miami, where he will be for training camp.
Teams at one time could add 10 NFL Europa players to their camp rosters, but that number was cut to seven this year even before the league was discontinued. With no new developmental league yet established, opportunities are disappearing for guys holding on to a dream.
“A lot of guys won’t have a place to play or may fall by the wayside,” Hamdan said. “There was a pool of players [for NFL teams to work out when needed] at the drop of a hat. Now a guy gets cut, and maybe he makes the decision that he has to move on.”
There has been talk of the establishment of at least two new professional leagues — the United Football League, which counts NBA owner Mark Cuban (Dallas Mavericks) as a potential franchise owner, and the All-American Football League. Both would fill rosters with former college players; the UFL appears to be most similar to NFL Europa in that it would employ low-round draft picks, undrafted free agents and released NFL veterans.
“It’s clearly a loss,” said Mark Waller, senior vice president of NFL International. “It was a tough decision. Lots of people are interested in setting up other leagues. … My view is that the strength of the game and the loyalty to the NFL is so strong that there will always be great talent every year. The player development side is the biggest issue. We need to get our thinking together.”
Waller said football in Europe could continue in the form of a working agreement with colleges in England to field teams and develop international players.
As for the Seahawks and other NFL teams, the loss of NFL Europa won’t have an immediate major impact, according to Tim Ruskell, Seattle’s team president and general manager. Only a handful of players who came out of NFL Europa have gone on to productive NFL careers.
“I don’t think the fans will see much difference in terms of the product on the field,” Ruskell said. “If there is an immediate impact, we’re going from 10 Europe players to seven now. … But we’re going to be able to overcome that.”
Ruskell said he wouldn’t be surprised if another league, NFL property or not, sprang up.
“There’s always been this urge to have either a spring league or a competing league,” Ruskell said. “Something will come up.”
Ruskell, a former scout, liked having NFL Europa from a personnel and developmental standpoint. Seahawks defensive tackle Chuck Darby cut his teeth in Europe and became a success story. Darby worked his way into the starting lineup with Tampa Bay while Ruskell was there, then rejoined him in Seattle in 2005.
Hamdan and other former NFL Europa players believe a new league can be successful because of the popularity of football in the United States and the growing number of players who want to play beyond college.
“It’s something certain players need,” said Lynn McGruder, a defensive tackle whom the Seahawks allocated to NFL Europa this past spring. “People will keep knocking down doors just to play.”
José Miguel Romero: 206-464-2409 or jromero@seattletimes.com
