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NBC Sports
25-05-2025
- Sport
- NBC Sports
Darrell "Housh" Doucette hopes flag football players get an opportunity to make Olympic team
He's five feet, seven inches. He weighs 140 pounds. Darrell 'Housh' Doucette nevertheless performed a cannonball into the deep end of the pro football pool last year, when he declared he'd be a better flag football player than Patrick Mahomes, given Doucette's knowledge of the game. Doucette and other flag football players ostensibly will get their chance, if the tryout process for the 2028 Olympics gives them a fair chance to compete with active NFL players. 'The flag guys deserve their opportunity,' Doucette told Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post. 'That's all we want. We felt like we worked hard to get the sport to where it's at, and then when the NFL guys spoke about it, it was like we were getting kicked to the side. I felt like I was the guy who could speak out for my peers, for my brothers that's been working hard to get to this level, for us not to be forgotten.' Doucette believes that the current complement of American flag football players is good enough to win gold, without NFL players horning in. 'This is a sport that we've played for a long time, and we feel like we are the best at it and we don't need other guys,' Doucette said. 'But we all have one goal in mind, and that's to represent our country. We're definitely open to all competition. If those guys come in and ball out and they're better than us, hats off to them. Go win that gold medal for our country.' Doucette's confidence comes from the inherent differences between flag football and tackle football. 'It's entirely two different games,' Doucette said. 'You can't really compare flag football and tackle football.' 'These are things that we practice and we work on to become great,' Doucette said. 'Those guys, they don't understand it yet.' The looming opponents of the U.S. men's team believe the NFL players will figure it out. Chad Palmer, the head coach of the Canadian men's national flag football team for eight years, would rather face Doucette and his teammates than an all-star collection of NFL talent. 'We have a better chance of beating the flag players than the NFLers,' Palmer told Kilgore. 'I say that with a fair bit of confidence.' Palmer believes former tackle players have greater skills than flag players. He also believes that tackle football players can quickly close the gap with their tackle football skills. 'The transferables are all over the place,' Palmer said. 'If you take a Ja'Marr Chase — he's spent his entire life route-running and finding leverage in coverage and understanding football and getting paid a lot of money to do it. How can a player that's playing a rec sport in the past be even in the same stratosphere? No chance.' Palmer believes the Canadian team also will consist of primarily NFL players, too. 'I don't think the current guys who have been doing it for a long time will hold a candle to the pros,' Palmer said. Still, with the NFL limiting eligibility to one player per team (along with the franchise's International Pathway Program player), there will only be so many high-end NFL players to go around. In all, 32 non-IPP players will be available. With a five-on-five format and 10 players per team and six teams in the 2028 Olympic tournament, neither half of all players necessarily won't be from regular NFL rosters.
New York Post
20-05-2025
- Sport
- New York Post
NFL owners unanimously approve Olympic flag football participation
The NFL can now look forward to its Gold Medal era. League owners officially approved a resolution allowing players to participate in flag football at the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles by a 32-0 vote. A maximum of one player per team would be allowed to participate, with each team's designated international player being allowed to represent their country, as well. Advertisement NFLers have shown their abilities in recent years at the Pro Bowl Games, where flag football is one of the competitions — and they've long been keen to get a chance to display a different side of their skills. 3 AFC wide receiver Tyreek Hill (10) of the Miami Dolphins carries the ball against NFC cornerback Tariq Woolen (27) of the Seattle Seahawks and outside linebacker Za'Darius Smith (55) of the Minnesota Vikings during the flag football event at the NFL Pro Bowl on Feb. 5, 2023. AP 'To think about the chance of playing in the Olympics and getting a gold medal, it's a dream,' Vikings wideout Justin Jefferson told ESPN of possibly suiting up in the red, white and blue for the Summer Games. Advertisement He's not alone. Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and Dolphins receiver Tyreek Hill are among those who have expressed interest in participating. 'I would absolutely love it. Every other sport gets an opportunity to win a gold medal,' Minnesota running back Aaron Jones said last month. 'And if you're not serving your country in the military, I feel like that's the other highest honor.' The league and players association will still need to iron out some details, including injury protection, salary cap credit and minimum medical and field requirements. 3 AFC wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. (7), of the Jacksonville Jaguars, runs away from NFC return specialist KaVontae Turpin, of the Dallas Cowboys, right, during the flag football event at the NFL Pro Bowl, Sunday, Feb. 2, 2025. AP Advertisement The Olympic tournament will also have to take place in a way that 'does not unreasonably conflict' with players' NFL commitments. Athletes from the NHL, NBA and MLB have long been able to represent their home countries in international competition, with hockey and basketball being big Olympic draws and the sixth edition of the World Baseball Classic slated for 2026. The NFL's inclusion in the Olympics isn't a welcome addition to all, despite the unanimous owners vote. 'At the end of the day, I feel like I'm better than Patrick Mahomes because of my IQ of the game,' Darrell Doucette, QB for the US national flag football team, told TMZ in Aug. 2024. 'I know right now he's the best in the [NFL], I know he's more accurate, I know he's got all these intangibles. But when it comes to flag football, I feel like I know more than him.' Advertisement 3 NFC wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba (11), of the Seattle Seahawks, tries to evade AFC safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, of the Pittsburgh Steelers, left, during the flag football event at the NFL Pro Bowl, Sunday, Feb. 2, 2025. AP Other rule proposals being voted on by NFL owners at their meeting in Minnesota this week include potentially banning the tush push, expanding onside kick attempts beyond the fourth quarter and possible alterations to playoff seeding.
USA Today
20-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
The ideal Olympic flag football roster of NFLers should be weird. So weird.
The ideal Olympic flag football roster of NFLers should be weird. So weird. America does not need a dream team. Not when it comes to flag football. While the idea of megapowers forgoing NFL rivalries to drop some 1992 USA vs. Angola final scores on the 2028 Summer Olympics is tempting, it's unnecessary. We know the rest of the world is acclimating slowly to American football. European professional teams occasionally schedule games against our Division III college football teams. It's rarely pretty. If Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology can beat Germany's Landsberg X-Press 82-0, Team USA probably doesn't need Josh Allen and Justin Jefferson to lock in a gold medal. While the 2028 Games will present an opportunity to grow the sport at a global level, it's also an easy way to funnel gold to the host nation in Los Angeles. Thus, my 2028 Olympics flag football wish list isn't NFL all-stars. It's a weird collection of extremely fun players who'll still win most games 38-6. An Olympic flag football roster consists of 12 players -- five on the field at any given time. While players can specialize on one side of the ball or the other, it makes sense to load up on athletes who can excel on offense and defense. The offense is typically a quarterback, three receivers/running backs and a center, who snaps the ball and is then an eligible target. The defense is a mix of defensive backs, but players can also rush the quarterback as long as they're at least seven yards from the line of scrimmage when the ball is snapped. Now that we know what the lineup will look like on the field, let's get a little weird with it: Quarterback: Diego Pavia (currently enrolled at Vanderbilt University) LOS ANGELES, WE'RE GETTING [EXPLETIVE] TURNT Running back: Bryson Daily (currently enrolled at Army) Daily is basically just a second mobile quarterback out of the backfield, albeit with more running chops than Pavia. Will his option game or physical running translate to flag football? No. Does it matter? Also, no. Wide receiver/cornerback: Jacksonville Jaguars WR/CB Travis Hunter OK, I know I said we shouldn't send our best NFL players to Los Angeles. But Hunter's highlight reels after dismantling Belgium with six touchdowns of 60 yards or more would be too incredible to pass up. Wide receiver/running back: Denver Broncos WR/KR Marvin Mims Mims is a two-time All-Pro as a returner. He also averaged 13 yards per catch (YAC) despite his average reception coming less than one yard downfield. No one in the league is better than running away from people. Wide receiver/running back: Detroit Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs 11.4 yards after catch per reception. 5.6 yards per carry, 3.3 of which came before contact. Sure, some of that is because of the Lions' offensive line and Ben Johnson's scheme, but Gibbs is effectively a game of keep-away unto himself. Running back: Darren Sproles (retired in 2019) Sproles will be 45 years old in 2028. He will score eight touchdowns against Latvia. If he can't make it, Deuce Vaughn, another 5-foot-6 waterbug back out of Kansas State, can take his place. Wide receiver/running back: Washington Commanders WR Deebo Samuel Samuel will be 32 years old in 2028 and likely to have lost a step. We still stan a YAC king. Defensive back: Chicago Bears CB Tyrique Stevenson One of the few viable strategies against a roster of NFL players is to spam Hail Marys. And every Hail Mary is more interesting with Stevenson on the field. Defensive back/center: Seattle Seahawks S Nick Emmanwori Emmanwori is a meat missile at 6-foot-3 and 227 pounds with 4.3-second 40 speed. Flag football isn't the best setting for his downhill thumping style, but does work in a "wind him up, let him blast off" setting and as the guy who snaps the ball, then blasts whomever is rushing the passer out of their cleats before settling in for a 10-yard route. Defensive back: Leonard Moore (currently enrolled at Notre Dame) Guy knocked down 11 passes as a freshman for the Irish. He's gonna be a full-on problem by 2028. Defensive back: Toronto Blue Jays OF Daulton Varsho Look guys, center field is center field. Rusher: Dallas Cowboys EDGE Micah Parsons Foreign quarterbacks should leave Los Angeles with post traumatic stress disorder.
