Only quarterbacks will be selected in the upcoming Alliance of American Football league draft, and those quarterbacks will discover which of the eight inaugural teams they'll play for in 2019 on Tuesday night.
With backing from longtime NFL executive Bill Polian, former Pittsburgh Steelers star Hines Ward and co-founder Charlie Ebersol, the AAF is aiming not only to complement the NFL but showcase localized talent in an eight-team, 10-week debut starting in February, after Super Bowl LIII. And inaugural team rosters will start taking shape with the AAF's 2019 QB Draft -- live on CBS Sports Network at 8 p.m. ET.
Dozens of players have already signed to the league's eight franchises -- the Atlanta Legends, Birmingham Iron, Orlando Apollos, Memphis Express, Arizona Hotshots, Salt Lake Stallions, San Antonio Commanders and San Diego Fleet. But quarterbacks will be assigned via the draft, which will be broadcast live with commentary from Ward, Kurt Warner, Brent Stover, Dana Jacobson and Jason Fisher.
Here are all the details:
Draft rules
Any quarterback already signed to the Alliance is eligible to be selected in the draft, which uses a "Protect or Pick" format. All signed quarterbacks are also allocated to the team located closest to their college or last NFL/CFL team before the draft.
The "Protect or Pick" method allows each team to decide whether they'd rather protect one quarterback that's been allocated to them or attempt to draft another one. As the AAF explains, if a team elects to protect, they name the player they are protecting as their first selection in the draft, but if they decide to pick, they wait until every other team has made their decision before selecting from the remaining pool of all available QBs.
The draft lasts four rounds and features the following order of selection:
- San Diego Fleet
- Birmingham Iron
- Arizona Hotshots
- Orlando Apollos
- Atlanta Legends
- Salt Lake Stallions
- Memphis Express
- San Antonio Commanders
Eligible quarterbacks
More than 50 total quarterbacks are up for grabs, but here are some of the most notable names:
- Aaron Murray (Atlanta): Former Georgia standout, Kansas City Chiefs fifth-round pick and backup
- Blake Sims (Alabama): Two-time Alabama national champion, former Atlanta Falcons practice squad QB
- Christian Hackenberg (unallocated): Former New York Jets second-round pick, Cincinnati Bengals practice squad QB
- Scott Tolzien (unallocated): Former San Francisco 49ers, Green Bay Packers, Indianapolis Colts backup
- Zach Mettenberger (Memphis): Former Tennessee Titans starter, Pittsburgh Steelers backup
- Matt Simms (Memphis): Former Jets backup, son of Super Bowl champion Phil Simms
- B.J. Daniels (Orlando): Former Seattle Seahawks, Houston Texans backup
- Stephen Morris (Orlando): Former Philadelphia Eagles, Colts backup
- Josh Johnson (San Diego): Former Tampa Bay Buccaneers starter, backup for eight NFL teams
How to watch
Date: Tuesday, Nov. 27
Time: 8 p.m. ET
Location: HyperX Esports Arena Las Vegas (Las Vegas, Nevada)
Stream: CBS Sports Network