Building Ideal Flag Football Lineup out of NFL Players Ahead of 2024 Paris Olympics
Football—the kind played with an inflated elongated sphere with pointed ends—is coming to an Olympics near you!
Flag football will make its Olympic debut at the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, with a five-on-five format involving no linemen.
Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow is already feeling it.
"I really want to play for the Olympic flag football team," Burrow recently said on the "Pardon My Take" podcast. "Like me, Ja'Marr (Chase), Justin (Jefferson), me and my friends out there playing football. I think it'd be really cool."
It sure does sound cool, but would Burrow make the cut?
It's tough to tell what a potential flag football Dream Team could look like in four years. But the Paris Olympics are just weeks away, so let's draw up a hypothetical team that the United States would send to that Olympiad if it were possible.
Quarterbacks (2)
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Patrick Mahomes
Arguments could be made here for Lamar Jackson due to his outright mobility, but I think you still have to go with the sport's all-around top quarterback in Mahomes. Keep in mind that quarterbacks can't run by design in flag football, so elusiveness is important but restricted to behind the line of scrimmage. Accuracy is also critical, and Mahomes has a huge advantage over Jackson in that area, while still possessing plenty of mobility and elusiveness. Let's not overthink this one.
Taysom Hill
The odds of losing a quarterback to injury in flag football are relatively low, so we'll go with a non-traditional backup who has the throwing ability in a pinch but can also utilize his speed and athleticism as a pass-catcher, ball carrier and decoy. Hill is of course one of the most versatile offensive players in football, so one of the 12 roster spots oughta be reserved for the 33-year-old.
Receivers (4)
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Tyreek Hill
Strength doesn't matter much now. It's all about speed, reliability as a pass catcher, and catch radius for the purposes of winning battles down field. With Hill, you get the mega speed. It's a no-brainer, even if the 30-year-old lacks the height and is sometimes prone to drops. He's also been enthusiastic about flag football hitting the Olympics.
Justin Jefferson
Widely considered the NFL's top receiver right now, the 25-year-old has dropped just six of the 284 passes thrown his way the last two seasons and is going to consistently outmaneuver and outleap defenders to make plays.
DK Metcalf
You need to mix in some size and Metcalf brings that to the table at 6'4", 235 lbs. Obviously, he's also one of the sport's most consistently productive receivers. For what it's worth, he was also the dude who announced flag football's inclusion in the 2028 Games on the NFL's official Twitter account.
Amon-Ra St. Brown
This was a toss-up between St. Brown and CeeDee Lamb, both of whom can work underneath, in the slot and outside. They're very different than the other pass-catchers on this roster. I'm rolling with St. Brown because I think he can do a little more when it comes to finesse after the catch.
Running Back (1)
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Christian McCaffrey
Obvi! His elusiveness is unmatched at the position. But more critically, McCaffrey is a top-end receiver out of the backfield. He's also got a decent throwing arm that's been on display at the pro level, which could come in handy because quarterbacks can go down field and catch passes following handoffs.
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Defenders (5)
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I just don't see how you could employ a front-seven defensive player in this format, because you need guys to keep up with all five offensive players and speed is the name of the game. So we're rolling with a handful of defensive backs with various skill sets.
Sauce Gardner
Here you get the length to battle with bigs, but also pure elite ability in pass coverage from a 23-year-old two-time first-team All-Pro cornerback.
Jaylon Johnson
There's gotta be a spot for the highest-graded cover man in the NFL in 2023 at Pro Football Focus.
DaRon Bland
He's got the speed to keep up, and he's clearly got the play-making ability to swing any game after intercepting nine passes and scoring four touchdowns as a sophomore in 2023.
Kyle Hamilton
Here's your pass-rusher, as well as a guy who can hang out deep and ball hawk. The 23-year-old safety is coming off a breakout All-Pro season and would be the most versatile member of this defense.
Tariq Woolen
You need a pure speed guy, and Woolen is probably the fastest starting-caliber defensive player in the game. He also brings a 6'4" frame to the table, and he's been a Pro Bowler entering his third NFL campaign.
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