NFL players will be able to participate in the 2028 Summer Olympic Games that will introduce flag football. Owners voted this week to allow players to represent Team USA (or their respective country) in the games and many big name players are expressing interest in playing. Players like Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and his former teammate Tyreek Hill.
There are still some unknowns, like if owners will be to restrict certain players from playing and the roster will be made, but the news has already led to plenty speculation about the team USA could field.
Just for fun, because this would never happen, but what if NFL Players did a round-robin type of tournament to decide the roster? And the teams were based on the college players attended. So, for example, there’d be a team of former Alabama players, another for Georgia players and so on.
Some of these college teams would be heavily favored, but plenty of colleges could field competitive teams based on who is currently playing in the NFL. So, what would Mississippi State’s roster look like?
Let’s build one and find out. Here’s the official Olympic flag football rule about team sizes, “There are five players on each team on the field drawn from 10-person squads, the quota for the Olympic Games LA28. Players tend to specialize in either offense or defense and matches consist of two 20-minute halves.”
Based on that, a couple things come to mind. First, the Bulldogs are pretty much set at quarterback. Dak Prescott is one of the NFL’s better quarterbacks and could possibly be the Team USA starting quarterback in three years.
Second, there aren’t many offensive skill position players from Mississippi State in the NFL. Wide receivers Lideatrick Griffin and Makai Polk are active, but that’s it. But there’s enough defensive backs and linebackers to field the entire 10-man team. So, we’ll assume there will be some two-way players.
Here’s the All-Bulldog (Maroon-version) Olympic Flag Football Team:
QB Dak Prescott (DAL)
WR Lideatrick Griffin (GB)
WR Makai Polk (ATL)
DT Chris Jones (KC)
LB Willie Gay Jr. (NO
DB Darius Slay (PHI)
DB Martin Emerson (CLE)
DB Emmanuel Forbes (LAR)
DB Marcus Banks (TB)
DB J.T. Gray (NO)
It's actually a great team, especially on defense. Offense could use some more firepower, which is why I included Chris Jones. Someone has to snap the ball on offense, but can also run receiver routes. Jones won’t beat anyone downfield, but he can use his size to box out defenders and make some short catches.