Week 1 AAF Betting Odds, TV Info & Notable NFL Veterans
The Alliance of American Football will kick off their brand new league this weekend on CBS with four games across two days. Though many leagues have tried and failed in recent years, this one looks to actually have some legs. For starters, several notable people were involved in getting the league off the ground, including sports television aficionados Dick and Charlie Ebersol, Super Bowl-winning executive Bill Polian, Hines Ward, Jared Allen, and Troy Polamalu. On top of that, there will be AAF betting odds every weekend, as well as an all-seeing sky judge who will sit in the press box and rule on officiating errors.
Below, we’ll hook you up with all the information you’ll need for the new league’s inaugural weekend.
AAF: Week One
Saturday, February 9th, 2019
Atlanta Legends at Orlando Apollos
Time: 8pm
TV: CBS (regional)
Line: Orlando (-4.5)
Total: 50
Reasons to Watch: Steve Spurrier is coaching Orlando’s franchise, and there’s a bunch of players you’ll remember from college or the NFL. Aaron Murray (Georgia/Kansas City Chiefs) and Matt Simms (Tennessee/New York Jets) handle the quarterback duties for Atlanta, while Denard Robinson (Michigan/Jacksonville Jaguars) is one of their tailbacks. For Orlando, you may remember Cam Newton‘s former backup in Carolina, Garrett Gilbert (SMU).
San Diego Fleet at San Antonio Commanders
Time: 8pm
TV: CBS (regional)
Line: San Antonio (-2.5)
Total: 50.5
Reasons to Watch: Super Bowl-winning coach Mike Martz is on the sidelines for San Diego, while former San Diego Chargers and Nebraska Cornhuskers coach Mike Riley will head the Commanders. As for players, no one is too big, though Tony Romo‘s former backup Dustin Vaughn is on San Antonio’s roster.
Sunday, February 10th, 2019
Memphis Express at Birmingham Iron
Time: 4pm
TV: CBSSN
Line: Birmingham (-3)
Total: 49.5
Reasons to Watch: This game has some guys you definitely know; Memphis arguably has the two best-known quarterbacks in the entire league with Christian Hackenberg (Penn State/New York Jets) and Zach Mettenberger (LSU/Tennessee Titans). They also employ former St. Louis Rams leading rusher Zac Stacy and Hall-of-Famer Mike Singletary as their head coach. For Birmingham, they, fittingly, have some notable dudes from Alabama — Trent Richardson (former No. 3 overall pick in 2012 NFL Draft) and Blake Sims (Alabama’s starting quarterback in 2014).
Salt Lake Stallions at Arizona Hotshots
Time: 8pm
TV: CBSSN
Line: Arizona (-4)
Total: 51.5
Reasons to Watch: Both head coaches in this game have had numerous top-tier jobs; Rick Neuheisel, Arizona’s head coach, served in the same role at UCLA, Colorado, and Washington, while Dennis Erickson, Salt Lake’s head coach, brought four different Power-5 programs to bowl games and spent six seasons as an NFL head coach. Additionally, longtime Minnesota Vikings running back Matt Asiata will be in the backfield for the Stallions.