XFL gets its first player: Former Steelers backup QB Landry Jones
We’re about six months away from the return of the XFL, and on Thursday, the league announced its first player.
Landry Jones first to sign with XFL
Via a news release sent by the XFL, former Pittsburgh Steelers backup Landry Jones is the first player and first quarterback to sign with the upstart league.
Based on the release, it’s expected Landry will be a starting quarterback, though he doesn’t have a team yet.
“I’m looking forward to joining the XFL and playing the game I love,” Jones said. “I can’t wait to suit up.”
XFL commissioner and CEO Oliver Luck said, “We’re excited to welcome Landry to the XFL as our first player and first quarterback. He’s an accomplished athlete with outstanding college credentials and pro experience, and his heart and desire to play football epitomizes the type of individual we want in the XFL.”
The XFL will sign seven more quarterbacks before its first draft in October, and the league’s eight head coach/general managers will choose their quarterback just before the draft.
Fourth-round pick in 2013
Jones was the 115th pick in the 2013 draft, out of Oklahoma. Now 30 years old, he spent the first five years of his career with the team that drafted him, Pittsburgh.
He started five games for the Steelers over the 2015-17 season, and the team was 3-2 in those games. Jones completed 63.9 percent of his passes with eight touchdowns and seven interceptions with Pittsburgh.
Last year, after drafting Mason Rudolph, the Steelers deemed Jones expendable and he was released in September. He signed briefly with Jacksonville last season and with Oakland in the offseason. The Raiders released Jones on May 22.
NFL Network reported that Jones had recently worked out for the Lions.
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