Columnist Sal DeFilippo: NFL draft could take some tips from XFL

Sal DeFilippo

Friday, April 20, 2001 | 10:16 a.m.

Sal DeFilippo's pro football picks column appears Friday. Reach him at sal@lasvegassun.com or 259-4076.

It's amusing to me that the NFL draft is held on the same day as the XFL championship game.

Of course, Pez dispensers are still amusing to me, so I'm admittedly a different breed than most. Still, Saturday's football crossroads are intertwined in some ways.

Some of the players competing in the "Million Dollar Game" were once in the same position as these college standouts, waiting eagerly to get picked in hopes that this day would begin their long, prosperous, successful NFL careers.

Some of the draft picks will sign deals worth more than $1 million per player -- the total take in bonus money for the winning team.

And during both events, it's highly likely some TV commentator will use the words "future star" when it really doesn't apply. That's just how it goes.

Anyway, since the events run concurrently -- I know, the NFL draft starts about eight hours earlier, so they ought to be about halfway through the first round when the Xtreme-Demons game kicks off -- I have some suggestions on ways to use some of the XFL innovations to spice up the draft for the other guys.

First, the NFL should take a page out of the XFL's ever-changing rulebook and put microphones on all the draftees. This way, if a projected high first-round pick slides down into Round 2, we can hear him cry over hundreds and thousands of lost dollars in signing bonus money. Nobody wants to see Michael Vick stand at a podium just to put on a cap and shake hands, anyway.

Next, if a team is really torn between two players, they should be able to call the draft room and have the players line up side-by-side, place a pen and guaranteed contract 20 yards away and let them scramble for it. The first guy to sign his name on the dotted line is the guy they really want anyway, right?

And finally, at least one player should approach the podium after being selected wearing a jersey that says, "HE PICK ME."

I hope the guys chosen on Saturday and Sunday at least watch part of the game. For most of them, the XFL still could be their best chance to some success as a pro football player.

The Million Dollar Game

LOS ANGELES -7 1/2 vs. San Francisco -- OK, so Giants-Dodgers it's not, but these teams have split their two meetings, with Los Angeles winning the most recent clash, 24-0, in the regular-season finale. Los Angeles was posted as the league favorite at the start of the season, and after a slow start, it is playing up to its potential. That will be enough to win the first XFL title by two scores. Los Angeles 35, San Francisco 20.