BEVERLY HILLS, CA — Are NFL players better than flag football athletes at flag football? The answer to the contentious debate could be determined Saturday at the inaugural Fanatics Flag Football Classic.
The Fanatics Flag Football Classic is a newly structured competition that includes three 12-player teams. Team Founders and Team Wildcats are comprised of current and former NFL players and other standout athletes, who were drafted into teams Wednesday night in an event at the Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills.
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Tom Brady and Jalen Hurts are the captains of Team Founders. Ashton Jeanty, Alvin Kamara, Rob Gronkowski, Antoine Winfield Jr., DeVonta Smith, Stefon Diggs, Von Miller, Damar Hamlin, Patrick Peterson and Terence Crawford all join Brady and Hurts on Team Founders.
Jayden Daniels and Joe Burrow are captains on Team Wildcats. Daniels and Burrow are accompanied by Saquon Barkley, Kyle Juszczyk, Odell Beckham Jr., Davante Adams, DeAndre Hopkins, Derwin James Jr., Luke Kuechly, Jalen Ramsey, Logan Paul and IShowSpeed on Team Wildcats.
The third team is made up of USA Football’s reigning IFAF Flag Football World Champion U.S. Men’s National Team – Darrell Doucette III, Aamir Brown, Velton Brown Jr., Isaiah Calhoun, Nico Casares, Mike Daniels, Lavar Davis, Tyler Davis, Ja’Deion High, Jamie Kennedy, Laderrick Smith and Shawn Theard Jr.
The three teams are scheduled to practice on Friday ahead of Saturday’s competition at Los Angeles’ BMO Stadium.
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“There’s a lot of talent out there on the field. There are a lot of guys who are gonna want to go out there and perform really well,” Brady said. “I love having Team USA involved, too. Because I think they are gonna bring out the best in us.”
So why are NFL players participating in the Fanatics Flag Football Classic?
Adams told USA TODAY Sports it’s an opportunity to compete.
“It’s a great event that’s put on by some great people. Seeing some of the names that’s gonna be a part of this thing, that made it exciting for me,” Adams said. “It’s another opportunity to play some ball and compete.”
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The Fanatics Flag Football Classic could be a precursor to the 2028 Olympic flag football competition.
In May of 2025, the NFL permitted its players to participate in flag football at the 2028 Olympics. Each NFL team will be allowed to send one player to the Olympics, along with an additional international player if designated.
The NFL’s participation in flag football naturally created a competitive head-to-head clash with Team USA flag football athletes. Doucette, a QB on the U.S. national team, previously proclaimed in an interview with TMZ Sports that he feels like he’s better than Patrick Mahomes at flag football because of his “IQ of the game.” Doucette’s comments prompted a social media reaction from Mahomes.
Mahomes, who is recovering from a knee injury won’t participate on Saturday, but Doucette will get to test his skills against the likes of Brady, Hurts, Burrow, Daniels and other NFL stars.
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“I played flag football so it’s not foreign to me. It’s different. It’s different rules and everything. Obviously, you got to pull a flag that’s different than getting tackled,” Daniels said. “But I think we got the guys here that are high IQ and very smart, so we’ll figure it out.”
The Fanatics Flag Football Classic was originally scheduled for Saudi Arabia. The event was moved to Los Angeles due to the ongoing war in the Middle East.
According to Fanatics Markets, the Team USA flag football team opened as the heavy favorite with a win probability of 45%.
Doucette and Team USA’s flag football squad are a confident group entering the competition. However, the NFL players participating are out to prove they reign supreme in pads or with flags.
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“I think a lot of people are gonna see we kind of do this for a living,” Daniels said.
Follow USA TODAY Sports’ Tyler Dragon on X @TheTylerDragon.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Brady, NFL stars in Fanatics Flag Football Classic to face Team USA in Olympics test
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