By Allison Weiner
Welcome back to What If? For this edition, I have decided to go in the American Football route and see what would happen if Roger Goodell (NFL), Brian Woods (USFL), Dany Garcia and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson (XFL), and Randy Ambrosie (CFL) all sit down together one night and discuss a possible one season merger to see which league is the best football league in North America. Mexico’s American football league is not included in this merger due to their preference for football/soccer over American Football. Roger Goodell explains that for one NFL season, they will expand to 40 teams with 8 extra teams coming from the XFL, USFL, and CFL.
Below are the teams for all the football leagues involved in this merger
| NFL | XFL | USFL | CFL |
| NFC North:Minnesota VikingsGreen Bay PackersDetroit LionsChicago Bears | North:Washington D.C. DefendersSeattle Sea DragonsSt. Louis BattlehawksLas Vegas Vipers | North:Michigan PanthersNJ GeneralsPhiladelphia StarsPittsburgh Maulers | East:Hamilton TigercatsMontreal AlouettesOttawa RedblacksToronto Argonauts(Future Team, but will be considered) Atlantic Schooners |
| AFC North:Cleveland BrownsBaltimore RavensPittsburgh SteelersCincinnati Bengals | South:Arlington RenegadesHouston RoughnecksOrlando GuardiansSan Antonio Brahmas | South:Birmingham StallionsHouston GamblersMemphis ShowboatsNew Orleans Breakers | West:BC LionsCalgary StampedersEdmonton ElksWinnipeg Blue BombersSaskatchewan Rough Riders |
| NFC East:Philadelphia EaglesNY GiantsDallas CowboysWashington Commanders | |||
| AFC East:Buffalo BillsNew England PatriotsMiami DolphinsNY Jets | |||
| NFC South:Carolina PanthersNew Orleans SaintsTampa Bay BucaneersAtlanta Falcons | |||
| AFC South:Tennessee TitansJacksonville JaguarsHouston TexansIndianapolis Colts | |||
| NFC West:LA RamsSan Francisco 49ersSeattle SeahawksArizona Cardinals | |||
| AFC West:LA ChargersDenver BroncosLas Vegas RaidersKansas City Chiefs |
When configuring the 40 teams, I knew that all 32 NFL teams were at play for this epic season. When it came to XFL, due to its popularity over the CFL and USFL, the XFL will have 4 teams play in this epic merger while the CFL and USFL will each be represented with 2 teams. For 20 weeks (Late August-Early January), here are the 40 teams playing in the ultimate NFL/XFL/USFL/CFL Merged season
| AFC North | AFC South | AFC East | AFC West | NFC North | NFC South | NFC East | NFC West |
| Cincinnati Bengals (NFL) | Jacksonville Jaguars (NFL) | NY Jets (NFL) | L.A. Chargers (NFL) | Minnesota Vikings (NFL) | Tampa Bay Buccaneers (NFL) | NY Giants (NFL) | San Francisco 49ers (NFL) |
| Baltimore Ravens (NFL) | Tennessee Titans (NFL) | Buffalo Bills (NFL) | Kansas City Chiefs (NFL) | Detroit Lions (NFL) | New Orleans Saints (NFL) | Philadelphia Eagles (NFL) | Arizona Cardinals (NFL) |
| Cleveland Browns (NFL) | Houston Texans (NFL) | New England Patriots (NFL) | Denver Broncos (NFL) | Green Bay Packers (NFL) | Atlanta Falcons (NFL) | Dallas Cowboys (NFL) | Seattle Seahawks (NFL) |
| Pittsburgh Steelers (NFL) | Indianapolis Colts (NFL) | Miami Dolphins (NFL) | Las Vegas Raiders (NFL) | Chicago Bears (NFL) | Carolina Panthers (NFL) | Washington Commanders (NFL) | L.A. Rams (NFL) |
| St. Louis Battlehawks (XFL) | Birmingham Stallions (USFL) | Toronto Argonauts (CFL) | Seattle Sea Dragons (XFL) | Edmonton Elks (CFL) | San Antonio Brahmas (XFL) | Orlando Guardians (XFL) | Memphis Showboats (USFL) |
Out of the 40 teams after 20 weeks, 16 of them will compete in the ultimate Superbowl for not only the Lombardi trophy but the best football league in North America. 4 top division seeds and 4 wild card picks.
Here are my predicted seeds for the Merger Playoffs
| NFC | AFC |
| Philadelphia Eagles | Cincinnati Bengals |
| San Francisco 49ers | 2. Kansas City Chiefs |
| Minnesota Vikings | 3. Buffalo Bills |
| San Antonio Brahmas | 4. Jacksonville Jaguars |
| Orlando Guardians | 5. Miami Dolphins |
| 6. Detroit Lions | Toronto Argonauts |
| Dallas Cowboys | 7. Los Angeles Chargers |
| 8. Memphis Showboats | 8. St. Louis Battlehawks |
Here are the results of the wild card rounds
- NFC
- Philadelphia Eagles beat the Memphis Showboats
- San Francisco 49ers beat the Dallas Cowboys again
- Minnesota Vikings beat the Detroit Lions
- Orlando Guardians beat the San Antonio Brahmas
- AFC
- Cincinnati Bengals beat the St. Louis Battlehawks
- Kansas City Chiefs beat the LA Chargers
- Toronto Argonauts beat the Buffalo Bills
- Miami Dolphins beat the Jacksonville Jaguars
Here are the results for the divisional/ conference rounds
- NFC
- Philadelphia Eagles beat the Orlando Guardians
- Minnesota Vikings beat the San Francisco 49ers
- Minnesota Vikings beat the Philadelphia Eagles after a comeback from behind from the 1st half
- AFC
- Toronto Argonauts beat the Cincinnati Bengals
- Kansas City Chiefs beat the Miami Dolphins
- Toronto Argonauts beat the Kansas City Chiefs
Superbowl Results: Minnesota Vikings beat the Toronto Argonauts 28-18
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