The Gunslingers: Quarterbacks Who Could Pivot to the UFL in 2025 — Part One
Part one of a two-part list of QB’s who could take their talents to the United Football League in 2025!
We start a two-part list with five quarterbacks who have all spent time in the NFL and/or the various spring football leagues of yesteryear. All five are current NFL free agents and, as of this writing, have not signed reserve/futures contracts for the 2025 NFL season. As the United Football League gears up for year two, perhaps a few of the names in “The Veterans” department can make a splash in this exciting spring football league this year.
The Veterans
Logan Woodside — Previous Professional Experience: San Antonio Commanders (AAF), Tennessee Titans (twice), Atlanta Falcons, Cincinnati Bengals (twice)
Logan Woodside is both an NFL and spring football veteran. He is also the PERFECT candidate to lead a UFL franchise in 2025. The former AAF signal-caller could make a return to spring football should a QB-needy team pry him away from the NFL. Woodside was drafted in 2018 by the Cincinnati Bengals after an impressive career with the Toledo Rockets. After being waived before the start of the 2018 NFL season, Woodside signed with the Tennessee Titans practice squad. His first true professional football opportunity would come with the newly found Alliance of American Football in 2019 via the San Antonio Commanders. After beating out the likes of Dustin Vaughn and Marquise Williams for the starting job, Woodside led the Commanders to a 5–3 record. That record propelled the Commanders to a tie with the Arizona Hotshots for first place in the Western Conference. Woodside finished the year as a “middle of the road” starter, throwing for seven touchdowns with eight interceptions while starting all eight contests for San Antonio. Woodside was sacked a league-high 18 times.
Following the AAF’s collapse in 2019, Woodside would once again sign with the Tennessee Titans. He would spend parts of the next three NFL seasons with the Titans, becoming a mainstay in their QB room. Woodside would land on Tennessee’s practice squad in 2022 before being poached away by the Atlanta Falcons. He would sign a one-year deal with Atlanta in 2023 to serve as a backup for both Desmond Ridder and Taylor Heinicke. Finally, in 2024, Woodside signed with the Cincinnati Bengals, the team that originally drafted him back in 2018. Woodside was a backup to Joe Burrow and Jake Browning this past year. After bouncing around their active roster and practice squad during the season, the Bengals did not retain Woodside’s services heading into the 2024 offseason.
The former Toledo Rocket, who threw for a school-record 10,514 yards and 93 touchdown passes, has not had much playing time in the NFL. Enter the UFL. The perfect opportunity for Woodside to show that at 29, he can be a great asset to an UFL franchise. One could think of this as another audition for a league that has given Woodside steady employment since being drafted back in 2018. Though UFL starting jobs are few and far between at this stage in the offseason, Woodside could come in and compete for an opening on many of the league’s eight rosters. Chances are that Woodside, or his agent, will receive a call from an NFL team before the start of the UFL season. But as the days tick along, maybe Woodside will decide to pivot back to spring football in 2025. After all, the AAF was what ultimately gave the 6-foot-1, 210-pound gunslinger his first opportunity to prove he belonged in the NFL. Time will tell if Woodside gives it another go in spring football this upcoming season.
Best UFL Fit: Houston Roughnecks, Memphis Showboats
(PHOTO CREDIT: Via @AroundTheNFL on X)
John Wolford — Previous Professional Experience: Arizona Hotshots (AAF), New York Jets, Los Angeles Rams, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Jacksonville Jaguars
Next, we have another spring football veteran in John Wolford. The former Wake Forest Demon Deacon went undrafted in 2018 and would sign with the New York Jets as a UDFA. Wolford would be cut in favor of Davis Webb before the start of the season. Next, before he was backing up the likes of Jared Goff, Matthew Stafford, and Baker Mayfield, he was busy slinging passes for the AAF’s Arizona Hotshots. Wolford would sign with the Hotshots and beat out Trevor Knight for the starting job ahead of the 2019 AAF season. The Hotshots, as mentioned above, finished with a 5–3 record in the Western Conference. Wolford also took home the hardware for the league’s passing touchdown leader. The five-foot-eleven Wolford finished the 2019 season with 1,617 passing yards, 14 passing touchdowns, and seven interceptions. Wolford added 160 rushing yards to his tally throughout the year. It would not take long for prospective NFL teams to get Wolford in their building following the downfall of the AAF in April of 2019.
The LA Rams would sign Wolford following his stint in the AAF in 2019. In three years in LA, Wolford would start a total of four games, with three of those coming in the 2022 season. He would also start in the Rams’ 2022 NFC Wild Card game against the Seattle Seahawks before leaving with a neck injury. Wolford has also spent time with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2023, and with the Jacksonville Jaguars via their practice squad in 2024.
Fast forward to the present, Wolford is without a job in the NFL as it stands currently. As discussed above, just about half of the league could look to the services of Wolford as the 2025 UFL season approaches. Even DC could use a “gamer” like Wolford as their quarterback this upcoming season should an opportunity present itself. Much like Woodside, Wolford will more than likely end up back in the NFL when all is said and done. But, one can hope, right? Should Wolford make a move back to spring football, a team will surely sign him if given an opportunity to do so.
Best UFL Fit: San Antonio Brahmas, Arlington Renegades, DC Defenders
Jake Luton — Previous Professional Experience: Jacksonville Jaguars (twice), Seattle Seahawks, Miami Dolphins, New Orleans Saints (twice), Carolina Panthers (twice), Las Vegas Raiders
As we shift gears to our next quarterback, Jake Luton is another excellent UFL candidate as the 2025 season inches closer. Luton has become the definition of “NFL Journeyman Quarterback” since being drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars back in 2020. That season as a rookie, Luton would be named the starting quarterback following an injury to then-starter Gardner Minshew. Luton would start three games for Jacksonville before being benched in favor of veteran Mike Glennon. Since then, it has been team after team, practice squad after practice squad for the 6-foot-six Lutton.
Since 2020, the former Idaho Vandal and Oregon State Beaver’s itinerary looks something like this: Seattle Seahawks and Miami Dolphins in 2021 after being cut by the Jaguars, back to the Jags and then the New Orleans Saints in 2022, the Carolina Panthers, Saints, then back to the Panthers in 2023, back to Carolina to start 2024, then finally with the Las Vegas Raiders briefly in December of this year. Lutton now finds himself heading into the 2024 NFL offseason without a contract. The UFL could be a potential landing zone for the signal-caller with a few teams needing another quarterback on its roster.
Best UFL Fit: Memphis Showboats, Arlington Renegades
Anthony Brown — Previous Professional Experience: Baltimore Ravens, Buffalo Bills (twice), Arizona Cardinals
This next quarterback might land in the “wishful thinking” category of our list, but why the heck not, right? Former Boston College and University of Oregon Quarterback Anthony Brown was JUST released by the AFC East Champion Buffalo Bills this past Wednesday. Brown would be another great UFL signing if he makes it that far. Brown’s best season in college saw him lead the Oregon Ducks to a 10–4 record as he accounted for 28 total touchdowns and over 3,600 total yards. Following a successful collegiate career, Brown would sign with the Baltimore Ravens as a UDFA in 2022. During the 2022 season, Brown would play in two games making one start in relief of Ravens quarterbacks Lamar Jackson and Tyler Huntley. Since then, and much like the other players listed above, opportunities have been few and far between for Brown.
After being waived by Baltimore in September of 2023, Brown would sign a reserve/futures contract with the Las Vegas Raiders in January of the following year. The Buffalo Bills would sign Brown for a brief practice squad stint in October of 2024 before Brown eventually signed with the Arizona Cardinals. After not being retained by the Cardinals, Brown would once again sign with the Bills. In what fans have come to expect as the “Scout Team QB” approach, NFL teams will typically sign a player to have him act as the opposing team’s player in preparation for that week’s game. Essentially for Brown, he was acting as Raven’s quarterback Lamar Jackson last week, as the Bills squared off with the Ravens in the AFC Divisional Round playoff game.
Brown, as of today, is an NFL free agent and can sign anywhere he would like. What if Brown pivoted to spring football as a way to showcase his talents to respective NFL clubs? Most of the UFL could use a true dual-threat player like Brown on their squad. He would finally get the reps and film needed and would give the UFL yet another star player. Though unlikely given Brown is still young at just 26, one can only hope that Brown makes a move to the UFL. It can only help his longevity in the sport and would give him valuable playing time in 2025.
Best UFL Fit: DC Defenders, Arlington Renegades, Memphis Showboats
(PHOTO CREDIT: Via buffalobills.com)
Nathan Peterman — Previous Professional Experience: Buffalo Bills, Oakland / Las Vegas Raiders (twice), Chicago Bears, New Orleans Saints, Atlanta Falcons
Here is another fun one! We all know that Quarterback Nathan Peterman is the epitome of a backup/journeyman quarterback in the NFL. He somehow ends up on a roster year after year. But before he got off to one of the worst starts in professional football history, Peterman was a legitimate NFL prospect coming out of college. Splitting time between the University of Tennessee and the University of Pittsburgh, Peterman tallied over 5,200 passing yards and 47 passing touchdowns from 2013–2016. Peterman would be drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the 5th round of the 2017 draft. The Bills were one of several teams who were impressed with Peterman’s size and athletic abilities after his successful Senior Bowl visit.
While we will not dwell too much on Peterman’s historically bad start to his pro career, we cannot skip over the fact that he has logged plenty of miles throughout it. Much like Lutton above, Peterman has made plenty of stops in his NFL journey since being drafted back in 2018. His various stops include: Buffalo in 2017–2018, the Raiders from 2018–2021, the Chicago Bears in 2022–2023, then the New Orleans Saints, back to the Raiders, and finally the Atlanta Falcons in 2024. All in all, Peterman has appeared in 15 NFL games with five career starts. Though the statistics are not pretty, Peterman has proved that he can be an asset to multiple NFL franchises.
So, why would a player like Peterman take a gamble with the UFL at 30 years old? It all comes back to opportunity. The platform the UFL could provide to a player like Peterman is inevitable. With the 2025 NFL draft approaching, and plenty of new talent set to join the league, the UFL could be a great place for Peterman to show NFL scouts he still has what it takes to play at the highest level.
Best UFL Fit: Memphis Showboats, Houston Roughnecks
Stay tuned for part two of this article featuring QB’s who could make a jump to the UFL. We will take a look at five “rookies” who would be perfect fits in the hottest spring football league in the world.
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