UFL Feeds NFL Talent

GRADUATED TO THE NFL: Wide receiver Hakeem Butler, formerly with the UFL St. Louis Battlehawks, signed a contract with the Cincinnati Bengals. (Courtesy UFL)

Hakeem Butler Is One of 50 UFL players Headed to 21 NFL teams

Major League Baseball has minor league teams to source and groom players. Now, the National Football League has the upstart United Football League to score aspiring players — signing 50 UFL players to 21 NFL teams for the upcoming season.

The spring league, formed by the merger of the XFL and USFL this year — under the combined ownership of Redbird Capital Partners, FOX, Dany Garcia and Dwayne Johnson – was made up of eight teams in Arlington, Texas, Birmingham, Alabama, Detroit, Michigan, Houston, Texas, Memphis, Tennessee, San Antonio, Texas, St. Louis, Missouri, and Washington, D.C.

One of the players picked up since the UFL off-season began on June 18 was St. Louis Battlehawks wide receiver Hakeem Butler, who signed a contract with the Cincinnati Bengals.

The 2024 UFL Offensive Player of the Year and All-UFL at wide receiver, Butler caught 45 passes to lead the league with 652 receiving yards. His five touchdown catches led the Battlehawks and ranked second in the UFL. Butler averaged 14.5 yards per catch and his 80-yard touchdown reception against Washington was the longest play from scrimmage of the season for St. Louis.

Butler returned for his second season with the Battlehawks, who play at The Dome at America’s Center, after earning All-XFL honors in 2023. He is the fourth player from the St. Louis roster to sign an NFL contract since the off-season began on June 18.

The road has never been easy for Butler, 28. He was born in Baltimore, Maryland, where he lost his mother, Sherryl to breast cancer when he was 16. He moved to Houston to live with his aunt and uncle. He played college football at Iowa State and decided to forgo his senior year to be drafted by the Arizona Cardinals in the fourth round (103) of the 2019 NFL draft.

Plagued by early injuries including a broken hand his rookie season, Butler has been a member of the Carolina Panthers, Philadelphia Eagles, Pittsburgh Steelers, and BC Lions and Edmonton Elks of the Canadian Football League.

Butler talked with VenuesNow from Bengals training camp about the impact of the UFL on his career, St. Louis sports fans and what drives him to succeed.

What role does the UFL play in advancing the careers of future NFL players?

I think it plays a vital role being another road to get to the NFL.

You’ve been signed to several NFL teams already, you’ve played in Canada and two seasons with the Battlehawks, first with XFL and then the UFL. Where do you get your resilience?

Seeing everything my mom went through before she passed away when I was a kid showed me never to give up. And really, I have an internal will, where I won’t be denied. I have a delusion about me where I believe I’ll get everything that I want.

I’ve seen a lot of people give up that I feel were even better than me. And I don’t want to leave with anything left in the tank.

How much is left in the tank coming into training camp after being signed on July 25?

Coming in late is definitely new for me. I’ve always started camp with the team so it’s a new feel for sure. But it’s fun. I really like this team. I really like this organization – and from top to bottom these people have made the transition easier.

You didn’t have much of an off-season to prepare.

I think I genuinely took one week where I did absolutely nothing but let my trainer work on my body and right after that I hit the ground running and got back to working out because I knew – that delusion in me – I knew that opportunity would present itself.

When you have the sort of season that you did – UFL Offensive Player of the Year and All-UFL at wide receiver – is attracting the attention of NFL teams top of mind?

I thought nothing of the NFL. Obviously, that’s the end goal, but while I was in it, I was solely focused on the guys around me at that time. Those are my brothers, relationships and bonds for life from this season and the season before, because we had a lot of people come back.

From the start of the season, Battlehawks coach Anthony Becht was saying he was preparing players for the NFL.

From the beginning, he said that’s his end goal. But during the season, we don’t talk about it. He talks about it more – ‘Do you want to put stuff on film?’ For me personally, I’m like, I just want to go out there and win and dominate every opponent I come up against.

That’s just who I am. I want to win and I hate losing so bad. I’ve lost and been denied a lot in my career, it’s been tough, but I just keep on fighting.

Of all the teams in the UFL, St. Louis fans showed their support at The Dome at America’s Center with a UFL record 40,317 fans. How did that support feel on the field?

It made things a lot easier coming to the dome stacked full every week. Those people really came out and supported. I’m forever grateful for those people and St. Louis. They embraced me through the highs and the lows and I appreciate that.

Apparently, they would be happy to have you back on the field. I understand that that St. Louis Battlehawks will retain your rights if you ever return to the UFL.

It says a lot about the character of the city. Those fans embraced us when they honestly didn’t know most of us…They want a team in the city to cheer for. I’m happy to give those people what they want and do what I want. It’s a great relationship.

You experienced both sides. What is the major difference between the UFL and NFL?

There are a lot more people and a lot more resources in the NFL and that comes with a billion-dollar industry. I’ve never had the success like I’ve had in the UFL in the NFL so I don’t know what it’s like to play every snap and be that guy. But I know I can be that guy.

So, what’s similar between the leagues?

I mean, it’s just football — just ball — guys chasing after the same goal. Week in and week out, putting it together to get it done. It’s fun. It’s a beautiful game and I’m thankful for it all.