Everything started on the flag football field for Joey Blount.
It was where he first watched his parents cheer him on from the sidelines. The spot where his childhood friendships, spanning over 15 years, were born. It was also his introduction to the sport of football.
"The flag football experience was everything with building up the foundation, learning the positions, and throwing the ball around," the Cardinals safety said. "It was the rudimentary way of learning football, in my opinion."
While those moments took place during his middle school years, those memories follow Blount as he stood in front of his NFL locker. On the heels of the Spring League Meeting, nothing could shake the smile off Blount's face when discussing the NFL's ruling to allow players to take part in the 2028 Olympics.
"It's going to be amazing and a showcase of skills," Blount said. "I'm going to be really interested to see how the top athletes in the world in the NFL can now take their skills to a flag football game. It's not the same rules, but same skillsets, so I'm really excited to see it."
The owners passed the resolution unanimously, citing a desire to grow the sport globally. One player from each team is allowed to represent each country. To break it down, USA could select Marvin Harrison Jr. to play, but they can't select him and Trey McBride. However, they could pair Harrison with the Vikings' Justin Jefferson, keeping alive the idea of an NFL "Dream Team." In addition, international players can play for their country.
The topics of participation in the Olympics hasn't been in the shadows within the Cardinals organization. On the girls side of the game, the Cardinals became the first NFL team to fully produce and broadcast a weekly high school girls flag football game of the week. Many of those high schoolers are members of various USA Football teams.
While the premise of the game remains the same, there are a lot of differences with the format. The game is five-on-five with no lineman and the field is 50 yards long.
Including Blount, quarterback Jacoby Brissett, outside linebacker Zaven Collins, and wide receiver Xavier Weaver got their starts by playing flag. During his trip to South Korea, quarterback Kyler Murray did not rule out the idea of playing for Korea.
McBride and Budda Baker have flag football experience through the Pro Bowl.
"There are girls playing flag football and there's a whole new understanding of football in different countries," Baker said. "You see guys and teams going to different countries this year and playing football, so as long as that keeps going, that's great for us."
One of Blount's collegiate teammates, Sean Moore, is a wide receiver and rusher on the 2025 USA Men's Flag National Team roster. Through Moore, Blount has seen the growth of the sport.
"I have been talking about that with him a lot with his view on it, his skillset, and how he attacks that versus how I attack the NFL," Blount said. "There's definitely going to be some adjustments with the physicality and the elusiveness. You can bend more rules. I think within the three years prepping we'll have more understanding of how to play."
NFL athletes are elite, but they could find themselves at a disadvantage considering there are professional flag football players with more familiarity of the sport. Couple that together with the Olympics taking place just days before training camp, NFL players might opt out of the experience.
But as Blount looks across the locker room, he believes any of the skills players' game could translate on the biggest stage.
"We're the best of the best for a reason," Blount said. "It may take some learning and the edge that the flag football guys may have, but I think we can all do it with the right practice and the right timing."
