Wide receiver Marcell Ateman, the first player chosen by the St. Louis Battlehawks in Wednesday’s XFL Draft, joins the squad with a bit of an advantage. He already knows both of his team’s quarterbacks, A.J. McCarren and Ryan Willis.
“I believe A.J. and I were together on the practice squad with the Raiders and actually both got moved up around the same time,’’ recalled Ateman, a 28-year-old receiver who starred at Oklahoma State University. “We spent some time in meeting rooms and on the field together. And I worked out and caught passes from Ryan as well. It’s just crazy now that we’re all on the same team.