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A.J. Francis is one of a handful of former football players who transitioned to pro wrestling and are currently at the top of their game in the sport.
Francis played in nine NFL games for the Miami Dolphins, Seattle Seahawks and Washington Redskins before training to become a pro wrestler and eventually earning a shot with WWE. He had two stints with WWE before being released and landing with Major League Wrestling and Total Nonstop Action (TNA).
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George Kittle in the audience at WrestleMania 39 at SoFi Stadium on April 01, 2023 in Inglewood, California. (Unique Nicole/Getty Images)
As a former WWE competitor, Francis knows the company brings out big names for the event. Lawrence Taylor, Rob Gronkowski and George Kittle are among them.
Current WWE star The Miz floated the possibility of Jason Kelce doing something in WWE, possibly even taking part in WrestleMania 40 in some way, being that it is at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia. He told TMZ Sports that Kelce would be “dangerous in a WWE ring.”
“I could see a lot of these guys do one off things,” Francis told Fox News Digital in a recent interview. “… But that road life? Football players ain’t ready for it.”
Francis, who went by Top Dolla in WWE, explained that while football training is physically taxing, he’s on the road for most of his year while in pro wrestling.
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Travis Kelce #87 of the Kansas City Chiefs celebrates with his brother Jason Kelce after a 17-10 victory against the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Championship Game at M&T Bank Stadium on January 28, 2024 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Rob Carr/Getty Images)
“I’m not home 20 days in a month as a wrestler,” he said. “I leave Thursday, I got a show Friday, I got a show Saturday, I got a show Sunday and if I’m lucky, I get to go home Monday. It’s just a completely different lifestyle
“The lifestyle of being a full-time professional wrestler — you got to love this s— man. People don’t be lovin’ it. They don’t love it. I love it. Yeah, (Jason) Kelce could have a match at WrestleMania this year. I’m 100% positive that he could. He could bring Travis and Taylor Swift — 100% positive that they could do that.
“But would you show up to RAW the next day? Would you show up to SmackDown on Friday? Would you show up to whatever the (next) pay-per-view is? It’s just a different lifestyle.”
There’s no guarantee the Kelces would show up in Philly or Cleveland for that matter to take part in the WWE festivities. But both NFL stars have shown to have great mic skills with speeches after the AFC Championships and the Super Bowl parade respectively.
Washington defensive coordinator Greg Manusky, left and defensive tackle A.J. Francis (69) have a happy talk walking off the field after the Washington Redskins defeat of the Cincinnati Bengals 23- 17 in a preseason game at FedEx Field in Landover MD, August 27, 2017. (John McDonnell/Washington Post via Getty Images)
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For Francis, he’s set to take on Alex Kane at Major League Wrestling’s War Chamber on Friday in Tampa, Florida.
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