San Antonio Commanders general manager Daryl Johnston said Wednesday that a new $250 million investment in the Alliance of American Football was not connected to AAF players getting their paychecks a few days later than expected. 

A report from the Athletic on Monday night said last week’s investment by Tom Dundon, owner of the NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes, was necessary to prevent the Alliance from missing payroll during the second week of the season. 

Johnston said the AAF has not felt any financial strain. 

“That is nothing that I’ve heard from anybody,” Johnston said. “ We were instructed that the two incidents last week were not connected in any way, shape or form.  We had a large infusion of cash in December.  We now had another large infusion of cash here last week.  The ratings have been great.  The response has been great.  I don’t think anybody feels any pressure that something is going wrong financially.” 

The Commanders players were paid Tuesday, Johnston said.  The process was delayed from Friday because of a “glitch in processing” as the Alliance switched to a new payroll system. 

Johnston said the AAF alerted teams to the delay Thursday night, and Johnston addressed it with the Commanders during the team’s breakfast Friday.  With Presidents Day falling on Monday, the players were told their payments would arrive Tuesday. 

“Here in San Antonio, everybody has been paid,” Johnston said. “ We have one guy (who wasn’t), and I think that’s because he only put four numbers on his zip code.  It can be something as simple as that.  We’re still trying to get it completely solved, but it was nothing like the media made it out to be.” 

On ExpressNews.com: Alliance of American Football announces new investor after report of financial trouble

Dundon’s investment, though not announced by the AAF until Tuesday, was secured before the issue with payroll arose, Johnston said. 

“The timing of the investment and the timing of the issue we had late in the week makes a lot of people think they’re connected,” Johnston said. “ They’re not.  It’s two separate incidents.” 

Commanders quarterback Logan Woodside said he paid little attention to the reports circulating Monday and Tuesday and expressed no concerns about how the Alliance has handled any part of the process since he joined the league in November. 

The delay in payment this week was not something that worried him, he said. 

“Not at all,” Woodside said. “ They explained it to us really well, and I’d play football for free.  I don’t care.” 

San Diego Fleet coach Mike Martz said his team also was impacted by the leaguewide delay. 

“It’s just one of those things that happens,” Martz said. “ It’s like, a computer crashes.  What are you going to do?  Over a holiday.  It is what it is.  Everything worked out fine, they all got paid, and we just moved on.” 

San Antonio coach Mike Riley said he hasn’t discussed the issue with his players.  When Johnston thanked them for their patience during a team meeting Wednesday morning, Riley said he didn’t sense any concerns. 

Riley said he has not seen any signs of the league’s reported financial struggles. 

“I hadn’t noticed one thing like that,” Riley said. “ I heard that, and I don’t know that much about all of this stuff, but it doesn’t seem to me that somebody would put $250 million into something they thought was failing.” 

Instead, Johnston and Riley said Dundon’s investment is viewed as a reflection of the league’s strong football product and the positive reception nationally during the season’s first two weeks. 

Despite a history of failed pro football franchises in San Antonio, the Commanders drew 27,857 fans to the Alamodome in Week 1 and another 29,176 in Week 2.  San Antonio’s attendance figures are the two highest in the league so far, with six other games averaging 16,383 fans. 

On ExpressNews.com: Fans more important than San Antonio Commanders’ loss

San Antonio’s opener was a Saturday prime-time broadcast on CBS that earned a 2.1 market rating, according to the AAF, topping the NBA game between Oklahoma City and Houston airing on ABC at the same time. 

Martz said the latest investment provides peace of mind as the league continues to grow.  With players set to earn $70,000 this season as part of three-year, $250,000 contracts, the player payroll for the AAF’s eight 52-man rosters is about $30 million for the league’s inaugural season. 

“It gives everybody a sense of security,” Martz said. “ Anytime you’re in a startup league, there’s always in the back of your mind, ‘How long?’ ‘ Hopefully, we can make it.’  That type of thing.  When that comes out, we can feel like there’s some longevity in this league to develop, and everything can be done right, and not cut corners.  I think everybody is excited about that aspect of it.” 

greg.luca@express-news.net