The Sports Xchange

Another fantasy football convention in Las Vegas is going ahead with plans to hold the event without current NFL players.

Last week, the Tony Romo-led inaugural National Fantasy Football Convention was canceled after the league informed the NFL Players Association that the event scheduled for July 10-12 would be in violation of NFL rules by being held at a casino property.

This week, organizers of the Fantasy Sports Combine told the Associated Press they are continuing with their plans for an event in Las Vegas with former NFL players participating in autograph and fantasy-related sessions.

FSC founder Bo Brownstein, who is based in Denver, said he was replacing the five active players he had lined up — Denver Broncos linebacker Von Miller, Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Miles Austin, Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Michael Floyd, Pittsburgh Steelers running back DeAngelo Williams and New York Jets wide receiver Brandon Marshall — with recently retired players. The lineup also includes former coaches Mike Ditka and Mike Shanahan.

“Current players was a small feature in a much bigger experience,” Brownstein said. “That feature can be easily overcome with marquee former players because their perspective is identical.”

Among the former players already scheduled to attend the July 17-18 conference at the Wynn Las Vegas and Encore were wide receiver Brandon Stokley and quarterback Kyle Orton.

Romo said Tuesday that the NFL was acting out of spite when it forced the cancellation of the National Fantasy Football Convention in Las Vegas.

“It’s like when you’re in high school and you don’t get invited to the party, it makes you feel bad,” the Dallas Cowboys’ quarterback told ESPN Radio’s Colin Cowherd. “If they really wanted to just be a part of it, all they had to do was just call and ask. It would’ve been a lot easier, I think, than going about the process the way they did.”

The three-day event was scheduled to be hosted by the Venetian Resort Hotel Casino in Las Vegas. All of the sessions were to be held at the Sands Expo and Convention Center, which does not have on-site gambling.

“Players and NFL personnel may not participate in promotional activities or other appearances at or in connection with events that are held at or sponsored by casinos,” an NFL spokesman said last week in a statement to FOX Sports.

Punishment for participation in the event likely would have been a fine, a source told FOX Sports.

Romo organized the event and various active players were scheduled to appear, including New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski, Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown, Philadelphia Eagles running back DeMarco Murray and Kansas City Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles.

Players were due more than a combined $1 million in marketing or appearance fees, according to ESPN.

“We understand that these things come about and there’s big money involved sometimes from the NFL’s perspective,” Romo said. “If we had known about the issue of the place or thought that was something that could’ve been an issue, the NFL could’ve told us that right away. That’s where it makes it interesting.”

Romo pointed out that the NFL seemingly has no problem with its teams dealing with gambling companies, such as a sponsorship agreement between the MGM Grand Detroit and the Detroit Lions for a club suite being added to Ford Field.

“They talk about how no players or NFL personnel are to be associated (with casinos). Well, I’m like, ‘That doesn’t really make sense,'” Romo said. “There’s just far too many cases and it does make it sound sometimes that it’s an issue about money, which is disappointing because we were just trying to get the fans to hang out with players.”