WWE is offering tryouts to former Alliance of American Football players

World Wrestling Entertainment is offering tryouts to Alliance of American Football players after the start-up league suspended operations on Tuesday with just two weeks left to play in its inaugural season.

These tryouts, however, aren't for WWE chairman and CEO Vince McMahon's new (kind of) football league that is set to launch in the spring of 2020, the XFL.

The tryouts are for wrestling. 

WWE director of talent development Paul Fair tweeted the tryout offer to displaced AAF players. 

"(With) the bad news coming out today for the players involved w/ #AAF, I’m opening up 2 spots to our April @WWE Tryout," Fair wrote on Twitter.

Fair works on recruiting athletes from sports other than wrestling for WWE's developmental system. Pro wrestling has a long history of bringing football players into the ring. The most famous, of course, is Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, who played college football at the University of Miami before embarking on a lucrative career in wrestling with McMahon's World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment.

The AAF suspended operations after just eight weeks of play, joining a long list of professional football leagues that struggled to get off the ground.

"I am extremely disappointed to learn Tom Dundon has decided to suspend all football operations of the Alliance of American Football," AAF co-founder Bill Polian said in a statement Tuesday. "When Mr. Dundon took over, it was the belief of my co-founder, Charlie Ebersol, and myself that we would finish the season, pay our creditors, and make the necessary adjustments to move forward in a manner that made economic sense for all.

"The momentum generated by our players, coaches and football staff had us well positioned for future success. Regrettably, we will not have that opportunity."

McMahon announced in early 2018 that a re-imagined XFL will launch in 2020 with eight teams.

Follow USA TODAY Sports' Jim Reineking on Twitter @jimreineking.