I like the idea I saw of players being able to declare for the draft as a collegiate prospect. This would be for players who have one more year of study required to get their degree but wish to start making money; they can be selected by NFL teams but are returned to college for the next year before reporting to their team. Their professional contract is agreed post draft and they are paid by the NFL team for their final college year but at a much lower rate, and they retain football eligibility. This means that teams take the risk of drafting a player who subsequently gets injured or has a down year, but also could end up drafting a quality player lower down, while guys who just want to go to the big league and start playing can do so.
I'm sure there are problems with this plan, not least the NCAA, but it has some merit.