I really had planned on not posting anything at all having to do with the NFL labor dispute between owners and players that has resulted in the current lockout, since I, like most fans, really don’t want to hear any sob stories from either group. The situation has been described as the “Millionaires vs. Billionaires”, and neither side has any chance of spinning this story to gain sympathy for their side from the public. The general consensus is – just get it done, we don’t care how, we want games played. The game has never been as popular as it is today. The last 2 Super Bowl telecasts were the 2 highest rated TV shows of all time. The NFL draft drew 45 million viewers last season and is a popular event for fans around the league. The player’s union, now decertified and officially a “trade organization”, has suggested that the top draft prospects skip the official draft ceremony where they cross the stage, shake the commissioner’s hand and hold up a team jersey of the club that drafts them in a photo op, and instead attend a union event down the street and be congratulated by NFLPA head DeMaurice Smith. In my opinion this is a bad PR move by the players, since this event is mostly for the fans, so ruining it is not going to win them any favor. Also, it robs the rookies of their big moment, where they realize their life-long dream of starting an NFL career and get to share the moment with their families.
The whole situation seemed to be going well when both sides were negotiating behind closed doors with a federal mediator. It’s unfortunate that as soon as the negotiations broke off that both sides lowered themselves to the tired rhetoric in which they take turns criticizing each other. One thing about the owner’s side in this situation – when the current (now expired) deal was agreed upon, all but 2 owners praised it. Cincinnati’s Mike Brown, and especially Buffalo’s Ralph Wilson, were extremely critical of the deal. Wilson was portrayed as old, senile and out-of-touch at the time by the Jerry Jones’ and Daniel Snyders of the league, but when the owners voted to opt out of the deal in 2006, ending it in 2010 intead of 2013, Wilson was vindicated.
The player’s association plan to dissolve the union and get a settlement through the courts involves a class action lawsuit on behalf of the players with Tom Brady, Peyton Manning and Drew Brees, among others, being named as plaintiffs. Interestingly, one of the “others” is Texas A&M linebacker Von Miller, who figures to be a top 5 pick in the draft,and who hopefully the Buffalo Bills are considering choosing. He is said to be a Lawrence Taylor type talent, minus the cocaine. Miller isn’t even in the league yet, so he certainly isn’t an NFLPA member, so I don’t know how he gets dragged into it, but I’m sure his presence has something to do with the players attempting to fight the “rookie wage scale” that the owners want to put in place. Whether the whole thing gets settled in the courts or through renewed negotiations, hopefully it gets settled soon. Both sides would be foolish to kill the golden goose.