Apparently the NFL is confused about the new court order her honor dictated and “needs a few days to work things out”.
Funny, I never have any problem taking orders from anybody. . . đ
Really.
And oh, by the way, she gave the order so that you guys could trade and open free agency in time for the draft!
Now get busy ! Please.
With lockouts and shutdowns looming in our faces next week and fiscal debates and strikes hitting all the headlines, I am beginning to wonder if CBAâs and Unions are really necessary and useful anymore.
Donât get me wrong, I am all for worker rights and such but much of the core values behind forming Unions eons ago have been incorporated into federal and state guidelines for businesses.
After all, I am not part of a union but I have what I consider a good job with good benefits and lots of resources available to me as an employee and citizen.
Also, with fiscal responsibility becoming more and more forefront in everyoneâs minds ( AKA Wisconsin ), many local governments and organizations are looking at the possibility of consolidating services across boundaries in an effort to reduce costs and become more efficient by reducing duplication of jobs, roles and services.
Regarding the NFL and the Players Union; would it be so bad to have the NFL act like any other publicly traded company? And would it really hurt the players to be employees and stock holders of said company?
I bet the owners would get at least as much, if not more, money than they do now. The players and the public would have disclosure, and agents could still negotiate as they do now for contracts and salaries.
Iâm just curious as to what everyoneâs opinions are, or am I alone in thinking like this and just need to get with the program?
I was working on a post about the possibilities regarding the NFL CBA negotiations and the possible outcomes.
But, as usual, somebody else wrote about it. And, much better than I could ever possibly hope to.
Gabriel Feldman is a writer at the Huffington Post and he also happens to be a Law Professor in Sports Law at Tulane University.
If you read through his article, you will be able to put together a potential script for how this is all going to play out.
I especially liked that part about the NFL making a final and best offer and putting the blame on the players who have the “let us play” campaign.
Yes, there is a lot of money at stake here, but so are a lot of reputations and images as well.
My prediction: We will not see any significant events until the 11th hour and hope that they make something happen for the 4th. But if the two sides do not, then my fear is that they will hash something out later in the year to “save” the season, which of course – in my opinion, it will be too late.
But, like the sports fans we are, will watch anyway.
So, without further delay, here is Gabriel’s article . . .
NFL Lockout: The Legal Issues Behind the NFL-CBA Negotiations
Featuring the NFLPA and NFL Owners Association.
Obamaâs State of the Union Address and the State of the NFL, Owners and Players Union all have a lot in common.
Namely . . .
Hope:Â
Obama is full of it and he wants us to be too. He actually means well, works hard and is calling for everyone to work together to turn things around and continue on the road to recovery.
The NFL owners, players and fans hope there is a 2011 season and in reality the owners and players need to come together and get this whole CBA thing worked out.
Jobs:
Obama says we need to create more and that the landscape has changed.
The NFL says the players need to do more and that there should be 18 game seasons.
The players want to keep theirs and say that a lock out will cost some markets $160 million in lost economic jobs.
The fans just want everybody to do theirs.
Money
Everybody wants more.
The owners say they are no longer profitable, are losing money and the rookie salaries are out of control.
The players say they are not as profitable as the current agreement says they are and that there are hidden costs to their profession.
The fans donât want to lose out on the chance to bet on games and win fantasy football pools, oh and are tired of everyone else complaining they donât have enough.
Health Care
The owners say they are concerned about the players well being and safety
The players say sacrifice their bodies for the job and that the cost(s) stay with them and only get worse after their careers are over and often are unable to get proper care.
The fans donât want the game to become nothing more than flag football or two hand touch.
Transparency and accountability
The players say if you are losing so much money and are no longer profitable, prove it and open up your books.
The owners say âNo wayâ.
The fans say both sides are blowing smoke and need to be held accountable.
First of all, neither side has owned up to the whole truth.
Politifact has proven that the $160 million statement made by the NFLPA is bogus.
A study was made (as best as possible) that the owners are full of it when they say they are no longer profitable under the current agreement.
AND
That the players union is basically right when they say the players are not getting the total percentage of profits as stated in the current agreement.
AND
That strangely enough rookie salaries are not out of control.
The current state of the Union and negotiations is a Stalemate and this benefit nobody!
The two sides have yet to sit down and do any serious negotiations. In fact just about the only thing that has happened is lots of finger pointing, digging in, getting ready for a lockout, and name calling.
Now for the Fumbled Returns Analysis:
IMHO:
The NFLPA is screwed, has the most to lose, and needs to step up to the plate and earnestly start negotiations.  Of course, this will not really start to happen, at least publicly, until the 11th hour.
The owners really are rich and if there is a lock out, yes they lose out on all the additional revenue from ticket sales and merchandise but they donât have any salaries to pay out either. Plus, they have a signed sealed and delivered TV contract in place that guarantees them millions upon millions over the next several years.
And as you may have heard, the union has the desertification trick up their sleeve but this is a double edge sword.
If the NFLPA were to decertify, it would, in effect, operate as a trade organization but cease to be a union. If the league then tried to lock out players, the NFLPA could sue the NFL under U.S. antitrust laws and contend the league was conducting a group boycott, which is illegal. It could not sue the NFL if it remained a union with collective-bargaining authority for its members, under the labor exemption to antitrust laws
Although there are advantages to the union decertifying, namely allowing it to gain access to the antitrust laws, there are disadvantages as well. Not only would the NFLPA not be able to collectively bargain for its members, it could not bring grievances for them and could not compel them to pay dues or control their marketing rights. When the union decertified in 1989, the league and the NFLPA, acting as a trade association, competed with each other for playersâ marketing and licensing rights.
If a lock out occurs, The Owners will come out looking as the bad guys.
The players will be hurting financially.
And the fans will be pissed.
So, what to do?
In the spirit of U.S Activism, and political / constitutional rights, I urged every fan to at the very least voice their opinion to the NFL, NFLPA, and heck even congress. They tend to stay out of stuff like this but hey, in tough economic times, who knows, it just might become a point of interest for them politically.
There are also various sites and petitions you can sign up with such as savenextseason.com and the sports fan coalition (which btw is heavily funded by media companies like cable and Verizon).
To borrow a state of the union phrase from Obama, “we will move forward together”.
Fumbled Returns 