Shorten the Preseason? Add a Regular Season Game? Someone Better Ask Gene Upshaw First

In his "Weekly Message," NFL Player's Association President Gene Upshaw has made it clear that the players are, apparently, going to fight the commissioner on every front:

"The topic of a longer season has not been raised by the NFL lately. In their haste and early discussions about creating more revenue, some from their side have suggested adding a 17th game. Seems simple, if you agree with the NFL. The discussion will not advance in any way until they are willing to pay the players to play. As we approach the pre-season, the talking heads will follow the NFL lead, saying that pre-season is too long: “Let’s go to a 3-17 schedule.” Unless and until the NFL is willing to pay the players an additional game check, this will be a short discussion."

On its face the statement seems provocative enough, however we have to wonder just how many owners want to eliminate even one of the pre-season games.

As a fans and season ticket holders we'd love to quit paying full-price for exhibition games. However, the fact that owners are not required to pay their players until the regular season begins (and also do not pay them in the postseason) while collecting full-price for tickets to exhibition games makes it unlikely that owners will be lining up to fight this battle.

While some have posited that the additional game could increase television revenue the feeling here is that one more game will increase television revenue marginally. Instead, we'd like to suggest that the league offer an online version of "Sunday Ticket" for out of market, preseason games only thereby allowing the hardcore and/or displaced to watch their favorite team; and at $29.95 per subscriber (our suggested price point) net revenues would meet or exceed the commissioner's suggested plan.

Owners Terminate CBA

The NFL Owners have announced that they have opted to cancel the collective bargaining agreement (CBA) with the player's union.

In a statement the league insists that

"[e]ven without another agreement, NFL football will be played without threat of interruption for at least the next three seasons. The 2008 and 2009 seasons will be played with a salary cap. If there is no new agreement before the 2010 season, that season will be played without a salary cap under rules that also limit the free agency rights of the players. If not extended, the agreement would expire at the end of the 2010 league year."

Meanwhile, in this week's installment of his "100 Words,"(released 5/19) the head of the National Football League Player's Association, Gene Upshaw, signals that this news has been expected for some time, and as a result is anticlimactic:

"The NFL owners will hold their spring meeting in Atlanta this week. One of the issues surely to be discussed is the timing of the early termination notice of the CBA. We should expect a notice to be given to us following this meeting. The notice will have no material effect on the players. It only means the CBA will end after the 2010 season unless an extension is negotiated. With all the talk about early termination, it will be good to get this issue behind us since all the owners have done since signing the 2006 agreement is complain."

One thing to remember, vis-a-vis the uncapped season of 2010, is that Mr. Upshaw has been adamant that the players would not play in an uncapped year -- the obvious point being that the players would strike rather than play.

The Line in the Sand

We've been concerned about the possibility of a player's strike in the NFL for awhile now; and it appears that we now know what one of the core issues will be in the upcoming death match: a rookie salary cap.

On the day after the NFL draft concluded commissioner Roger Goodell went on ESPN radio's "Mike and Mike" show and told the world that he is "a big fan of the rookie salary cap."

Then two days later Pro Football Talk alerted us to comments by Patriots' owner Robert Kraft, in a piece by Mike Reiss of the Boston Globe, that "[i]t's kind of nuts that you pay draft picks in the top 10 as if they were free agent veterans on their second contract and have been to a Pro Bowl."

But beyond just complaining about the "system" the outline of the NFL's method of attack is clear -- pit the league's veterans (i.e. the NFLPA membership) against the rookies. Need proof? Here is more from Roger Goodell:

"I think that it is very much in the best interest of our veteran players, being able to be rewarded for what they achieve on the NFL field, and to the kind of money that's being guaranteed for rookies that have not played – there's still a question of whether they can play at the NFL level. That's something that I don't think is appropriate, and I think it's one of the things that we've already outlined with the union that we want to discuss and reevaluate it."

And more from Robert Kraft:

"We've suggested to the Labor Committee and the commissioner that we scale that back and take that money and give it to the veterans. We're still going to spend the money, [but] we think it's a misallocation of resources and actually can cause problems in your locker room when a young guy who has never played a down is getting paid more than some of your vested veterans."

Despite Gene Upshaw's contention that the NFLPA will never agree to a rookie salary cap there appears to be some support for the concept amongst veterans. The following is from a piece written by Chris Cooley, tight end for the Washington Redskins (thanks to Pro Football Talk!):

"The point here is that if a rookie in any other profession could step on the scene and make more than someone with a proven track record, the business would turn upside down. Imagine a first year staff accountant making more money than a senior partner simply because his 10 key skills were top in his class. This is basically what's happening in the NFL. Players are making money simply based on the number they were taken. Something with this system needs to change."

Creating a schism amongst the players on this issue won't prove to be much of a challenge for the owners; and what happens then (can anyone say "decertification"?) is anyone's guess.

The War has Begun

According to the National Football League Player's Association (NFLPA)website the players have "filed the first collusion case ever against the NFL owners for their recent agreement to reduce by 20% the debt limitations that apply to individual NFL Clubs."

In other words, the amount of debt any individual club may now incur has been reduced by twenty percent.

Why does the player's union care? From the NFLPA's perspective this is all tied to the so-called "uncapped" year that is looming off in the distance (i.e. 2010): "[T]he agreement to reduce the debt limit is part of a broader scheme in which the owners are colluding to reduce spending on player salaries during what could be an Uncapped [sic] year."

Until now we've heard words from Gene Upshaw, and responses from Roger Goodell that could be perceived as dismissive.

Now we have lawyers.

Pittsburgh Steelers owner Dan Rooney will be in Indianapolis during the combine to host a "diversity dinner," and Gene Upshaw is expected to attend. Whether any discussions about the collective bargaining agreement remains to be seen, but here's hoping that Mr. Rooney can start something approximating a constructive dialogue.

Well, It's Out in the Open Now

We've been ringing the alarm bells for a while -- a couple of times actually -- and now comes out in the open confirmation that the National Football League and its player's union are preparing for a good, old-fashioned labor battle.

An article in the most recent issue of Sports Business Journal includes a quote from Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones indicating that the current collective bargaining agreement "is just not working" for the league's owners.

According to the article by Daniel Kaplan, both sides have until November 8, 2008 to opt out of the current agreement, though such a move can occur any time before that.

Meanwhile the players union continues to escalate their rhetoric, with union chief Gene Upshaw being quoted (via email) as saying "we are not giving [the owners] anything back. I put my Santa Claus suit away on Dec. 26 after we opened gifts. There were no presents for owners in my bag. Quote me on that please. I’m at the Pro Bowl, and the players understand exactly what is going on.”

According to the article the players will explore available options including "decertifying the union so the players could sue the league under antitrust laws."

A challenge of the NFL's antitrust exemption -- something that allows owners to limit the movement of franchises, and negotiate television deals -- would (to say the least) complicate matters tremendously.

The Drumbeat Continues

We alerted you to the possibility of discord between the National Football League and the NFL Player's Association, and now comes further indication that the players are ratcheting things up.

According to a report from the Associated Press (via the NFLPA website) union chief Gene Upshaw "said he expects the NFL's owners to opt out of the current agreement later this year. If that happens, the players' union is ready for a strike or the decertification tactics it used to get free agency after the 1987 walkout, although nothing major would happen until 2010, which would be a year without a salary cap."

At the heart of the current collective bargaining agreement is the fact that the players receive sixty percent of league revenues (though what goes in to that equation is also a matter of contention), and Mr. Upshaw insisted that the players "will not accept anything lower than that figure. And he said if the two sides get to an uncapped year, there would be no turning back."

So, enjoy the 2009 season because by this time in 2010 we may . . . just may . . . be looking at the NFL version of armageddon.

Storm Clouds Off in the Distance

It seems just like yesterday that the National Football League and its Players' Association (NFLPA) narrowly avoided the pandemonium of an "uncapped" year when the two parties hammered out a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA). With that agreement labor peace was guaranteed through the 2011 season.

Or maybe not.

Word from NFLPA's head man, Gene Upshaw, is that the NFL's owners are expected to opt for early termination of the CBA in the first quarter of 2008. Under the terms of the agreement 24 owners must vote to keep the existing CBA in force. According to Mr. Upshaw "[c]learly, there are not 24 votes."

So don't despair -- even after the Super Bowl is over there is sure to be plenty of NFL news.

Changes in the Offing for Disabled Players

The treatment of former, disabled, players has been an area in which the National Football League has received some well-deserved criticism. Now comes word, in the form of an NFL press release, on changes in the NFL retirement plan that have been agreed to by the league and the National Football League Player's Association (NFLPA). In as much as Pittsburgh Steelers Fanatic has been fairly critical of the league on this issue, the contents of the press release are offered here verbatim.

"The NFL and NFL Players Association have agreed to a series of improvements to streamline and expedite the process for retired players vested in The Bert Bell/Pete Rozelle NFL Player Retirement Plan to receive disability benefits.

In addition to the improvements in the disability procedures, the NFL and NFLPA also agreed to provide retired players with a prescription drug card that will permit them to purchase prescription medications at a substantial discount. This new benefit will be provided at no cost to former players and will be funded under the NFL’s Collective Bargaining Agreement.

Following are the changes to the disability procedures:

1. Medical Director – The plan will retain a medical director to consult with the two-person initial claims committee and, as needed, with the retirement board to assist in resolving claims. It is expected that this will reduce the number of initial denials at the claims committee level, expediting both initial approvals and the processing of appeals. In addition, the medical director can help ensure that standards are consistently applied, that reports are prepared in a timely basis, and otherwise monitor the performance of neutral physicians.

2. Physician Panels – The plan will establish a series of physician “panels” or “teams,” consisting of doctors with experience in orthopedic and other practices. These teams will initially be located in areas where there is the largest concentration of retired players, including in Arizona, California, Florida and Texas, as well as in other major metropolitan areas. This change will reduce the trips required of people needing to be examined by doctors in different specialties.

3. Claims Specialist – The plan will provide a specialist to receive calls from applicants via a toll-free number. This specialist will assist in preparing applications and advise applicants on the information that is required. The completed application will be sent to the applicant for review, verification and signature. The 45-day review period will begin once the signed application is returned. This service will make it more likely that applications are completed correctly the first time and thus reduce the processing time.

4. Expedited Email Appeals – The retirement board will, whenever possible, decide appeals via email ballots. This will allow for faster decisions on many appeals and will avoid requiring applicants to wait for the next scheduled meeting of the retirement board.

5. Extending Review Period – The plan will reduce the number and frequency of continuation reviews for those applicants receiving total and permanent disability benefits by extending the current three-year maximum to at least five years. Any three trustees may require a continuation review more frequently, although not more frequently than annually, if they decide there is reason to do so.

'We at the NFLPA promised some time ago, including to the U.S. Congress, that we would do our best to improve and expedite the disability claims process, and these five concrete steps plus the prescription drug card help fulfill that promise,' said GENE UPSHAW, the NFL Players Association Executive Director.

Earlier this week (December 10), the NFL and NFLPA announced the creation of a new benefit plan to assist eligible retired players in need of joint replacement surgery. The program selected 14 leading medical centers across the country to make available specialized, coordinated care to players covered by this new program, which includes financial assistance to all players, regardless of their financial situation, to cover the cost of the operations.

'These changes will substantially improve the disability process and are another step in our commitment to address the medical needs of retired players,' adds NFL Executive Vice President of Labor Relations HAROLD HENDERSON."

Anything that makes it easier for these former players, i.e. the players upon whom the NFL's multibillion dollar industry was built, to receive that assistance that they have earned and require is welcomed. However, anyone who has dealt with the bureaucracy of "benefit plans" (i.e. health insurance) know how frustrating that can be. So just how much change there will actually be remains to be seen.