Menu
Leagues and Governing Bodies

NFL Lockout Watch, Day 131: Brady Plaintiffs Unlikely To Derail New CBA

The NFL "will have to satisfy the 10 named plaintiffs in Brady vs. NFL antitrust case in order to complete" its new CBA with the NFLPA, but none of the players are "expected to derail any possible deal with their demands," according to ESPN.com. An NFLPA exec said, "Any media reports of a last-minute power play by players are misleading and erroneous. There are unresolved issues and we remain focused on resolving them." Colts QB Peyton Manning and Saints QB Drew Brees are two of the plaintiffs in the case, and agent Tom Condon, who reps both players, yesterday said that they "asked him to reiterate their support for all players and the NFLPA's negotiating team." Condon: "They haven't asked for anything individually and continue to be 100 percent behind the players' efforts to resolve the negotiations." A league source confirmed the demands made by Chargers WR Vincent Jackson's agents, but noted that Patriots G Logan Mankins and his agent, Frank Bauer, "have not given their damages or repayment number to the NFLPA or its attorneys yet." Another league source indicated that he "doubted Jackson, in particular, would hold up a settlement, however." Jackson wrote on Twitter last night, "Preciate the support guys! Can't believe all u read or see in media. I have made no demands, I wanna play ball like the rest of my peers" (ESPN.com, 7/20). In Boston, Greg Bedard cites a league source as saying that the "requests on behalf of Jackson, Brees, and Manning had virtually eroded." A "further update on the request for Mankins was not available, but it was expected to fall in line with the others" (BOSTON GLOBE, 7/20).

CLEARING THE AIR: Condon stressed that Manning and Brees "are not seeking separate settlements" in the lawsuit. He added, "Asserting anything else is nonsense. Drew and Peyton have been two of the staunchest supporters of the players throughout this process. What they are doing is endorsing the players' (bargaining position), not pursuing anything individually" (INDIANAPOLIS STAR, 7/20). Brees took to his Twitter account last night to "shoot down reports that he and some of the named plaintiffs ... are trying to get special treatment in order to drop the lawsuit." Brees wrote, "I hesitate to even dignify the false media reports with a response, but obviously they are leading people astray." He later added, "All media claims about me wanting a personal reward for this deal are false. I hope you all know me better than that" (New Orleans TIMES-PICAYUNE, 7/20). In N.Y., Ralph Vacchiano reports Giants DE Osi Umenyiora "doesn't intend to use" his role as a plaintiff in the Brady v. NFL case to "block any new deal between the NFL and its locked-out players." A source said, "He assumes they'll throw some cash at him or something. But do you really think he's not going to sign off on a deal? No" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 7/20).

DROP KICK: In St. Paul, Jeremy Fowler reports Vikings P Chris Kluwe used his Twitter account yesterday "to bash plaintiffs in the Brady v. NFL lawsuit who reportedly are pushing for compensation before settling the case." Kluwe wrote, "Sigh, and once again greed is the operative byword. Congrats Brees, Manning, Mankins, and Jackson for being 'that guy'. #douchebags." During an interview later yesterday, Kluwe said, "We're so close (to a new CBA), and to jeopardize it for something like that, it seems greedy and selfish. It paints players in a bad light. As far as I know, since it is a class-action suit, it's all of us that are being represented" (ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS, 7/20). Asked if he "was really upset or just having fun" with his Twitter posts, Kluwe said, "It’s like a mix of both. The thing is we’re so close to having a deal done and to kind of pull that at the last minute it feels kind of like blackmail. We all out the owners when they do crap like that and it's only fair to call out our own [people] when they do the same thing. I'm against hypocrisy wherever it's at. Just finish the deal up so we can get the season going" (STARTRIBUNE.com, 7/19). He added, "It's just one of those things where it's bad PR for players as a whole. You look at this and look at these guys and you go, ‘Why would you do that right now when we're so close to getting a deal done?'" (FOXSPORTSNORTH.com, 7/19).

MORE THAN WHAT IT SEEMS: In San Diego, Nick Canepa writes, "Now that the CBA broth cooked up by the NFL and its players association is ready to be served, is it possible that too few cooks can spoil it? Can it all boil over and ruin everyone’s dinner? Can they stick a sharp spoon into the NFL season? The answers really are quite simple: No, no and no." The antitrust lawsuit "will have to be dropped or settled before a CBA can be ratified, but that pinhole will be filled, nothing more than a sidebar negotiation." Canepa: "There is far too much money currently involved ... for this thing to derail over the manure-disturbing of a few players and their agents. Are we really supposed to believe Vincent Jackson wants to be the man who holds up a season?" (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 7/20).

SBJ Morning Buzzcast: March 25, 2024

NFL meeting preview; MLB's opening week ad effort and remembering Peter Angelos.

Big Get Jay Wright, March Madness is upon us and ESPN locks up CFP

On this week’s pod, our Big Get is CBS Sports college basketball analyst Jay Wright. The NCAA Championship-winning coach shares his insight with SBJ’s Austin Karp on key hoops issues and why being well dressed is an important part of his success. Also on the show, Poynter Institute senior writer Tom Jones shares who he has up and who is down in sports media. Later, SBJ’s Ben Portnoy talks the latest on ESPN’s CFP extension and who CBS, TNT Sports and ESPN need to make deep runs in the men’s and women's NCAA basketball tournaments.

SBJ I Factor: Nana-Yaw Asamoah

SBJ I Factor features an interview with AMB Sports and Entertainment Chief Commercial Office Nana-Yaw Asamoah. Asamoah, who moved over to AMBSE last year after 14 years at the NFL, talks with SBJ’s Ben Fischer about how his role model parents and older sisters pushed him to shrive, how the power of lifelong learning fuels successful people, and why AMBSE was an opportunity he could not pass up. Asamoah is 2021 SBJ Forty Under 40 honoree. SBJ I Factor is a monthly podcast offering interviews with sports executives who have been recipients of one of the magazine’s awards.

Shareable URL copied to clipboard!

https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Daily/Issues/2011/07/20/Leagues-and-Governing-Bodies/NFL-Plantiffs.aspx

Sorry, something went wrong with the copy but here is the link for you.

https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Daily/Issues/2011/07/20/Leagues-and-Governing-Bodies/NFL-Plantiffs.aspx

CLOSE