Andrew Smith, a Philadelphia-based attorney who publicly declared his candidacy for NFLPA Exec Dir last week, said yesterday that he has been notified by union officials that he will be on the ballot for the election in March. Smith, who has represented dozens of pro athletes in legal work, including NFL players, said yesterday he was notified by NFLPA President Eric Winston that three of the 32 NFLPA player reps had sent in written endorsements of him to the union. “Eric Winston formally notified me via email he was in receipt of three written nominations for this,” Smith said, yesterday. Other candidates who have declared publicly that they would challenge sitting NFLPA Exec Dir DeMaurice Smith in the election are Michigan-based attorney Jim Acho, former Navy Admiral John Stufflebeem and former NFLer Sean Gilbert. Gilbert is seen as the most serious challenger, as he has been publicly campaigning for the position for a year. Gilbert has previously said that he has commitments from more than three player reps, but indicated those nominations would not be turned in until close to the deadline. The deadline to turn in nominations for NFLPA Exec Dir is March 5 and the election is March 15. Andrew Smith said he has only been talking with NFLPA player reps for a few weeks about running. He noted that just because a player rep agreed to nominate him, it does not necessarily mean that the rep will vote for him. “I believe the current climate of the NFLPA and the amount of people who are challenging the incumbent speaks to the fact that this is an open race where everyone has a chance,” he said.
