The NFL Players Association (NFLPA) has officially announced that the use of sleep monitor devices outside of games and practices is in violation of the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). The CBA does allow the league to require players to wear sensors and other tracking devices during games and practices to collect performance, medical and safety-related information. However, NFLPA executive director, DeMaurice Smith, is seeking an order to immediately discontinue the use of these unapproved sensor devices until such use is approved by the NFLPA.
Teams like the Eagles and Seahawks believe that sleep-monitoring devices play a vital role in the performances of the players. The devices are believed to improve health and athletic performance by monitoring sleep patterns.
Teams like the Eagles and Seahawks are some of the early adopters of sleep tracking tech and think it is important to know whether or not their players are sleeping enough. Many coaches have gotten rid of their “No time to sleep” motto, and have replaced it with the focus of getting adequate rest for the best athletic performance. Seattle Seahawks team psychologist, Michael Gervais and Director of Player Health and Performance Sam Ramsden comment, “Fatigue and performance are intimately linked and sleep is one of the important variables to get right to help athletes sustain high effort and enthusiasm, for the long haul.”
The Philadelphia Eagles have used less invasive technology in the past to advance their players’ performance. Player sleep reports go right into a computer system that can be accessed by their sports science coordinator, Shaun Huls, on a regular basis. At the start of each day, the players take a wellness questionnaire on their iPads about their body soreness and more. This could be an alternative to sleep trackers since the technology does not follow them home.
On the other side of this issue, the NFLPA believes that the outside activities of players from their games and practices should be their own business. When players consent to sleep monitoring, outsiders may suggest that this consent may have been more forced for the best interest of the team’s performance.
Nevertheless, this is an ongoing debate and if teams want to continue the use of these monitors, they are going to need the permission to do so with clear NFLPA guidelines.
