Smith said the NFLPA during the next CBA talks will focus on Roger Goodell's right to suspend playersGETTY IMAGES
NFLPA Exec Dir DeMaurice Smith on Thursday made it clear the union would not extend the current CBA "beyond the 2020 season" and "went on the offensive" about future labor agreements, according to Barry Wilner of the AP. Smith during his annual Super Bowl week address said, "We prepare for war. If we are able to get a collective bargaining agreement done, great. All of these men went through a unilateral war declared on players in 2010-11" (AP, 2/1). Smith and the players said that they would "focus on a wide range of issues, including the commissioner's right to suspend players, rookie contracts and health care coverage." The union also said that it would "try to win a large portion of the leaguewide revenue that they divide with the owners" (N.Y. TIMES, 2/2). USA TODAY's Mike Jones notes NFL revenue and player salaries have "steadily increased." But Smith said that the players "see a need for an overhaul of the current agreement." He "anticipates that the owners do as well." Smith did not "rule out the possibility of engaging the league's owners in potential negotiations before the expiration of the current CBA." Smith: "There's no top five issues. There's just a series of issues where I think this group of player leaders and leaders that are going to come after them are going to be interested in, and how are we going to make this deal more equitable?" (USA TODAY, 2/2).
ADDRESSING ANTHEM ISSUES: Smith said that he is "hopeful that the owners will not make offseason changes to the league's national anthem policy." In DC, Mark Maske notes NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell was "noncommittal Wednesday when asked at his annual state-of-the-league address whether the owners might decide to keep players in the locker room until after the anthem is played next season." Smith stressed both Giants President & CEO John Mara, the head of the NFL's bargaining committee, and Goodell "met with us and told us that they believe in the players' right to protest." Smith: "I not only think that was the right decision. I also ... actually think it was a really good thing for them to do and a good thing for them to say." Meanwhile, Smith also said that "he'd have conversations with Goodell about possible ways to make Thursday night games safer for players" (WASHINGTON POST, 2/2). YAHOO SPORTS' Charles Robinson reported the union issued some "strong words to the anti-protest masses" as it related to "drawing a correlation between the league's television ratings and players expressing themselves on the field." Smith said, "There isn't a television show, news show that isn't at least experiencing a double-digit decline. To try to pin declining ratings on any single thing is being intellectually dishonest." Robinson wrote the NFLPA clearly "continues to chafe when it comes to the ratings blame game which has become somewhat of a political pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey" for President Trump (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 2/1).
DISCIPLINE STILL A CONCERN: Giants LS Zak DeOssie said that among the "desired changes" for the new CBA is the "issue of player discipline." DeOssie: "This is an issue that has been a thorn in our side -- commissioner discipline -- that we want to collectively bargain. To allow them to have the autonomy to make those decisions, it's obviously not good for us and it's not good for the NFL. Any way that we can move forward and get that collectively bargained is something that we really want" (ESPN.com, 2/1).
FINDING THEIR VOICE: USA TODAY's Nancy Armour writes the NFL players have "found their voice," as they have "realized that with their profile comes a platform, and they are increasingly willing to use it." NFLPA President Eric Winston said, "Whether it's social issues, whether that's charitable issues in your community, whether it's anything else that you think that needs fixing, that you are powerful and that, as a whole, we're even more powerful than that." Armour notes the union last summer "formed a political action committee that will lobby for work-place issues at the state and federal level," such as "worker's compensation or use of their likenesses without permission." Winston said that "more than 90% of the league is participating." A report filed this week with the Federal Election Commission showed that "almost $700,000 was donated on a single day in the fall" (USA TODAY, 2/2).
