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As more and more veteran NFL players realize that the system for awarding huge windfalls to a handful of unproven rookies must change, leadership of the NFL Players Association continues to be out of touch with its constituents.
In an item posted today on the union’s web site, the case is made against change. But the case that’s made makes no sense, because the union continues to gloss over the real problem.
This isn’t about all rookies. Surely, Devin Hester doesn’t believe his rookie deal left him overpaid or even fairly compensated. Rather, it’s about those 10-15 rookies each year who receive enormous amounts of money based solely on potential.
Some earn their keep, some don’t. The ones who suck end up sucking salary-cap money out of the system.
And the extra money paid to rookies who never earn it is money that could be diverted to veterans who deserve it.
The danger for the folks who run the union is that, at a time when players are less fearful than ever to challenge the powers-that-be at the NFLPA, this issue can become the issue that assumes a life of its own, and that topples the current leadership structure.
The problem is that Gene Upshaw and company have dug their heels in so deeply that all they can now do is continue to dig.
July 24th, 2008 at 8:46 pm
One of the few things that the NHL did right (besides being a better game)than the NFL is put in a pay scale for rookies. The NHL pays their top rookies when they are ready to play in the NHL a 3 year contract valued at $850,000.00/yr. Obviously the NFL cannot keep players without a contract for 2 years like the NHL and they would definitley pay them more than $850,000.00/year but there sure as hell has to be a middle ground that can be reached in this same manner.
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Rating: 3 / 5 with 4 rating(s)
July 24th, 2008 at 10:01 pm
Gene Upshaw is an arrogant prick that clearly doesn’t have his constituent’s best interests in mind.
The players that take leadership roles needs to get together and take action against the NFLPA for quick change. If it doesn’t happen, things are only going to get worse come 2010.
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Rating: 5 / 5 with 2 rating(s)
July 24th, 2008 at 10:22 pm
Hey Mr. Mike,
I disagree with my man Packerswin that NHL is a better game. I think most people would agree that NFL Football is king of all pro sports. It works on TV very well and at the live games there is nothing like it.
But Football would improve it’s quality and talent would be less diluted across teams if teams could afford to keep proven veterans longer. The rookie salary binge as currently set up works against veterans and works against overall quality.
You would think that the union would stand up for veterans, the majority of the rank and file. But they do not. Agents like the rookie windfall payscales and it is understandable why they would. Why union leadership seems to take the same position is unclear.
But those of us who love the sport seem to agree that something needs to be done to cap the pay scale for unproven rookies and reserve the balance for veterans. Veterans agree. I think owners agree. And I think most fans do too.
I know that Gene Upshaw seemed to undo Troy Vincent’s heir apparent status last year. I hope his candidacy is strongly reconsidered by the new Search Committee.
F2B
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July 24th, 2008 at 10:59 pm
capo gino needs to be investigated under rico laws.
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July 24th, 2008 at 11:34 pm
The problem with the NFLPA upper management is that they have stopped seeing themselves as representing the players. They see their purpose in life as opposing the NFL powers that be and limiting them. While sometimes those goals are one and the same, they are not always. Upper management in the union needs to come out of its seclusion and start acting in the best interest of the players. In this case they are only representing a small portion of people who will one day be players, at the cost of many others. What we have here is a system that benefits several unknown quantities every year, and handicaps teams that did not perform well (the top drafters) as well as every vet who could get paid a bit more for their production.
The draft is supposed to help the teams that do poorly. They get top draft picks and should, in theory, either be able to get their pick of college players, or trade that pick for other proven players or many other draft picks. Instead now the worts performing teams get a pick that will cost them top money (often as much money as a top free agent vet would get) for a player that may or may not do well, and they find it hard to trade down because no one else wants to spend that much of their cap on an unknown.
The system needs fixing, and Upshaw refuses to realize this, because he has forgotten his job is to help the players, not oppose the NFL at every turn. Or maybe he is now representing agents?
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Rating: 4 / 5 with 2 rating(s)
July 24th, 2008 at 11:36 pm
Hopefully the main thing Upshaw is digging is his own grave as leader of the union.
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July 25th, 2008 at 9:32 am
So, if these rookie deals for the top picks are such bad deals, why do the owners keep paying them? All it will take is for one owner to tell a high pick to go screw himself. Sure it will take cajones to do it, but that’s what needs to happen.
From the rookies’ standpoint, it sounds like BS that not only can you not choose your employer, they can even tell you how much money you can have. For an industry where there are only 32 employers that have a legal anti-trust exemption to collude with each other, and can collectively bargain with the union, it seems a little much. Of course the other players would rather you made less, that’s the fox guarding the henhouse.
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July 25th, 2008 at 3:02 pm
Solution:
Roger Goodell puts(stomps) his foot down(again)and implements a basic position salary schedule with catastrophic injury insurance based on years played after erasing all contracts after 2010 season. Players will be paid a weekly uniform salary(based on tenure) and a bonus salary point system will be implemented for sacks, tackles, pancakes, touchdowns, yardage, etc. This bonus could then be paid either weekly or at the end of the season. The excessisve and sometimes futile signing bonuses of players that don’t pan out, don’t perform, or don’t get paid enough for their efforts(example: Devin Hester and veterans that will not make what the current first round picks make.)
What this will do:
–there will be no holdouts
–everyone will have adequate insurance if they get hurt players will not have to worry if they are hurt severely
–players will study and train/compete harder to earn bonuses which will lead to a more entertaining show…you’ll get the best of the best consistently
–teams won’t be forced to cut marquis players that represent their franchise or worry about injury settlements as this will be covered in the pay structure
–it will eliminate the current strained economics where the worst team with the #1 pick is cap-strapped after paying a ridiculous amount for an untested player who need funds for other necessary players salaries to rebuild their franchise
–the draft will do what it was meant to do and that is afford the teams’ ability to rebuild through the draft
–most importantly, the over-rated players get paid what they deserve…the minimum
Of course there will need to be a structure in place to allocate funds to the basic structure, insurance, bonus potential vs. team profits. At least, this would be a start.
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