Marcus Stroud chats with The Scores Report
Posted by Anthony Stalter (02/10/2011 @ 6:12 pm)

Marcus Stroud is one of those players who are easy to root for. Not only is he a three-time Pro Bowler and an All-Pro, but he’s also someone that wants to play the game until his legs fall off or until they kick him out of the league. He’s been busy rehabbing his shoulder after undergoing recent surgery, but he took the time to chat with us about his thoughts on the Super Bowl, the CBA and of course, the Bills. Find out what he had to say about the NFL’s battle with the NFLPA over the use of franchise tags, as well as what Bills he believes could become future stars.
The Scores Report: Hi, this is Anthony.
Marcus Stroud: Anthony – Marcus Stoud.
TSR: Hey Marcus, how are you?
MS: Good, and you?
TSR: Doing good. You enjoying your offseason so far?
MS: Yes and no. I’m rehabbing right now.
TSR: What are you rehabbing?
MS: My shoulder. I had shoulder surgery.
TSR: How’s everything going with the rehab?
MS: It’s going pretty good. I’m actually rehabbing right now.
TSR: Oh, man! Well I appreciate your taking time to chat with me while you’re hard at work. What did you think of the Super Bowl?
Read the rest of this entry »
Cromartie rips NFL, players union over stalled CBA talks
Posted by Anthony Stalter (01/24/2011 @ 7:31 pm)
Now that the season is over and the Jets have run out of opponents to play, Antonio Cromartie has decided to aim his trash talking at the NFL and players union for their failed CBA talks.
From ESPN.com:
“To me, you need to stop bitching about it,” the New York Jets cornerback said. “And if you wanna say you’re gonna get into a room and meet and greet, and say you’re gonna do what you need to do, then do it. Don’t just talk about it.”
There was little optimism in the Jets’ locker room that the union and the NFL would avert a course that seems to be headed for disaster. The CBA will officially expire on March 4 when the owners can opt to lock out the players.
“Especially when you don’t get no information about nothing from the union or the owners,” Cromartie said. “So to tell you the truth they need to get their damn minds together and get this [expletive] done. Stop bitching about money. Money ain’t nothing. Money can be here and gone. Us players, we want to go out and play football. It’s something we’ve been doing and we love it and enjoy it. It’s our livelihood.”
I second Cromartie’s take on this issue. All we’ve heard so far from people like Roger Goodell is that a new deal will be in place by next season. Yet here we are, just two weeks away from the Super Bowl and a deal remains unsigned. It also appears that the two sides are no closer to agreeing to terms than they were at the start of the year.
How about making some progress before saying that a new deal will definitely be in place before next season?
Owners, NFLPA already working on a new deal
Posted by Anthony Stalter (06/30/2010 @ 5:45 pm)

FOX Sports’ Alex Marvez has some outstanding news for football fans, as he’s reporting that the NFLPA has entered negations with commissioner Roger Goodell and the two sides are entertaining a new six-year Collective Bargaining Agreement that would extend through the 2016 season.
There are still some hurdles that must be overcome before a new deal can be struck, however.
While stating some progress is being made, Smith remains adamant that the NFL provide detailed financial records for its teams before an agreement can be struck. Goodell has strongly resisted such requests and shows no sign of acquiescing.
Such information is especially important to the NFLPA because Smith claims the league is demanding an 18 percent reduction in player salaries. NFL executive vice president/legal counsel Jeff Pash has said Smith’s contention is a “misrepresentation” of the league’s proposal. Pash said the $1 billion generated by a new split of applied revenues between the two parties would be reinvested toward business stratagems designed to produce more money for both sides. Pash also said that player salaries wouldn’t necessarily be affected. The league generated roughly $9 billion in 2009 with a 52-to-48 percent overall revenue split between the NFLPA and NFL.
Click here to read the full article, including a more detailed explanation as to why Smith is demanding that the league shows the union its financial records.
The two sides are unlikely to come to terms on an agreement before some posturing takes place, but with the threat of a lockout coming in 2011, it’s highly encouraging that talks have already begun. Everyone stands to lose a substantial amount of money if there were no football next year, so chances are a deal will eventually get done.
Let’s hope both sides can come to an agreement soon.
Photo from fOTOGLIF