Tag: Roger Goodell (Page 5 of 11)

      There needs to be less talk, more action in the NFL CBA discussions

      January 3, 2011 /

      NFL commissioner Roger Goodell sent a letter to the league’s fans on Monday, assuring them that the owners and players will be able to come to an agreement on a new CBA deal by next season.

      This is what he said in his letter (via ESPN.com):

      “I know we can and will reach an agreement,” Goodell wrote. “My goal as commissioner now is to help our teams and players find a solution that is fair to everyone and ensures that football becomes more popular, accessible, and fun. We want the next decade to be the best yet for our fans, and I’m ready to work day and night to make that happen.”

      What Goodell wrote is all well and good but fans don’t need a letter, they need a football season next year. There seems to be a lot of talk coming from Goodell about how a deal can be worked out, yet it’s January and a new CBA contract is still not in place.

      As the situation currently stands, there will be a lockout later this year. That’s the only thing that matters right now. And until the owners and the NFLPA can come to an agreement, the only football that fans will be able to enjoy is the 11 games that remain in the current season.

      I’m still of the mindset that the two sides will agree to a new deal and there will be football again next year. But it would be nice to see a little less talk out of guys like Goodell and more action.

      External Sports, NFL

      New CBA deal to be wrapped up by the Super Bowl? Seems unlikely.

      December 16, 2010 /

      Call me pessimistic but Roger Goodell’s belief that a new labor agreement could be in place by the Super Bowl seems overly optimistic. Especially when he says things like, “if we all commit to [working on the deal] and work hard at it.”

      Nothing has changed over the past couple of months when it comes to settling differences between the owners and players. The owners still want the players to take a pay cut and add games to the regular season, but the NFLPA is in favor of neither. The players want to know why the owners aren’t making any money while the popularity of the league continues to grow, which is certainty understandable.

      While appearing on Wednesday’s edition of The Herd with Colin Cowherd, NFLPA president Kevin Mawae echoed those feelings.

      “Every week and every year we hear that the ratings are up, more tickets are sold this year than ever before, more advertising is being sold now than ever before, all that does is generate revenue and we have to listen to the owners tell us that we’re not making money. That’s a hard thing to understand when you won’t show us where you’re losing money because you’re afraid to show us your books.”

      While fans would love to see Goodell’s projection that a new deal could be wrapped up by the Super Bowl, even he is being realistic about the situation.

      “It takes productive dialogue, which means we’ve got to get to that place where we’re making significant progress in getting an agreement,” he said. “It’s not just about meetings and dialogues. It’s about getting real, significant progress on the key issues.”

      I’ve held the belief that the NFLPA and owners won’t leave millions of dollars on the table by not getting a new deal worked out. While I still believe that, it would also be naïve to think that greed doesn’t exists. Both sides want to make as much money as possible and a 2011 lockout is still a real possibility.

      So instead of talking about it, let’s hope both sides will actually get something done after the holidays so we can have football next fall.

      External Sports, NFL

      Good to see an owner have a player’s back – McNair goes to bat for Cushing

      August 9, 2010 /
      HOUSTON - OCTOBER 04: Linebacker Brian Cushing #56 of the Houston Texans delivers a hard hit to tight-end Zach Miller #80 of the Oakland Raiders at Reliant Stadium on October 4, 2009 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images)

      While I think it’s a fruitless endeavor, you have to admire the way Texans’ owner Bob McNair has decided to go to bat for linebacker Brian Cushing.

      McNair is lobbying the NFL and commissioner Roger Goodell to reduce Cushing’s four-game suspension, which the linebacker received for violating the league’s steroid policy. McNair has said that he will present new evidence to Goodell today that he hopes will prove that Cushing has done nothing wrong.

      From USA Today:

      “We’re supportive of the league program and we’re not questioning that he did test positive for HCG,” McNair said. “We’re not questioning that at all.

      “We’re concerned about the athlete and want to make sure that there’s nothing wrong with him and if this was something that was a natural occurrence, we then want to know about it because it could happen again.”

      Now, who knows what McNair’s agenda is. After winning the 2009 Defensive Rookie of the Year Award last season, it’s obvious that Cushing is vital to Houston’s success. Would McNair be going out on a limb for all his players or is he just doing this because Cushing is one of his key defenders?

      Only McNair can answer that question, but the fact that he’s sticking his neck out at all deserves some praise. The owners are about to embark on a nasty battle with the player’s union regarding a new CBA deal, yet here’s McNair going to bat for one of his own. It’s admirable, even if Goodell upholds Cushing’s suspension.

      Again, I think McNair is going to come up empty and it stands to reason that he’s a little naive too (especially when you consider that Cushing has been linked to steroids since he was in high school). Plus, what the hell is Overtrained Athlete Syndrome (the condition Cushing claims led to the positive drug test).

      But what’s the worse that can happen? Goodell doesn’t think the new evidence is worthy enough to reduce Cushing’s suspension? So what – the Texans have already been preparing to be without Cushing for the first four games anyway. It’s not like anything changes if McNair fails.

      But if he succeeds, then not only does Cushing get his suspension reduced but maybe the league will look to address holes in its testing program.

      External Sports, NFL

      Report: Cedric Benson will not be suspended by NFL

      July 30, 2010 /
      CINCINNATI - JANUARY 9: Cedric Benson #32 of the Cincinnati Bengals runs the ball alongside David Harris #52 of the New York Jets in the third quarter during the 2010 AFC wild-card playoff game at Paul Brown Stadium on January 9, 2010 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)

      Roger Goodell is apparently getting soft in his old(er) age.

      Like Titans’ quarterback Vince Young, it appears as though Cedric Benson will escape punishment stemming from an incident that occurred at an Austin bar late last month in which witnesses claim he punched an employee. According to Adam Schefter via his Twitter page, Goodell will not suspend the Bengals’ running back.

      It’ll be interesting to see whether or not the Bengals sign Benson to a contract extension now that he’s in the clear. He was angling for a new deal before the news about his bar altercation broke, so maybe the team will feel more confident giving him an extension. That said, nobody could blame Cincy if it wanted to waited until Benson stayed out of trouble the rest of the year.

      As expected, Young wasn’t suspended either after he punched a man in the face at a strip club last month. It was the first time Young had gotten into any off-field trouble, so it was expected that Goodell would go easy on him being a first-time offender. The reports out of Tennessee have been mostly positive about VY this summer, so it appears as though the strip club incident was only a small roadblock for the 27-year-old QB.

      External Sports, NFL

      Owners, NFLPA already working on a new deal

      June 30, 2010 /

      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

      External Sports, NFL

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