A Break Down of the NFL labor issues

There is a chance that this is there will not be football next season. This is because the collective bargaining agreement expires in April. They player's union and the NFL have been negotiating for several months, but currently they seem to be very far apart. The average sports fan does not want to worry about this, but I think it is important to understand where both sides are coming from. The worst part of this is that both sides are right, which is what is making this agreement hard to arrange.

Keep in mind that the work stoppage would be a lockout and not a strike. This means that as a whole the players union is happy enough with the way things are that they would continue to play. It is the owners who opted out of the CBA. It is the owners who would stop football from being played.

However, since the CBA is being renegotiated the players do have things that they would be willing to change.

The Owners (AKA the NFL):

18 Game Schedule - The owners are taking a loss in the preseason because season ticket holders have to pay the same price for preseason games that they do for regular season games. And in order to keep season tickets you have to buy the preseason. Also much fewer people watch the preseason so TV revenue goes down. By moving to 18 games, everyone makes more money. This is going to happen whether the players want it or not.

Rookie Wage Scale - Rookie pay has skyrocketed in the last 10 years. Sam Bradford, this year's first overall pick in the draft got more guaranteed money in his rookie contract than Joey Harrington (the third overall pick in 2002) got in his whole contract. The NFL has proposed a rookie wage scale similiar to that in the NBA, with consession that the first $100 million saved under the wage scale would go to the player's retirement plan and to help retired veteran players.

Player's Percentage - Under the current CBA the players get 60% of the NFL's shared revenue (which is a misleading figured due to the fact that the owners get a BILLION dollar cut of the revenue before the players 60% is taken out.) The owners want to change that cut to 50% (while still keeping the billion dollar cut)

Debt Relief - Over half of the league has had new stadiums build within the last twenty years. Someone has to pay for those stadium, you know besides the the tax payers I mean.

Retirement Plan Protection- The NFL does not want to have to pay for the medical bills and retirment plans of retired players. They argue that taking care of retired players is the players union's job.

Recovery of Guaranteed Money- The owners want to be able to take money back from players who are unable to meet the terms of their contract due to stupidity, irresponsibility, or criminal behavior. (AKA the Michael Vick rule)

Drug, Steroid, and HGH testing

The Players Union (AKA the Players):

Fewer Games - Keep the season at 16 games and eliminate two games from the preseason. More games mean more injuries. The owners can avoid taking a loss and the players can be healthier and put a better product on the field.

Player's Percentage - At least stays at 60% after the billion dollar cut, or becomes a true 60% cut.

Retirement - The players want the league to pay for retirement and disability, not just the player's union.

Shorter rookie contracts/incentive pay - The players want shorter rookie contracts (max 3 years) with accelerators included in them to pay players more if they play better.

There are many other issues included in this discussion. However these seem to be the main sticking points. Where do you agree with each side?

NFL Opening and MLB managers Part 1

Oh to have the problems that the NFL has!

The most popular game in America came back with a vengeance last night. The Vikings-Saints game carried 28% of the America TV viewer last night.

This is why the NFL has a guaranteed $4.4 billion coming to the league from TV networks next season even if there is not a single game played.

But that is not to say the NFL does not have problems. Last night the players sent a message to the owners that if there is a lockout the players will stand together. In case you missed it, after the national anthem players from both teams, lead by Drew Brees, walked onto the field and faced each other with their index fingers lifted to ceiling in a show of solidarity against the owners.

The message was clear, this is not 1987, and players will not be crossing the lines to play football.

While the gesture was well received at the game, it seems that fans generally are split on their feelings about it.

This is part of the problem, fans love the players, but fans are loyal to the teams. And in what is perceived as an argument between millionaires and billionaires, the fans who are paying a premium for the product and are still siding with the billionaires who are taking their money.

Then there is the problem of the opening game. Tradition dictates that the Super Bowl champs open the season. And what's better than a rematch between the NFL championship contenders from last year? The only problem? It was a rematch between two offensive powerhouses, and in the first two weeks of the season NFL offenses tend to underperform. (with the notable exception of Brees' huge game to start the season last year) So while you have what looks like a great matchup with marquee teams and players, (Do you really think the game would have gotten an 18 rating if Tavares Jackson was starting for the Vikings?) turned out to be a bit of a snooze.

The silver lining of course was the rating.

Like I said, if only I could have the problems that then NFL has.

I told you yesterday that I was going to do a review the managers coming on the market after this season and today I am going to feature Ryan Sandberg and Joe Torre.

Ryan Sandberg is currently the favorite to be the next Cubs manager, but how good can he really be? He has made the playoffs at each minor league level that he has coached, and he knows the Cubs talent throughout the organization. But is he considered a big league type manager by other teams besides the Cubs? The answer is a firm maybe. Some see him as having a managerial potential on par with someone like Mike Scioscia, but others see him as a career coach. What is the answer? We will not know until someone gives him a shot. As a Cubs fan myself I am torn. Ryno was my favorite player growing up so I never want to be in a position in which I will want him to be fire, but I think that he could be the type of manager that the Cubs need to maybe finally win that elusive world series.

Joe Torre is kind of the anti-Sandberg. He has been managing baseball forever and you know exactly what you are going to get if you bring him in. But the question is at 72 years of age, how much more baseball does he have in him? It is conventional wisdom the Torre is gone from LA at the end of the year, but where will he end up. To be successful he needs to go to a talented veteran team that is ready to win, or else you risk having a Lou Pinella situation.

Come back tomorrow for a breakdown of the labor issue in the NFL