Breakaway group of NFL players sign with law firm

[Mr. Laz]

to have own seat at NFL/NFLPA negotiating table.

breaking on ESPN now


[/edit] just saw something that said group was small about 70 players currently

[factortobe]

Originally Posted by bowener

If it is hidden, how would you know he has one?

There is a matter of trust you have to have in a leader and Smith is losing it

[dtebbe]

And so it begins... the rats are headed for the water!

DT

[Chiefnj2]

Originally Posted by Laz

Like hell.

they will negotiate with any group of players who they think can give them leverage on the whole. If they think talking to this splinter group will drive a wedge or start a movement to leaving the current player leadership behind they will jump at it(or at least they should).

No they won't. At the end of the day there has to be a union or a steering committee that speaks on behalf of all the players at the negotiations. The NFL isn't, nor should they, sit down with a small splinter group and negotiate. It's pointless.

Say the splinter group of 20 players are all ages 32 and older. They may only care about available free money for long time vets and post nfl medical benefits. They could care less about rookie salaries or the cap 4-5 years down the line. They could negotiate great terms for the two things they care about and concede on all the rest. That isn't going to fly with the remaining 1680 players. It doesn't help the overall negotiations.

[Bewbies]

Originally Posted by Chiefnj2

No they won't. At the end of the day there has to be a union or a steering committee that speaks on behalf of all the players at the negotiations. The NFL isn't, nor should they, sit down with a small splinter group and negotiate. It's pointless.

Say the splinter group of 20 players are all ages 32 and older. They may only care about available free money for long time vets and post nfl medical benefits. They could care less about rookie salaries or the cap 4-5 years down the line. They could negotiate great terms for the two things they care about and concede on all the rest. That isn't going to fly with the remaining 1680 players. It doesn't help the overall negotiations.

Clearly this helps the players and hurts the owners.