NFL Lockout: An Open Letter to Players and Owners

There are times when one just wants to look the other way and not say anything about a touchy subject.

For me, the current NFL lockout isn’t one of them.

First, let me say that I respect the players for their drive and dedication to make NFL football the best it’s ever been.  The talent level within the league has gotten better and better with each passing year.  You guys work hard and earn every dime that you make.

Second, I also respect the owners.  Sure, they may come off a lot of times as greedy misanthropes.  But by owning an NFL team in their respective cities, it allows 32 cities to be members of a very exclusive club—cities that have an NFL franchise to cheer for.

So, let me say this to both sides:  Suck it up and get this collective bargaining agreement resolved.

I can understand the players being concerned about getting their fair share of the pie.  I mean, we are talking about billions of dollars to be split among the nearly 1,700 players. 

Let's pick on these guys first.

There have been a lot of stories out there that have caused many fans to be really ticked off at NFL players.  Perhaps one of the most stunning stories that came out, was Adrian Peterson’s poor lack of judgment when he said, “It’s modern-day slavery, you know?  People kind of laugh at that, but there are people working at regular jobs who get treated the same way too.”

The key words here are “people who work regular jobs.” 

It is very, very difficult for me to have any wage sympathy for NFL players—not when the league minimum is $340,000 dollars a year.  Sign me up for that job to be a tackling dummy three to four days a week, and sit on the bench for four hours every Sunday.

I tried to find something that would change my mind about them, but the closest I could find was an article by Jackie Fujita—wife of Cleveland Browns' linebacker Scott Fujita.  (For the entire article, please go to The Nation.com website.)

Okay. I get the fact that players sacrifice so much for the game, and that the Fujitas were not fully prepared for life in the NFL.  He has suffered concussions, torn ligaments and being the lowest paid man on the roster.  Still, it is hard to garner any sympathy as he chose to play this game and his wife supported his decision.

Now, before anyone gets uppity, I know how players feel while playing the game.  I also know what it means to be cut from a team and be expendable.  That’s why every athlete on the border of talent hides injuries so they don’t appear to be the weak link.

Mrs. Fujita says that players “need to know is that when they step on the field and risk major injury—while generating billions of dollars—the billionaires who write the checks are not looking out for them.” 

She then points out that there will come a time that players will have to walk away from the game.  They were taught to play through pain, never complain and lay their bodies on the line every Sunday—just hoping they walk off instead of being carried.

Pretty dramatic stuff, isn’t it? 

But try telling to any member of the Armed Forces over in Iraq—who get paid about $2,500 per month and just hope they make it through a day without getting killed.

The owners are not without fault either.

Mrs. Fujita also writes that these owners, while acting as if they do care about their players, really don’t give a damn about them if they aren’t producing.  They are not looked at as human beings; they are either an asset or a liability.  

While it’s true that players chose to play this game and make the sacrifices required for the team, it is the owner’s responsibility—their moral obligation—to take care of these guys because they do put their bodies at risk every time they step on the field.

I understand that these 32 men are part of a very exclusive club. And they didn’t buy into the NFL to lose money. 

These men are the ultimate capitalists.  It’s very easy to picture them sitting in very expensive leather chairs, drinking very expensive brandy and smoking very expensive cigars while making an obscene amount of money off the players.

And with the sweet television deal, they split that equally among all the teams and call it part of parity. But for every New England Patriots team, there is a Detroit Lions team. 

Those of you that know of me know that I am a die-hard Detroit Lions fan, and have been waiting for this “parity” to kick in for the last four decades or so.  Part of that is, of course, is inept ownership. 

But that’s a whole other article.  

Suffice to say, the owner of the Detroit Lions—despite having one of the worst teams in the last decade—is still worth $817 million dollars.  That’s according to Forbes' NFL Team valuations as of August 25th, 2010, and the Lions are ranked 27th out of 32 teams.

The owners need to step up to the plate and take care of the players.  The best scientific and medical minds should be part of an NFL think-tank to come up with ways to protect these players without stifling the spirit of how it should be played.

There is no amount of protection that will cease players from having aches and pains. 

But there has to be technology out there that can void the career-ending injuries these players risk by playing. 

There also has to be a change in mindsets of coaches.  And not just at the NFL level. 

If anyone has played football at any level, all coaches tell players to destroy the man in front of them, to tough out that ankle sprain and to always go the extra mile.

In the end, it is the fans that are going to suffer the most.  They watch their favorite players—most of whom make more money in a week than they do in a year—give them excitement and joy. They pay huge sums of money every Sunday to watch their teams do battle. 

The average ticket price in 2010 was about $80. For a family of four, that’s going to run over $320 dollars.  Add in parking (about $25), food and drinks (another $50 bucks), and now you’re looking at nearly $400 dollars. 

I can’t see a household with an average income of $80K (that’s if both husband and wife are working) going to a game more than once a year.

So they turn to television. 

For a while there, you could watch games for free on national television.  Of course, you were limited to what games you could watch depending on what region you were in.  Still, it was corporate America that allowed the games to be on TV in the first place.

Then, along came cable, and the NFL found yet another way to get to your money—by offering you packages that would allow you to watch any game you want, no matter where you are.  The NFL Sunday Ticket is only available if you have Direct TV, but you get to watch any of the 16 games for the low, low price of $300 dollars.  That’s on top of your regular subscription payment!

To go cheaper, you can get the NFL channel via Comcast.  But you have to pay an extra $7.95 per month for a “Sports Package” on top of the $78.00 per month cable bill.

So, to both the owners and players, I say again: Suck it up and get this thing resolved!

Players, you make a great salary to play a game.  All of the players in the NFL make way more in their short careers than most people make in 20 years.

Owners, you need to take care of the players that are making you billions of dollars.  They are not pieces of meat; they are human beings and deserved to be treated with respect before, during and after their careers.