Bleacher Report - Articles by Jon Meerdink

Pending NFL Labor Crisis: Worse Than Spygate?

Jon Meerdink — Fri, 16 May 2008 10:37:45 -0400

According to ESPN and NFL rumor site ProFootballTalk.com, NFL owners could choose to end the current Collective Bargaining Agreement in a vote at the annual owners' meeting next Tuesday, which would result in an entirely uncapped year in 2010.

The current CBA, which is set to run through the 2012 season, includes a provision that would allow NFL owners to terminate the final two years of the deal and creating all sorts of salary headaches for teams in the next two years.

Three-quarters (24 of 32 owners) of the owners must vote in favor of continuing the labor agreement for the deal to run to its entirety. In other words, only nine owners must vote against the CBA for it to be terminated early. According to the report offered by Chris Mortensen of ESPN, this seems to be pretty likely.

Why is this a big deal? There are several reasons.

First of all, ending the deal early would effect how teams negotiate with players for the next two years in an enormous way. Teams could choose to operate under the assumption that the 2010 season will be uncapped and spend their money accordingly, pushing all money that would count against the cap to that year and leaving themselves room to lock up players now, knowing that they won't worry about having the room down the road.

The other side of this argument rests with the teams that could choose to spend as if the 2010 season will be capped. These teams would likely not be able to offer as lucrative of long-term contracts, since they would assume that they would have to account for big time cap numbers in the long term. They would also operate under the disadvantage of not knowing exactly what the cap would be if 2010 was, in fact, a capped season, which would also affect their spending choices.

Related to this is the issue of big markets versus small markets. As it stands, the current labor agreement balances out, to a certain extent, the differences between teams like the New York Giants and the Green Bay Packers. With the revenue sharing provisions of the current agreement, big market teams like the Giants essentially have the same amount of money to work with as small market teams like the Packers.

If an uncapped year would occur, revenue sharing would effectively be thrown out the window. Teams with access to millions of fans in their own backyards would suddenly be able to keep all the revenues they gained from their markets, including all advertising dollars and any other money that would otherwise have been split up among the 32 teams.

The final major issue is the possibility of a complete work stoppage. While a stoppage likely would not occur until 2011, such a stoppage could potentially be disastrous. The last NFL work stoppage was in 1987, which led to three games during that season being played with replacement players. Although this stoppage and the surrounding events eventually led to the implementation of the salary cap in 1993, the stoppage could potentially have been devastating to what was still a relatively young league.

Although there is little or no threat of the NFL disappearing entirely, any sort of work stoppage could be potentially devastating in the "what have you done for me lately" world of professional sports today. See, for example, the NBA, whose lockout in 1999 shook up the league so much that it really hasn't recovered until this year.

While the potential repercussions of next Tuesday's vote are a couple of years away, the issue is still very relevant today. The course of the league over the next decade could be determined before our very eyes.

Cincinnati Bengals' Chad Johnson Vows to Kick Puppies till Trade Demands Are Met

Jon Meerdink — Sun, 11 May 2008 15:24:15 -0400

CINCINNATI - In a somewhat bizarre and extreme move, controversial wide receiver Chad Johnson has declared that he will kick one puppy every day until he is traded or released from the Cincinnati Bengals.

"It's time for me to start doing whatever it takes for me to get out of here, and I do mean anything," said Johnson in a phone call Sunday evening. "I'll kick puppies, kittens...small children...anything that gets between me and gettin' outta town. You don't respect Ocho Cinco and Ocho Cinco don't respect you. Or your little dog."

Despite these new threats, Bengals upper management seems determined to stick to their guns.

"Chad will do what he must, but he's going to be a Bengal until his contract runs out," said team president Mike Brown. "I'm not sure if this is the best course of action, as it is sure to strain Chad's relations with the Cincinnati sports community."

Head coach Marvin Lewis echoed these sentiments: "Chad can do whatever the heck he wants, but he's stayin' here. He could moon the Pope and we wouldn't let him out of his contract."

Johnson is currently under contract through the 2011 season. He signed a six-year contract extension on April 20, 2006.

Green Bay Packers: Jordy Nelson Pick Made Koren Robinson Expendable

Jon Meerdink — Sun, 11 May 2008 10:32:11 -0400

Though Koren Robinson's return to football may have been one of the feel good stories of the 2007-2008 Green Bay Packers, feelings alone apparently weren't enough to keep him around.

When the Packers drafted Jordy Nelson with the 36th pick in the draft, Robinson must have known his days were numbered. A 28-year-old wide receiver with a balky knee and a sketchy past can't be expected to compete with the team's first draft pick, not in the dog-eat-dog world that is today's National Football League.

It also didn't help that Nelson was more or less pegged for Robinson's job from the moment he was drafted. The 6'3'', 217 pound Kansas State product is expected to be a number four receiver right away and may also compete for a kick-returning spot.

In case you'd forgotten, Robinson was one of the top contributors on kick returns and was an occasional performer in the four and five wide receiver sets.

Although it's pretty obvious why Nelson would get the nod over Robinson, it's still too bad that his time in Green Bay had to end the way it did. It really seems like he's made an effort to turn around his life. Robinson will likely get some interest around the league, given that he is only 27.

Teams like the Bengals, who are thin at receiver and are notorious for hiring players with lengthy rap sheets, or the Jaguars come to mind as potential landing places for the former top 10 draft pick. The Jaguars seem like a particularly attractive destination, as Mike Tice currently coaches there and was the head man in Minnesota during Robinson's lone Pro Bowl season.

Whatever the case, it should be every sports fan's hope that Robinson can continue his upward journey out of alcoholism.