NFLPA Reviewing Potential Collusion on Demaryius Thomas, Dez Bryant Contracts

Adam WellsJul 10, 2015

The NFL Players Association could possibly look into filing a collusion claim involving contract negotiations with wide receivers Dez Bryant and Demaryius Thomas.

Continue for updates.

NFLPA Could Pursue Collusion Despite Thomas, Bryant Deals

Friday, July 17

Lindsay Jones of USA Today reported the latest on the NFLPA's potential claim:

"
The NFL Players Association may still investigate if the Dallas Cowboys and Denver Broncos colluded to set a market for the wide receivers' contracts, a person with knowledge of the union's thinking told USA TODAY Sports.
The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the union has not officially announced its position on the collusion case.
The person said both teams have been informed that the NFLPA has not lifted its request that front office officials, including Denver Broncos general manager John Elway and Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and his son, executive Stephen Jones, preserve any written or digital correspondence that could be used as evidence of collusion.
"

Liz Mullen of the Sports Business Journal reported on July 15 that Bryant and Thomas' contract removed any possible claim by the organization.

Thomas', Bryant's Agents Reportedly Engaged in Legal Collusion During Negotiations

Thursday, July 16

According to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, the agents for Thomas and Bryant, who both work for CAA, discussed their negotiations with the Cowboys and Broncos with each other prior to signing their long-term deals on Wednesday:

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It’s permissible for players and agents to collude. In this specific case, coordination between Bryant and Thomas became a no-brainer because their agents, Tom Condon and Todd France, now work together at CAA.
Per a source with knowledge of the situation, the two agents took full advantage of their new relationship to shake five-year, $70 million deals from two teams that, before Wednesday, hadn’t gotten close to the $14 million annual average that two years under the franchise tag dictated for both players.
"

Broncos, Cowboys Deny Collusion After Thomas, Bryant Deals

Wednesday, July 15

Both franchises inked their star wideouts to new deals on Wednesday, with Bryant landing a five-year, $70 million deal from the Cowboys with $45 million in guaranteed money, per Chris Mortensen of ESPN. Shortly after, Thomas also signed a five-year, $70 million contract with $43.5 million in guarantees, via Adam Schefter of ESPN.

After the announcement, the Broncos denied working in concert with the Cowboys on the contracts, saying: “The suggestion that our club may have colluded with another team about a negotiation is completely false and without any merit,” via Ian Rapoport of NFL.com.

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones also denied any arrangement, saying he was unaware Denver had even come to an agreement with Thomas "until just a second ago," via Conor Orr of NFL.com.

On July 14, Dan Graziano of ESPN.com reported the NFLPA had informed the Cowboys and Broncos that they need to save any emails, phone records, texts and records of conversations between themselves and Thomas and Bryant.

Graziano noted the player's association was tipped off that the two teams had talked about negotiations with the wideouts, which prompted the investigation:

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According to a source, Cowboys executive vice president/COO Stephen Jones told Bryant during a recent conversation that he'd had a conversation with Broncos GM John Elway about the negotiations, which the union believes would constitute a violation of the CBA's anti-collusion rules.
"

NFLPA assistant executive director of public relations George Atallah confirmed that the union had information pertaining to the conversation on July 15, according to Grant Paulsen of 106.7 FM in Washington D.C.

Per Graziano, if the players hadn't signed agreements before Wednesday's deadline for franchise-tagged players to sign long-term pacts, the union would have moved forward with collusion charges.

On July 10, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported the initial details on his official Facebook page:

A Cowboys source said there is "nothing to it," when asked about the investigation, according to Charean Williams of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio reported Calvin Johnson's contract could be at the heart of the NFLPA's concerns:

"
Per a source with knowledge of the situation, the suspicions flow from a mutual rejection by both teams of Calvin Johnson's contract with the Lions.
Per a source with knowledge of the situation, both teams have taken the position that proposals made on behalf of the players are too high, explaining that Johnson's deal doesn't reflect the receiver market because that contract was influenced by the salary-cap numbers generated by Johnson's enormous rookie contract from 2007, four years before the launch of the current rookie wage scale.
That coincidence hardly would be enough to prove collusion standing alone. Any team trying to negotiate a fair deal for a receiver would resist paying Calvin Johnson money ($16 million per year) simply because Johnson's deal was driven by other factors.
"

Bryant and Thomas were set to be two of the top prizes in free agency after last season ended, but they were both given the franchise tag by their respective teams, prior to reaching long-term pacts.

Bryant and Thomas have certainly warranted long-term extensions with their performances since entering the league in 2010. Both have crossed the 1,000-yard mark with at least 10 touchdowns in each of the last three seasons.

The Cowboys and Broncos had every reason to retain their star wideouts, as both figure to be in the playoff mix for the foreseeable future, but the NFLPA may have been given a reason to think the way the clubs are going about building deals has broken league rules.