NFL Lockout: Who's More to Blame, the Owners or the Players?

Yesterday, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and team owners met once again with NFL Players Association head DeMaurice Smith.

Once again, a deal for a new collective bargaining agreement was not struck, and the negotiation process continues to drag on.

There are multiple issues being discussed at these meetings, with four being the main focuses. These four are division of revenues, a rookie wage scale, benefits for retired players and the expansion of the regular season from 16 games to 18 games.

Let's have a look at each one.

Regarding division of revenues, the owners (before the current CBA expired) were receiving close to $1 billion in funds to cover costs. In these new negotiations, they want another $1 billion on top of that.

My opinion on this is simple: If someone can afford to buy a professional sports franchise, they can afford to spend at least some of their own fortune to "cover costs." They don't need another $1 billion from the NFL.

Next, the rookie wage scale. This is definitely a good idea. More often than not, highly-touted first-year players get ridiculous guaranteed contracts and then never live up to expectations. It's perfectly fair that owners want to take steps to ensure that another JaMarcus Russell-type fiasco doesn't occur, and a rookie wage scale would ensure that.

Third on the agenda is benefits for retired players. This is basically an open-and-shut situation. The way some retired players are treated by the NFL is atrocious. Former Patriots linebacker Ted Johnson has gone public with his post-retirement health problems due to multiple concussions, and the NFL has done next to nothing in helping him.

Even worse, former Chicago Bears defensive back Dave Duerson just committed suicide. In his suicide note, he asked that his brain be donated to science and studied. Why? So it could be determined whether or not head injuries sustained during his NFL career played a role in his suicide.

The fact is the NFL needs to be more dedicated to helping retired players. More often than not, players suffer long-term injuries that follow them for life, and the NFL needs to improve how these men are taken care of.

Lastly, there are disagreements over the season's length. Owners and Commissioner Goodell want to cut the preseason to two games and extend the regular season to 18 games.

This is possibly the worst idea ever.

Regarding this issue, Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward lashed out at both Goodell and the NFL owners, calling out this supposed "hypocrisy."

"They're hypocrites," said Ward. "You say one thing and do another. You talk about safety, but you add on two games. You talk about you don’t want players to drink, but our major endorsement is Coors Light. That’s all you see is beer commercials. You say you don’t want us to gamble, but then you have spread games on the line. For us as players, we just play football, and whatever the NFL decides to do, we’re going to do."

Taking Ward's remarks and all of the other previously mentioned factors into consideration, we come to the ultimate question: Just who is to blame for the impending NFL lockout, the players or the owners?

Honestly, there is only one person to blame for this, and that is Roger Goodell.

Let's be honest. Goodell has made a lot of enemies in his tenure as commissioner. He has angered the players by heavily enforcing what is now the NFL personal conduct policy and did not make any new friends in cracking down on hard hitting.

On top of that, as commissioner of the NFL, it is Goodell's job to make sure that new labor deals get done and are not overly dragged out. To do this, he must be impartial. Instead, he has clearly (though not officially) taken the owners' side and has, just as Ward said, been hypocritical.

He preaches safety but is insistent on extending the regular season and putting players at further risk of injury. He enforces this conduct policy, which I can understand is somewhat necessary, but at the same time refuses to realize that these men are paid to play a game, not to be upstanding citizens. Sure, some suspensions are necessary (i.e. Plaxico Burress, Donte' Stallworth, etc.), but I think a four-game suspension for a DUI is a bit harsh.

Long story short, the only reason a new CBA hasn't been agreed upon is because of Goodell's refusal to back down from what he wants for the NFL. The man must realize that for once, his personal agenda must come second. The NFL is a multibillion-dollar industry and as of now is at risk of losing billions of dollars just because of a bullheaded commissioner.

If Goodell puts some of his ideas, such as an extended season, on the back burner and makes some concessions to the NFLPA rather than just shoot down all of their demands, only then will progress be made. Otherwise, NFL fans and players might be in for a long autumn and winter.