The question to DeMaurice Smith was simple, coming from Cincinnati receiver Chad Ochocinco, asking how serious he viewed the possibility of football not being played in 2011.Must be nice to be at a pay level where you could take a $340,000 pay cut. I don't think the players will get a lot of sympathy from the blue collar people that make up a lot of their fan base.
Smith did not hesitate.
“On a scale of 1 to 10,” Smith said Thursday, “it’s a 14.”
With that, the executive director of the NFL Players Association painted perhaps the bleakest picture yet regarding prospects of labor strife in the league, which could be looking at a 2010 season with no salary cap and, if the collective bargaining agreement expires as scheduled in March 2011, a lockout that year.
“I keep coming back to an economic model in America that is unparalleled,” said Smith, who often repeated phrases for emphasis. “And that makes it incredibly difficult to then come to players and say, on average, each of you needs to take a $340,000 pay cut to save the National Football League. Tough sell. Tough sell.”
Smith said the NFL would receive $5 billion from its network television deals even if no games are played in 2011. He regarded that as proof owners are preparing for a lockout.
“Has any one of the prior deals included $5 billion to not play football?” Smith asked, referring to previous contracts that were extended or redone. “The answer’s no.”
Friday, February 05, 2010
Are You Ready for No Football in 2011?
Wouldn't bother me either way, but apparently things are pretty tense between the NFL Player's Union and the NFL owners (from the AP):
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3 comments:
[shrug] What do,we need thos felons for--we have UNL.
And if somehow there's a strike and/or lockout and the NFL gets $5M for not playing in 2011, how much more than $0 are they going to get in 2012, even if the NFL owners and every single player gives a money-back guarantee to play every game?
The salaries some of these players receive is almost a joke. Doctor's put in about twice the college study some of these jocks have had, they save lives and yet they don't make anywhere near the salaries the players make. Seems like something is wrong. I guess we have become more interested in our recreational activities than we are in common sense everyday living.
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