Union Not Communicating With Agents About CBA Issues

Now that the first official meeting between the NFL and the players’ union regarding a new Collective Bargaining Agreement has come and gone, we’re told that the NFLPA has not been communicating with player agents regarding the key issues that will be on the table.
We’ve privately communicated with four separate agents from four separate firms that each represent a significant number of players, and none of them have been consulted regarding the process or the strategy.
The fair inference to be drawn is that the NFLPA is consulting with no player agents.
Some agents are upset by their exclusion from the process, especially since new NFLPA Executive Director De Smith has been spending so much time talking to players and owners.
As one agent explained it, all agents will have a key role in this process, since their individual clients undoubtedly will ask the agents about the value of any proposed offer or tentative agreement. And the players’ views on such matters likely will be shaped in whole or in large part by the advice provided by their agents.
“He’s gonna need us,” the source said of Smith.
Of course, there’s still plenty of time for the NFLPA to include the agents in the process. But, for now, it appears that the intended timetable contemplates “never,” not “late.”