Earlier today, NFLPA Executive Director De Smith predicted (for about the fifth time) that a lockout will occur when the current collective bargaining agreement expires in 2011.
The Boss Man already has weighed in on Smith’s prediction.
And while I wouldn’t presume to better the Poobah’s post, there’s another nit that needs picking in Smith’s comments as reported by the Associated Press.
The final line of the report from Terre Haute, Indiana, where Smith talked to reporters, reads that there’s “one caveat: he wants to know why owners backed out of the collective bargaining agreement.”
An aside to Executive Director Smith — Google is awesome. Because with it I found this item after entering the words “nfl owners opt out of cba.”
It’s a May 2008 release from the owners explaining why they were opting out of the CBA.
The main reason? Because they could. Just like the players could have.
When the deal was signed in March 2006, either side had a window during which it could opt out two years early. That window was to close in November of 2008. The owners didn’t need to wait until November to realize they were getting smoked.
The salary cap has spiked from $84.5 million in 2006 before the new CBA was enacted to about $126 million this year. The players — after years of losing — are winning.
Smith, of course, knows this a lot better than me. But acting mystified and using words like “backed out” and “open the books” gets into the heads of the public a lot more effectively than a reasoned description of why the impasse has occurred.
The main issue isn’t even that complex. This is the way I explained it to my son. I said, “Son, say I run an ice cream stand. I tell you that, if you work for me, I’ll give you 60 percent of the revenue. But then the cost of ice cream goes up, the cost to rent the space where I run the stand goes up, and the guy who used to pay me $50 a week to put an ad on the front of my stand goes out of business. I’m not as flush as I was. But I still promised to give you 60 percent of all the money we make. Fortunately for me, we agreed to revisit the agreement in a couple of months. I look forward to that time. You don’t.”
See? Simple. Now, determining how to proceed from there may be difficult but the essence of the problem really isn’t.
“Owners’ decision to opt out isn’t a mystery”
Cant they just opt out the Raider’s Franchise? At least the league image would improve. Somebody should look into that…Im pretty sure we could develop a serious following here.
Great analogy to explain to the layman out here. I thought the same. Guess it is harder for lawyers who become union heads……..
You’re goooooooooood!!!
Maybe you could act as an arbitrator in the matter.
Bill Gates says try Bing
litemater,
The union heads/lawyers and the NFL lawyers all get it. The negotiating term for acting dumb and/or making statements you know the answer to is called:
“Posturing”
That said, I liked the analogy. Good job.
Thank you Tom. Because Florio is so pro-union, its nice to see someone represent the owners. Atleast I think you did.
The NFLPA needs to stop acting in the best interest of its weakest members. So long as the Union makes the cases of Plaxico, Vick, and every other Turd in the league its top priority, it’s going to lose the battle of public opinion.
Focus on why a lockout is bad for the public, not why it’s bad for millionaire douchebags…
Here’s some other examples for the young gents out there.
You’re girlfriend tells you that she’s breaking up with you……….No you’re not, I broke up with you yesterday…………
Or if you just started your career (probably missed by most of you, ha)
You’re FIRED……..
No I’m not, I quit.
Business is a bitch, welcome to the game.