Report: Smith didn't ask Foxworth to run against Mawae

As NFL owners commence in earnest their meetings in Orlando, there’s some lingering business that we need to address from the NFLPA meetings that occurred last week in Maui.

Among the items chronicled by Liz Mullen of SportsBusiness Journal is a report that NFLPA Executive Director De Smith did not ask Ravens cornerback Domonique Foxworth, a player whom many believe Smith is grooming for ascension to union presidency, to run against current NFLPA President Kevin Mawae.  The report is attributed to a “source close to Foxworth.” 

Mullen also reports, citing “multiple player-side sources,” that Foxworth and Mawae are “friends and allies,” and that the decision of Foxworth to run against Mawae should not be regarded as a rift between the two players.

And here’s the part where we interpret the development.  (For those of you who are interested only in being spoon fed, please scroll down.)

First, does anyone expect “player-side sources” to say anything that would undermine the sense of unity that the union is trying to foster?

Second, assuming that the info being funneled to Mullen by “player-side sources” and “a source close to Foxworth” is true, why did these sources offer no explanation for the decision of Foxworth to run against Mawae?

In our view, it’s not enough for union sources to simply deny after the fact the apparent implications of the Executive Director’s hand-picked lieutenant launching an unsuccessful run at the incumbent union president.  Someone needs to supply a credible reason; otherwise, the self-serving proclamations of “all is well” come off as obvious and predictable spin.

Speaking of spin, former player Nolan Harrison responds to criticism of the non-voting status of the two former players who’ll be added to the union’s Executive Committee by telling Mullen that the former players can’t have voting rights because they are not legally part of the bargaining unit.  That’s fine, but then the union shouldn’t act as if the decision to give former players a seat at the table is more meaningful than it really is; as Hall of Fame guard Joe DeLamielleure said last week in an open letter to Saints quarterback Drew Brees, it’s a “bark without a bite.” 

We assume that our observations in this regard will prompt Harrison to attack me once again via Twitter, pointing out that I have some sort of a bias against the union.  The reality, as I’ve tried to explain to him, is that both sides in this labor drama are at times full of crap.  Our job, as we perceive it, is to point out such instances so that the people caught in the middle — the fans — will be better equipped to choose sides if/when a work stoppage occurs.

For now, we continue to be of the opinion that, if there’s no football in 2011, they’re both going to hell.