And how come the players in the CFL have never kvetched about their 18-game schedule, which they have maintained for decades – nor was it at all controversial when the USFL played 18 games?

Besides, 18 games means more parity because the two new games would match first-place teams from the previous season against other first-place teams, and last-place teams against other last-place teams, by means of adding two inter-conference games to each team’s schedule; and it would also give teams that get off to slow starts more hope – no team in NFL history has ever so much as made it to a conference championship game after starting 0-3, and only one team that has started a season with two losses, both at home, has ever made the playoffs in a non-strike year (the Eagles in 2003).

And to all of you who are whining about “greed”: The Cold War is over – and your side lost. Get over it.

Why don’t you make it easier for people to do this and publish the addresses and phone numbers?

If they do it again, I’m gone, I won’t waste my time watching a game again. Not the SB, nothing…

Looks like the NFL is about do what MLB did to itself. Shoot itself in the foot over greed. MLB never recovered from its World Series strike and the NFL will never recover from skipped 2011 season.

If the owners think the players are making to much money…stop offering those ridiculous contract packages…I mean geeze.

So a player is suppose to tell some billionaire that the player thinks he is being paid too much and offer to play to for less money since the billionaire is stupid and can’t control his money….are you serious?

I have no sympathy for either side, and nothing but contempt for the arrogant greedy billionaires.

College football…I am coming back to you baby.

If I’m not mistaken, Bengals fans have been trying to do this for years!

PFT has a vested interest in there being no lockout, especially an extended one. PFT is a site that like many is driven by page views. So what happens if football goes away, especially for an extended period? Just like PFT has been hammering about fan interest dropping, those page views would plummet. Ad driven revenue would fall. The NBC corporate overlords would NOT be happy as football is the only thing that keeps PFT going.

Just keep this in mind as you read all these “neutral” articles that slant more and more against the owners or supposedly tell you how fans feel as we get closer to the lockout date. Everyone has an agenda in this – the owners, the union and the football driven media – especially media like PFT that only covers football. It is important to keep that in mind when you are judging the accuracy and intent of anything you read.

chapnastier says: Feb 16, 2011 9:47 AM

“There really hasn’t even been one that has even tried to explain the position of the owners either. It’s sad.”

Then Google: The NFL Lockout Handbook

Clearly, the owners are 1000% responsible for this mess.

“We need an agreement that both sides can live with and obtain what they need, not simply what they want.”

Roger Goodell out of the right side of his mouth:

“We need new stadiums in Los Angeles, Minneapolis, San Francisco, Oakland and San Diego”

Why does the league “need” a stadium in Los Angeles, Roger? Is there a team there I don’t know about? L.A. has already run two NFL teams out of town and they have clearly demonstrated that they don’t care about the NFL. Good for them.

If you had any influence or if you were serious, you would get all of the hotheads on both sides out of the room and force them to accept mediation instead of writing op-ed pieces.

As an 8-hour a-day, F5 every 2 minute, follower of this website there has not been a single post that has supported the owners. There really hasn’t even been one that has even tried to explain the position of the owners either. It’s sad.

“Can someone please explain were Goodell fits into this negotiation process?”

Easy. Even though he’s trying to appear impartial in the press, at the end of the day he’s just the owner’s puppet.

Goodell may as well be a TV pitchman – “Save 50%, and MORE!”

Goodell, are you really trying to argue that we need a new deal to support innovation and growth? Uh, under the current deal we have, we’ve experienced the greatest period of growth and innovation the league has seen.

Essentially the same thing is going on in the world at large – especially with government workers, whose new hires cannot expect to realize the same pension benefits etc., their older colleagues enjoy.

No one takes any delight in this; but times change, and organizations, be they sports leagues or state governments, must change with them.

I would think that even though we watch football to see the players, many of us would watch Shane Falco tear it up for our favorite teams. Sooner or later in fact we would forget about many of the guys who play in the NFL right now. As a fan of a team, my loyalty is to that team. I would root for them if they put a bunch of high schoolers on the field. So I say to the owners, lock ‘em out. For far too long professional athletes have been spoiled off the idea that they deserve millions for doing what every single one of us would do for free. There is no obligation for the owners to use these particular players. Let them try and find real jobs. They will come running back begging for their jobs and the owners know this.

I know we live in a time where politicians and the media want you to hate big business and think they are evil. The fact is they aren’t. In this particular situation think about how many people have jobs because of football teams (owners). Think about how much money cities pull in during the football season from hotels, food and extra purchases that normally wouldn’t be there. The players are going to cause that to come to a halt. While the owners are certainly demanding some things as well, it’s THEIR company. As long as they follow all labor laws and practice proper hiring practices they can do as they please. Imagine how many UFL, AFL and UFL players would flock to the NFL if these union thugs were forced out due to their loyalty to the union. I can’t help but think that the talent would be there for some exciting football. Give it two years and we would forget about the current players. Chances are, they would forget about it too.

Good luck to all the law enforcement officers who’ll have to deal with the inmates when the asylum locks them out.

Have loved the NFL for years but, really? The fat pig wants to get fatter? And I mean all involved, not just one side or the other.

There are countless things in life to enjoy here in New England in the late Summer and Fall.

In the immortal words of Kramer, “I’m out”.