NFL Alumni president George Martin put a happy public face on his recent meeting with the NFLPA*.
Privately, he’s singing a much different tune.
In a memo to the group’s Board of Directors and its 32 chapter heads, a copy of which PFT has obtained, Martin said the “atmosphere was very defiant, accusatory, and outright disrespectful.”
Uh-oh.
Also, Martin said he still has not received a private meeting the head of the decertified players’ union.
“Regrettably, the long awaited and greatly anticipated one on one meeting with Mr. DeMaurice Smith never materialized as I had hoped,” Martin wrote. “Although he was present during my two hour interrogation, no accommodation of my request for the private meeting was ever addressed.”
Martin had a much better experience with the NFL, according to the memo.
“On Tuesday morning, I had the pleasure of addressing NFL owners, executive staff, and head coaches as the NFL Annual Meetings,” Martin said. “The genuine support and enthusiasm for our organization exhibited by these distinguished individuals was both exciting and overwhelming.”
The players apparently suspect that Martin and his group are shills for the NFL. If they weren’t before this past week, they may be inclined to be now.
Really, if the players are going to treat Martin and the group he runs as the enemy, why shouldn’t Martin and NFL Alumni respond in kind? At some point, it’s the only logical move.