I got a little fired up during the first segment of PFT Live while reading Rosenthal’s write up of the latest wrinkle in the CBA talks. But for good reason. (At least I think it was a good reason.)
The notion that it will take two weeks to recertify the NFLPA* is ridiculous to the point of offensive, or offensive to the point of ridiculous. Or both. It’s 2011, not 1924. The U.S. mail is as outdated as the Pony Express.
This potential issue was flagged for me by a source with knowledge of the talks several weeks ago. NFLPA* lawyer Jeffrey Kessler (a/k/a the guy who wants to be the next Marvin Miller) was whining during one of the sessions about the time it will take to put the union back together again. The NFL’s lawyers did Kessler’s work for him, laying out in detail the steps required to get the recertification accomplished quickly, via electronic means.
As I said during my rant (or words to this effect), it’s time for Kessler to sit down and shut up. If he wants to wreck a sport in pursuit of the glorification of his massive ego, wreck a sport no one cares about, like basketball. Whether he’s hoping to blow up the talks so that he can continue to pursue the litigation option or whether he simply wants one last pelt that he can wave around while doing his victory lap, it’s time for someone (and Gene Upshaw would have done it by now) to tell Kessler to zip it.
The twelfth hour is here. The big bells are ringing. It’s time for the players to vote on the deal that the man they hired to negotiate has negotiated.
And if Kessler is cajoling the Executive Committee and/or the player reps of a supposed trade association to get in the way, why not send the thing out to a vote of all players? With or without the approval of the men whose approval shouldn’t matter, more than half of the players will accept the recommendation of the one man they’ve hired to make this very recommendation.