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This NFL CBA Talk Could Take A While

We would all be acting ignorant if we were to take at face value what the higher-ups in the NFLPA are spitting at us: that increasing rookie salaries is not one of the main issues of pending talks between the players and owners and instead one relevant issue among many. Yes, there are many issues involved in the discussions to negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement between NFL players and team owners; however, you better believe that rookie salaries is the main, overarching topic. When Matt Ryan, who has never taken a professional snap and was not even picked #1 overall in the 2008 NFL Draft receives $72 million with nearly $35 million of that guaranteed, veteran players are going to get mad and owners are going to get scared.

The answer may be a slotting system, but as NFLPA President Kevin Mawae states, if the players give in on a slotting system, the owners better be giving something back in return. The other major issue I see comes in the debate over what percentage of overall revenue the players should be entitled to. NFL players currently receive roughly 60%, amounting to a total of $4.5 billion each year, leaving owners about $4 billion. Mawae says that no matter what the issues are, the players remain united around Gene Upshaw (has the disunity subsided?).

Some other issues that are being discussed include: G-3 funding for stadiums, better benefits, easier access to treatment for retirees, pensions, bigger salaries, and guaranteed contracts. To be honest, I have always wondered how the owners get away with giving players these fake contracts that have little to no guarantee. Sure, football is a dangerous sport full of major contact on the human body, but shouldn’t that actually play as a strong point for guaranteeing a contract? If a player is going to give his all every Sunday, should he not be compensated for putting his life or future ability to walk in danger? Why do baseball and basketball players have their salaries guaranteed but football players struggle to get a small portion of their contract deemed as “guaranteed money”?

Most likely, the retirement and pension issue will get pushed to the side like it always is, in favor of talking about the sexy issues of revenue sharing and rookie slotting. There are many, including Leigh Steinberg, who will be upset if the NFLPA and the owners push the topic to the back of their agenda.

By Darren Heitner

Darren Adam Heitner, Esq., is a preeminent sports attorney and the founder of Heitner Legal, P.L.L.C., a Fort Lauderdale-based law firm specializing in sports law, contract negotiations, intellectual property, and arbitration. He earned his Juris Doctor from the University of Florida Levin College of Law in 2010 and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, magna cum laude, from the University of Florida in 2007, where he was named Valedictorian of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Admitted to practice in the state bars of Florida, New York, and the District of Columbia, as well as multiple federal courts, Darren also serves as a certified arbitrator with the American Arbitration Association.

As an adjunct professor, Darren imparts his expertise through teaching Sports Law at the University of Florida Levin College of Law and Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) at the University of Miami School of Law in the Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law LL.M. program. His scholarly contributions include authoring several books published by the American Bar Association, such as How to Play the Game: What Every Sports Attorney Needs to Know, and numerous articles in prominent publications like Forbes, Inc. Magazine, and Above the Law. His thought leadership in NIL has earned him recognition as one of the foremost experts by The Wall Street Journal, USA TODAY, and On3, and he has been lauded as a “power player in NIL deals” by Action Network and a “top sports trademark attorney” by Sportico.

Darren’s passion for sports law led him to establish Sports Agent Blog on December 31, 2005, initially titled “I Want To Be A Sports Agent.” The platform, created as a New Year’s resolution, has grown into a cornerstone of the sports agency community, offering in-depth analysis of industry trends, legal disputes, and agent-player dynamics. His commitment to the field is further evidenced by his representation of numerous athletes and sports agents, as well as his prior role as an Adjunct Professor at Indiana University Bloomington, where he developed and taught a course on Sport Agency Management from 2011 to 2014.

Darren’s contributions have been recognized with prestigious honors, including the University of Florida’s 40 Under 40 Award, the University of Florida Levin College of Law’s Outstanding Young Alumnus Award, and designation as the best lawyer in Fort Lauderdale by Fort Lauderdale Magazine. He remains an active voice in the sports law community, sharing insights through his weekly NIL newsletter and his X posts, engaging a broad audience on legal developments in sports.

One reply on “This NFL CBA Talk Could Take A While”

It may not be especially generous of NFL owners to restrict access to guaranteed contracts, but it’s most certainly good business. The difference between football and baseball isn’t the intensity of the sport, anyway; it’s the difference between the unions. The baseball union was effective in communicating the message that the owners were not interested in helping players, and as a result, MLB players union was successful in uniting players behind Marvin Miller’s strike call. The NFL has not been as successful in keeping players away for long periods of time, for a variety of reasons. The NFL Management Council is very powerful and knows what it’s doing. They wouldn’t have re-opened the CBA if they didn’t feel they could force rookie contracts into a pay scale.

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