NFLPA tells agents to plan for work stoppage

[kungfoodude]

3 minutes ago, LinvilleGorge said:

There's zero chance that's the case. On the flipside, I actually hold the opposite opinion. I think that by and large sports are a great relatively benign outlet for our inherent tribalistic tendencies. I see WAY too many people treating politics like sports fandom these days with blind allegiances.

There are sections of the sports world that have extremists but nothing surpasses the level of zealotry(aside from religion) that politics is inspiring. And we don't get the level of violence in sports that politics is breeding, thankfully.

Sports can be a unifying force much more easily than politics.

[countryboi]

The players can’t last a year without a pay check they will be hurting within a month. I’m not even a fan of the owners but the players are  notoriously weak.

[Pejorative Miscreant]

12 minutes ago, countryboi said:

The players can’t last a year without a pay check they will be hurting within a month. I’m not even a fan of the owners but the players are  notoriously weak.

I think you can count on 1 hand, the number of players on any given team that could sustain a season long work stoppage. These guys are earning a living and auditioning for the next team every week. 

Sucks for the players but if it’s a war of attrition the owners win.  

[kungfoodude]

5 minutes ago, bull123 said:

Not a chance...stadiums are filled across the country every weekend, fantasy games being played by the millions....and gambling is getting ready to be really big

NFL is at a peak popularity with no semblance of decline

Pro Football is going nowhere...actually getting bigger and more popular every day 

The signs of the decline are not obvious. The fact that they have some lagging numbers in younger audiences is a real concern in the long term. It may not be in 10 years but if they don't capture more of that younger audience, they will be in trouble eventually.

[kungfoodude]

26 minutes ago, bull123 said:

The younger audience is playing fantasy in huge numbers...and their peers are being drafted and getting paid millions...saw thousands of them on tv in Nashville at the draft

The TV numbers are not positive. Remember that is where the bulk of the NFL's revenue comes from. They have also been extremely slow to adapt to newer platforms favored by younger people. This was a big factor in ESPN's decline. 

It isn't a done deal for the NFL but they need to be a lot more progressive if they plan on keeping their spot as America's Pastime. 

[kungfoodude]

8 hours ago, bull123 said:

Espn decline has nothing to do with platforms, their progressive political view on everything and their people who think they are the “stars” is why they are becoming irrelevant 

I will give you this....the nfl trying to become more progressive will harm it irreparably 

I have no idea how using the word progressive triggered you into some sort of Tourettes episode but my post had nothing to do with politics.

They need to be progressive about the SPORT and be progressive about the MARKETING and VIEWING of said sport. If they stay mired in their belief that traditional TV is the backbone of their future, they will pay royally in the end. If they continue to be reactive instead of proactive about player safety, player suspensions, etc, etc. The NFL is in sore need of some actual forward thinking leadership. 

Standing pat and being complacent is the exactly the way you do lose your spot atop the US sports world.

[Khyber53]

16 hours ago, Hotsauce said:

I think the closet thing to any sort of fan strike may have been the kneeling ordeal.  No it wasn’t some major scandal with tons of backlash. But its the last (and maybe only) situation where you had fans turning against the NFL. 

And they don't want that again. The idea of a fan walkout following a strike would make ownership wet their collective pants.

[Devil Doc]

The Replacements is an awesome concept... bring in AAF players

 

[thefuzz]

Just won't happen.  The players aren't strong enough, and there are too many of them.  This isn't baseball or basketball.

 

The top end guys can sit out a year or more....hell many in the NFL could retire today and never look back.  However that number is very small when compared to the amount of active players in the league.

The guys on year 3 of a deal they signed as a 4th round draft pick out of UNC cannot afford to sit out even a game or two, much less a year.  They know they are on the bubble, and are scratching and clawing for that 2nd contact.  Also, while the contracts look huge, after taxes, agents, hangers on, and buying that new SUV, these guys are like much of the rest of the US....living paycheck to paycheck.

The Rivers, Cams, Hopkins, etc....all of them can sit.....it's the Corn Elders and Ian Thomas' that cannot.

[imminent rogaine]

Panthers replacement tryouts - huddlers only.  Are any of you jackasses left handed?

[imminent rogaine]

A year off from football? That’s going to mean suspensions for some when they come back from a year of doing blow and slapping their girlfriend around.

[top dawg]

12 minutes ago, Stoney said:

Season ticket holders are obligated to purchase the tickets no matter what.

That's but another reason that Tepper really can't afford a Godfather stance pertaining to the players. 

Perhaps season ticket holders should take some action also, if it comes to that. Refuse to pay and tie things up with a class action lawsuit regarding breach of contract if forced to pay for an obviously inferior product. The NFL may have tried to cover itself, but perhaps there would be something that could be done.

[pnthrs]

I have been preparing for a long time for a lock out. The last one was nasty and it was obvious to everyone that the owners won. The players were given less practice and the draft picks Sakarya was reduced and distributed to players.  It was a feel good for the players but a financial loss. 

 

My conspiracy theory is since then Goodell has been playing a long con on the players on behalf of the owners: his unilateral control of discipline.  I think players are so sick of it that they might accept a raw deal if marijuana and a disciplinary committee of some sort is out in place.  I think Goodell has been playing bad cop so the owners will come out as good cop in 2 years.