An Open Letter to the NFL and the NFLPA From an Observer and Fan

I got into writing about the NFL because I’m a fan of the NFL. I love football and I love watching the best players in the world do what they do best every single week.

I’ve done so now for many years, but now they’re trying to take that away from me. And over what? Money? I’m sorry, but it’s hard for me to listen to millionaires and billionaires bicker about money and actually take one side or the other. All I hear is “Our petty greed will mean no football for you next season.”

And that’s exactly what neither side gets. Both the NFL and the NFLPA are out on these ridiculous media tours trying to sway the fans one way or another, but there’s one thing they just don’t get — we don’t care.

That’s it. That’s the key point here. Sure, they can sway public opinion one way or another while there’s still time for a deal to be worked out, but if there’s no football in 2011 fans will not be sitting around going “oh those damn owners!” or “oh those damn players!” They’re going to be losing their mind every Sunday knowing there’s no football to watch.

We don’t care who’s to blame. We don’t care which side is being more petty. It’s a point of contention right now because we haven’t hit that final hour, but if March 3rd comes rolling along and there’s still no deal done there will be a lot of angry fans who are pissed at both sides.

When it comes down to it, we want football. If it means the players make a little less than in recent history, so be it. If it means they make a little more, then so be it. As long as they’re suiting up and ready to go on Sunday afternoon, we really could not care less.

No amount of media touring will help. There will be no winning over the public by screaming about how unreasonable the other side is being.

Suck it up. Do you know what most families could do with even $100,000? $10,000? Hell, in this day and age, you know how many families would do a backflip if they got an extra hundred bucks?

So don’t complain to us that you’re being treated unfairly. Do whatever must be done to make sure there is football in 2011.

Call off the ridiculous press conferences. Call off the tours. Call of the commercials and the thing with the players putting their hands in the air or whatever and instead focus that energy on hammering out a deal and making this thing work.

If you have a sibling, you’ll know what I mean when I liken it to Mom telling you both that the chores need done, and she doesn’t care who does what just as long as they’re all done by this time.

And despite what the NFL and NFLPA might think, the fans are Mom in this analogy. Without our hard-earned money being pumped in, you people wouldn’t have the millions to bicker about. So by March 4th, this house damn well better be clean.