Will New Ruling Make NFL More Willing to Deal With NFLPA?
A couple weeks ago, special master Stephen Burbank’s ruled that the NFL and its owners would indeed be able to collect money from television stations for the rights to air NFL games, even if there are no games to be aired.
The ruling was a big blow to the NFLPA because it meant the owners were going to make a ton of money regardless of what happened with the 2011 season — roughly $4 billion. The ruling gave the owners leverage because they knew they didn’t have to have a season in order to make money.
On Tuesday, however, U.S. District Court Judge David Doty overruled Burbank and found that the NFL would not be able to collect from the TV stations because they were in a breach of contract with the stations and the players.
In fact, Doty took it a step further and said there will be a separate hearing to determine what sorts of damages the players will receive as a result.
Needless to say, this turns the tide substantially. The NFLPA now has leverage over the owners because now the teams won’t be making any money if they lockout the players.
And make no mistake, the NFLPA does have leverage, even if the NFL denies it.
“As we have frequently said, our clubs are prepared for any contingency, this decision included,” the NFL said in a statement. “Today’s ruling will have no effect on our efforts to negotiate a new, balanced labor agreement.”
Whatever you say.
There’s no doubt the NFL has taken a blow as a result of this ruling, but will it get them to the table with a renewed sense of urgency?
Honestly, nothing would shock me. The league has shown an incredible stubbornness and greed throughout this entire process so a ridiculous sense of pride not to give in could very well go along with that.
I wrote about a month ago that both sides would be vilified in the event of a lockout, but I’m starting to sense that is turning and the league will take the brunt of the criticism. It seems like the players are willing to take a little less of the pie and even agree to something like a rookie wage scale, but the league is refusing to budge. Just the fact that the New York Giants’ John Mara has been the only one to show up to a mediated meeting shows they have no interest in negotiations.
These are guys who are used to getting their own way, and it looks like they’ll just going to hold their breath until they turn blue and the players finally crack and agree to get raked over a barrel via an 18-game season and substantial pay cuts.
The NFL can say this ruling doesn’t put the pressure on them, but we all know that’s nothing short of a flat-out lie. The money from the TV stations was their ace in the hole, and now that’s gone.
We’ll see how much of a brotherhood feel the owners have over the next couple of weeks because there’s at least a few owners right now who are feeling the heat and are willing to deal, but the rest of them might not allow it.
I was feeling optimistic a month or so ago feeling like the deadline would have both sides ramping up their efforts, but things look as bleak as they did at the beginning of this whole process with only a few days until the CBA runs out, and at this point my only hope is that something is in place before the draft.
But I’m not holding my breath.