NFL Off-Season 2011: Lock-Out Edition [Archive]

WickerBill

02-15-11, 07:12 AM

So, the owners signed an extension to an existing CBA in 2007ish that they knew was too favorable to the players, and now they want a billion dollars back.

I'm sorry, you can't put the genie back in the bottle. They're basically admitting that they lost the last negotiations to Gene Freaking Upshaw, and now they're negotiating against someone much better and tougher.

I don't see any resolution until at least late summer. My guess is the NFLPA will have to cave eventually.

My favorite anecdote (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/14/jerry-richardson-peyton-manning-drew-brees_n_822988.html) of the negotiations so far is the Panthers owner, Jerry Richardson, snapping at Peyton Manning when Manning was talking about player safety: "What do you know about player safety?"

Richardson will be the monkey wrench in this labor deal before it's all over.

extramundane

02-15-11, 09:33 AM

This (http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=jc-richardsonmanning021311)was the first article I'd read that mentioned hard numbers.

Currently, the NFL grosses approximately $9 billion annually. Of that, $1 billion is given to the owners off the top for expenses. After that, the remaining $8 billion is split with 60 percent ($4.8 billion) going to the players and 40 percent (another $3.2 billion for a total of $4.2 billion) going to owners.

Under the owners’ proposal, the first $2 billion would go to them. The owners have tried to sell that idea by saying the money would go toward reinvestment in the game to help grow the overall amount of money that is shared.

dando

02-15-11, 09:49 AM

Basketball? Baseball? People taunting one another over kiddie games? Surely there's something better to talk about like sports labor strife?

NFL says NFLPA isn't bargaining in good faith.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/15/sports/football/15nfllabor.html

Are we talking about basketball? Baseball? :gomer:

This is not going to end pretty, IMO. 18 games, another billion off the top, rookie cap...something has got to give. I pity guys like Cromartie, who needs $1M+ for support each year. Not. :saywhat: :shakehead

-Kevin

TKGAngel

02-15-11, 10:07 AM

I believe the NBA CBA expires in June. To think that the NHL could be the only major sport on the air next winter is mindblowing. (Watch the league flitter this chance away, but that's another story for another time.)

Rookie salaries should have a cap, IMO. NHL players manage to survive with one.

CBS/Fox/ESPN are going to be pushing hard for this to get resolved quickly. They will lose a lot of money from having no football to sell.

Don Quixote

02-15-11, 10:07 AM

The Browns may not lose a game next year. :thumbup: :gomer:

dando

02-15-11, 10:24 AM

I believe the NBA CBA expires in June. To think that the NHL could be the only major sport on the air next year is mindblowing. (Watch the league flitter this chance away, but that's another story for another time.)

Rookie salaries should have a cap, IMO. NHL players manage to survive with one.

CBS/Fox/ESPN are going to be pushing hard for this to get resolved quickly. They will lose a lot of money from having no football to sell.

Yes, the NBA will be in the same boat this summer...I and I think you forgots MLB. :)

I agree on the rookie cap, but with current CBA and salary structure, something will have to change. The NFL is the only league where a player can be cut w/o paying out the contract. While I like that compared to the NBA and MLB, it's grossly unfair to veteran players who have actually performed well throughout their career. On the flip side, there are dozens if not hundreds of examples of busts of players drafted in the first round, getting huge contracts and doing nada. :saywhat:

-Kevin

TKGAngel

02-15-11, 11:10 AM

Yes, the NBA will be in the same boat this summer...I and I think you forgots MLB. :)

I agree on the rookie cap, but with current CBA and salary structure, something will have to change. The NFL is the only league where a player can be cut w/o paying out the contract. While I like that compared to the NBA and MLB, it's grossly unfair to veteran players who have actually performed well throughout their career. On the flip side, there are dozens if not hundreds of examples of busts of players drafted in the first round, getting huge contracts and doing nada. :saywhat:

-Kevin

Yeah, I went and edited my earlier post to clarify next winter over next year.

Have you seen the PA's ad campaign? CBS refused to air it.
Jl9BpUgYljQ
I'm surprised YouTube allowed them to classify it under "nonprofits & activism."

Insomniac

02-15-11, 12:17 PM

I think this is heading down a bad path until the NFLPA caves.

Right now, neither side has enough at stake to cave. The NFLPA wants to know why the owners want more money and the owners don't want to open their books.

They need to stop with all the "this is a partnership" talk. They are owners and players are labor. If you want them to be partners, then base their pay on P&L instead of a salary cap.

Gene Upshaw really whipped the owners in 2006 (I'm pretty sure people were saying this shortly after the deal was done). The main advantage the owners got was the uncapped year was highly favorable to them.

I agree that the deal was too good, only in the sense that Upshaw got the players involved in revenue sharing. It was stupid to do that in my opinion because there has always been issues between teams like the Cowboys and Bengals on maximizing revenue. Now the solution is to take it back from the players.

IMO, the problem isn't that they aren't making enough money, but that the high revenue teams are having to give too much of their money to the low revenue teams. You have to also figure that the owners aren't too thrilled with taking all the risk to make more money to then give 60% to the players.

I'd like to see a rookie wage scale (really only affects the top half or so of the 1st round).

Not a fan of the 18-game schedule. Really sick of this discussion from both sides too. Fans hate paying full price for pre-season games. League claims that means they want 18 games. Cut pre-season ticket prices in half and fans are happy. Players complain about increased injury risk, but no one ever says they want a reduction in games. They'll do it for the money.

I'd like to see 2 preseason, 17 regular season. Use the extra game to schedule some really good matchups that fans wouldn't see based on the schedule rotation that year. The extra game could be played at neutral sites since they're intent on exporting the NFL.

My suggestion to the money solution is go back to the old way: designated gross revenue. Select all the revenue streams that count and come up with a %. Also determine a floor % for total revenue so the owners don't cheat the process by making a ton of extra money outside of those streams before they can be added in a renegotiation. So get out of the fight between owners. I think in the old CBA they got 65% of the DGR. Probably would need to be more like 70 something now. So making something up, 72% of DGR and 50% total revenue floor.

Insomniac

02-15-11, 12:27 PM

I agree on the rookie cap, but with current CBA and salary structure, something will have to change. The NFL is the only league where a player can be cut w/o paying out the contract. While I like that compared to the NBA and MLB, it's grossly unfair to veteran players who have actually performed well throughout their career. On the flip side, there are dozens if not hundreds of examples of busts of players drafted in the first round, getting huge contracts and doing nada. :saywhat:

-Kevin

I don't think that system will change. I think any movement to guaranteed contracts would incur an even bigger financial concession. Not to mention how that would affect the way the salary cap works. I think the current system is fair in the sense that 1,700 players have salaries of:

Rookie - $320,000
1 Credited Season - $395,000
2 Credited Seasons - $470,000
3 Credited Seasons - $545,000
4 to 6 Credited Seasons - $630,000
7 to 9 Credited Seasons - $755,000
10+ Credited Seasons - $855,000

If the player is capable (skilled enough), even a "short" 5 year career would net them at least $3M. No other league gives so many players an opportunity like that.

While there are career ending injuries, given the number of players who suffer them early in their career, it's a very small %. The NFLPA could probably get a player wide policy to cover players who suffer that type of injury if they wanted to do that.

chop456

02-15-11, 01:17 PM

^ This.

WickerBill

02-15-11, 05:44 PM

They could play 18 games, increase the rosters by a few, and state that no player is allowed to play in more than 16...

all the records stay relevant that way

Insomniac

02-16-11, 12:52 AM

They could play 18 games, increase the rosters by a few, and state that no player is allowed to play in more than 16...

all the records stay relevant that way

How is that better? You pay full price for a ticket and you find out Curtis Painter is starting? Plus they would get the extra money for a worse product. I'm against that idea.

They didn't care about 14-game season records when they went to 16 games.

WickerBill

02-16-11, 07:26 AM

Oh, I didn't say it was better... just thinking out loud. Good point on Painter.

Insomniac

02-16-11, 10:07 AM

Oh, I didn't say it was better... just thinking out loud. Good point on Painter.

I read too much into it. :) In general, it seems like the only upside to more games is more money for the NFL. More TV money, more game day money, more NFLST money...so fans pay more.

I have a couple friends who wouldn't even be happy if the NFL raised regular season ticket prices and cut pre-season ticket prices because they donate the pre-season tickets to charity and deduct the full face value every year.

Insomniac

02-17-11, 08:50 PM

They're going to give mediation a go.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=6132690

Gnam

02-17-11, 09:09 PM

Potential mediators:

1. Priceline Negotiator - Will Shatner
2. IBM's Watson
3. Sarah Shahi (http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7sYaJP0RyU4/TU-i1K6rpBI/AAAAAAAADGI/mTmcwyMLs6w/s1600/Sarah_Shahi_Fairly_Legal.jpg) from tv's Fairly Legal

chop456

02-17-11, 10:10 PM

I think the choice is clear.

nrc

02-17-11, 11:58 PM

I think the choice is clear.

I think that's a choice we can all get behind.

Don Quixote

02-18-11, 10:52 AM

Yikes. Can she act? :gomer:

Insomniac

02-18-11, 05:29 PM

They can bring in this Watson to play the role of Jerry Richardson:

http://video.teamcoco.com/video/conan.jsp?oid=244176

Insomniac

03-02-11, 06:35 PM

So it looks like Palmer really wants out? Are Bengals fans happy or angry about this?

The judge has nailed the NFL in the lockout insurance case. I think this all but guarantees the CBA expires. They will not want this guy overseeing the next agreement. After saying he was going to delay his ruling so he doesn't mess with the bargaining (http://www.startribune.com/sports/vikings/116848578.html), he made one anyway.

dando

03-02-11, 06:48 PM

So it looks like Palmer really wants out? Are Bengals fans happy or angry about this?

Don't let the door hit you on the @ss on the way out, CP (and take your bro with you). :saywhat: :shakehead Check out the spiral since 2005:

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/players/stats?playerId=4459

Dude developed happy feet and VY decision making (he became the orange and black version of Jeebus). :shakehead

-Kevin

Insomniac

03-02-11, 07:34 PM

Don't let the door hit you on the @ss on the way out, CP (and take your bro with you). :saywhat: :shakehead Check out the spiral since 2005:

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/players/stats?playerId=4459

Dude developed happy feet and VY decision making (he became the orange and black version of Jeebus). :shakehead

-Kevin

I think he became the guy who kept stretching how long it took to come back from an ACL injury. (He did have the elbow injury later, but he kept talking about the knee injury too.)

nrc

03-02-11, 08:30 PM

Don't let the door hit you on the @ss on the way out, CP (and take your bro with you). :saywhat: :shakehead Check out the spiral since 2005:

I still think most of Palmer's problems were the guy calling the plays.

Palmer's trade ultimatum is a real screw job to the team, his teammates and fans. It's a real surprise from a guy who has been class act through his whole career. Between the lack of any sure bet quarterback prospects in this year's draft and the likelihood of a lock-out it really puts the team in a bad position.

If they can get good value out of Palmer on a trade they should do it. Otherwise let him sit and enjoy his retirement until someone gets desperate for a quarterback.

Gnam

03-04-11, 02:10 PM

1pm in the East. Owners have just a few hours to agree to a 10-day extension of the Collective Barganing Agreement, otherwise the players will dissolve their union and the "NFL Strike: 2011 The Search for More Cash" begins.

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/thehuddle/post/2011/03/nfl-labor-negotiations-mediation-owners-players-cba/1

Insomniac

03-04-11, 05:05 PM

They extended the CBA 1 more week. Looks like they may be able to get this settled.

dando

03-04-11, 05:10 PM

Looks like they may be able to get this settled.

For the sake of Bungles and Clowns fans, let's hope not. :gomer: :saywhat:

-Kevin

Gnam

03-10-11, 04:57 PM

No deal but some agreement:

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=jc-rookiewagescale030911

*Rookies get shorter contracts:
(4 years for 1st round draft picks, 3 years for everyone else.)

*Also new "Go directly to Jail. Do not collect $200" rule

Gnam

03-11-11, 06:00 PM

Players give owners 5pm EST deadline to deal or give up financial data.

...tick tock tick tock

Gnam

03-11-11, 06:19 PM

Game over. NFL Players union decertifies.

Lockout in 3...2...1

Andrew Longman

03-11-11, 06:21 PM

Done. Decertified.

And I now officially don't care about the NFL until these bozos figure it out.

I'm far more interested in impending hockey playoffs, frozen four and baseball spring training.

And if I want labor disputes as spectator sport I'll pick the WI statehouse,

NismoZ

03-11-11, 06:21 PM

SPARE BEARS!:thumbup::thumbup:

dando

03-11-11, 06:39 PM

I'm in don't give a **** mode. :saywhat:

-Bengals Fan

Don Quixote

03-11-11, 07:11 PM

My team lost to the Browns last year. :saywhat:

-Bengals Fanfixed :D

stroker

03-12-11, 10:29 AM

Cromartie about to make Sheen look like a poseur?

Insomniac

03-12-11, 01:54 PM

Cromartie about to make Sheen look like a poseur?

I think they'll be united for a bit first.

TKGAngel

03-12-11, 06:54 PM

The official court case is Brady vs. NFL. You would think the players would not have wanted Kimmy Gibbler (http://www.tmz.com/2011/03/08/tom-brady-kimmy-gibbler-hair-headband-rio-carnival-gisele-full-house/) as the "face" of their case.

nrc

03-12-11, 08:06 PM

I'm strictly in the ownership camp on this. The players are threatening to kill the goose that laid the golden egg just to avoid any concessions at all. The NFL is as successful as it is because they operate as a league, not a collection of competing teams.

WickerBill

03-12-11, 10:10 PM

You want the players to give the owners an extra billion dollars without the owners providing any proof they need the money?

Insomniac

03-12-11, 10:44 PM

You want the players to give the owners an extra billion dollars without the owners providing any proof they need the money?

They negotiated every deal since the last strike without audited financial records. How'd they manage that? Everyone knows the players got a way better deal in 2006. They could've made a deal this time but didn't.

Obviously, the first question one would ask is "when has a union ever given back money?". I'm sure it's been done, but I can't remember. The NFL would have to be losing their shirts before that happens IMO.

If they want fully audited records for 10 years, then they better change the whole system and not just be talking about an additional skim from the top. It's an absurd request that was never going to be met.

BTW--By the last talk, from the information I've seen the owners went from $1B to $325M and the players went from $0 to $137.5M. So they went down this path over $325M - $137.5M = $187.5M * 0.596 (player's cut) = $111.75M.

So even if they didn't counter, that is $3.5M per team. They would've had that all back (and then some) in 1 year. I think it was hasty. I'd bet the NFL would've gone down to the $250M neighborhood.

Edit 2: I blame both sides. The owners made such a horrible deal in 2006 under the pressure of the uncapped year and now are trying to fix it. The players decided to launch the battle in the courts when they could've continued to negotiate.

nrc

03-13-11, 12:34 AM

You want the players to give the owners an extra billion dollars without the owners providing any proof they need the money?

Seems like 5 years of profitability data audited by a third party should be adequate to prove or disprove that point. That's what the owners had offered and they hadn't shut off negotiations on the point. I don't blame them for not wanting to provide detailed financials directly to the players. You know that data would be in the papers the next day.

It's pretty clear to me that the players simply decided that the owners don't care about a work stoppage. So to get more leverage they're going through the courts in a way that risks blowing the whole thing up rather than handle it as a collective bargaining process.

cameraman

03-13-11, 04:06 AM

dando

03-13-11, 09:13 AM

Insomniac

03-13-11, 10:37 AM

I have no sympathy for the NFL owners, if they want to increase their revenues then they should stop signing exclusive TV deals with DirecTV and let the rest of America watch an occasional game. The bastards whinge on about money but they won't stoop to taking mine. **** them.

It's more fun to pay $350/yr for NFLST!

I'd say that is also inline with their thinking. I believe they are using business judgement here that is giving up maximum money for guaranteed money and if all they wanted was to be greedy, they would've taken the 50-50 split offered them. Instead, they want to ensure profitability in exchange for letting the player's cut get bigger as the pie grows. I wonder if anyone proposed a giveback plus an increase in the player's %?

Devil's advocate: The owners believe revenues are going to be flat through the end of the agreement and the player's share after the skim will be < 50%.

Player's % of true total revenue according to the NFLPA:
2005–50.52 %
2006–52.74 %
2007–51.84 %
2008–50.96 %
2009–50.06 %

Insomniac

03-15-11, 11:43 AM

The NFL Players Association is putting into place a plan that would prevent each top college prospect from attending next month's draft in New York, according to multiple league sources. The NFLPA already has contacted 17 top prospects who ordinarily would have received an invitation to attend the draft and informed them not to go.

Later Monday, a source said the edict is a recommendation, not an explicit order not to attend the draft. The source said the union plans to give the prospects the "same experience down the street."

That seems awfully petty.

nrc

03-15-11, 12:18 PM

That seems awfully petty.

Not only is it petty, it's another point demonstrating what the owners will argue in court - that decertification is a sham and the NFLPA continues to operate as a union.

Aside from that, I could care less. Players on the stage or huddled in anxious groups in the audience or at home is just something to fast forward through on the draft coverage.

Don Quixote

03-15-11, 12:40 PM

Not only is it petty, it's another point demonstrating what the owners will argue in court - that decertification is a sham and the NFLPA continues to operate as a union. Agreed, what were they thinking? They decertify and then immediately conduct union business in full view of the public. Duh.

TKGAngel

03-15-11, 01:09 PM

Agreed, what were they thinking? They decertify and then immediately conduct union business in full view of the public. Duh.

One agent (of several QB prospects) was quoted to SI as saying that players that don't show up to the NFLPA party are just giving the current players incentive to knock their socks off the next time they are on the field together. It's baloney, that's for sure.

On a somewhat related note, I thought this article in the NY Times (http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/05/your-money/05wealth.html?pagewanted=1&sq=paul%20pozluszny&st=cse&scp=1) about what some of the mid-level players are doing to be smart with their salaries was interesting. These are the guys I feel sorry for (if I have to feel sorry for anyone in this mess).

dando

03-15-11, 01:35 PM

I still think most of Palmer's problems were the guy calling the plays.

Palmer's trade ultimatum is a real screw job to the team, his teammates and fans. It's a real surprise from a guy who has been class act through his whole career. Between the lack of any sure bet quarterback prospects in this year's draft and the likelihood of a lock-out it really puts the team in a bad position.

If they can get good value out of Palmer on a trade they should do it. Otherwise let him sit and enjoy his retirement until someone gets desperate for a quarterback.

Somehow I missed his earlier. Yes and no. Brat's inconsistent O and the fluid receiving corp didn't help matters, but IMO CP's issues are b/w the ears. He grew happy feet after the knee injury and doesn't trust his OL. Some of the throws/decisions he made last season were just plain bad....even if route running was an issue (and it was). His declining #s since 2005 just prove that he's not what he was. And Gruden not reaching out to him is just plain stupid. :shakehead

-Kevin

Insomniac

03-15-11, 04:51 PM

Agreed, what were they thinking? They decertify and then immediately conduct union business in full view of the public. Duh.

They say they're a trade association. :)

nrc

03-16-11, 10:31 PM

Blah. Proposed kick-off rules threaten to make kick-off returns a rarity.

If the owners pass it, the ball is going to be kicked from the 35 instead of the 30-yard-line. Defenders won't be able to line up as far as back as they want to gain momentum and must line up within five yards of the kicker. A touchback now goes out to the 25-yard line instead of the 20, and there is no wedge blocking where two teammates can line up close together to open up holes.

Insomniac

03-17-11, 02:19 PM

Blah. Proposed kick-off rules threaten to make kick-off returns a rarity.

They don't fully make sense to me.

The main thing they don't like is the initial collisions. Even with more touchbacks, the players can't "take it easy". The touchback will happen after they collide (for what ends up being no reason).

So they planned to reduce the speed somewhat by requiring players (except the kicker) to be no more than 5 yards behind the line of scrimmage. They also are planning to ban the two man wedge (I think that's good, the refs stunk at catching the 3rd guy creeping in, and then we'd start to see 2, 2 man wedges).

That seems adequate, but then adding the shorter distance to kick and a better starting position with a touchback makes it interesting. It should be easier to kick it into the end zone and the 25 yard starting position makes taking the knee more enticing. On the flip side, with the shorter distance to cover, the kickers can kick it higher and you just have to stop them before the 25 to have a net gain.

Insomniac

03-17-11, 06:01 PM

Saw some new financial information. It looks like the player's had made a proposal that simply set the cap amounts over the course of time that resulted in a give back. The offer the NFL made (that the players didn't counter) before decertification was based on this model.

Links:
http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/03/13/making-sense-of-the-financial-divide-between-the-two-sides/
http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/03/14/jay-feely-interview-transcript/

My summary:
The NFL offered the player's $141M/team for 2011 and $161M/team for 2014.

The player's wanted $151M/team in 2011 and $161M/team in 2014. On top of that, the NFL projected revenue to grow 4% in 2011 and 2012 and 2.5% in 2013 and 2014. (I assume this is why the numbers grow so little, comparatively, over 4 years.) The player's also wanted a clause that said if those estimates were low, that in 2015 and forward they would split revenue 50-50.

Salary Cap Reference
2001 $67.4M
2002 $71.1M
2003 $75.007M
2004 $80.582M
2005 $85.5M
2006 $102M <-- All teams who were supposedly going to experience cap hell say "thank you"
2007 $109M
2008 $116.729M
2009 $127M

NOTE: The article says the $141M number is salary and benefits, so the cap number would be more like $119M. Not sure how that would compare to 2010.

nrc

03-22-11, 09:44 PM

So they'll kick from the 35 and cover teams won't get more than a five yard run-up, but everything else remains the same.

Maybe the shorter run-up will slow the coverage team enough that returns from the end-zone will become more common.

Insomniac

03-24-11, 08:02 PM

Insomniac

03-26-11, 02:26 PM

This draft stuff is annoying. If I'm the NFL, I issue the following statement and be done with it:

Because of statements made by current players, former players and agents the National Football League has made the difficult decision to not invite any potential draftees to New York City for the 2011 NFL Draft. The potential risk of repercussion and retaliation to draftees for attending the 2011 NFL Draft from their future teammates is too much of a burden to place on these young men and their families.

RaceGrrl

03-31-11, 12:19 AM

http://chzderp.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/hurr-durr-derp-face-breaking-news-up-next-footbuuhhrr.jpg

Gnam

04-29-11, 08:01 PM

Draft news: 49ers draft Nevada QB. Woot!

Lockout news: Team owners win court ruling to extend lockout for a few days.

nrc

04-30-11, 01:38 PM

A smart, accurate passer wearing number 14 slinging it for the Bengals in a west coast offense? Dare to dream, baby! :gomer:

dando

04-30-11, 06:00 PM

A smart, accurate passer wearing number 14 slinging it for the Bengals in a west coast offense? Dare to dream, baby! :gomer:

Good draft all around from what I can tell. That DE/LB they drafted is an absolute freak (4.5 40 and a 42" vertical). The G also looks interesting...McShay had him @ 51 and slipped to 101. He also mentioned some minor character issues, so he should fit right in. :gomer: No idea on rounds 5, 6, 7...I was kinda hoping they'd go after Sanzy for another WR, but they already two WRs (what does that make like 8 over the past 3 drafts)? :eek: Sanzy is going to be a good slot WR in the mold of Welker and Hartline. Great hands and heart of a lion...but we also have Cosby, whose production dropped off last season (perhaps due to injuries).

EDIT: #14 should be retired, IMO, but it's eerie how similar Anderson and Dalton are in size/weight. :eek:

-Kevin

chop456

06-01-11, 08:21 AM

The up side:

Lockout has Collinsworth going back to high school … as a coach (http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/blog/shutdown_corner/post/Lockout-has-Collinsworth-going-back-to-high-scho?urn=nfl-wp2270)

I hope he really, REALLY likes it. :thumbup:

Don Quixote

06-01-11, 08:46 AM

Amen!

Gnam

06-30-11, 03:51 PM

Now the NBA players are Locked out? :shakehead

This is the moment soccer has been waiting for.

Napoleon

06-30-11, 04:00 PM

Now the NBA players are Locked out? :shakehead

This is the moment soccer has been waiting for.

I was thinking more hockey.

devilmaster

06-30-11, 09:46 PM

Too bad nobody seems to has noticed what fans thought of the baseball lockout, the hockey lockout, and the indycar split....

nrc

07-09-11, 06:06 PM

http://hollywoodhiccups.com/wp-content/uploads/Screen-shot-2011-07-09-at-10.17.40-AM.png

Hines Ward busted for DUI. :p

I'd make a joke about a Bengals trade but the Bengals haven't had an arrest in over a year. In the time since the last Bengals arrest the Titans have had six, five of them Kenny Britt. Tampa Bay managed five but it was more of a team effort with five different players participating.

Insomniac

07-09-11, 06:24 PM

I hate the Steelers, but they have been to 3 of the last 6 Super Bowls and won 2. :yuck:

But hey, that's how he pays back the city for throwing him a parade for winning Dancing with the Stars.

extramundane

07-10-11, 09:19 AM

I'd make a joke about a Bengals trade but the Bengals haven't had an arrest in over a year.

Oops (http://wp.me/p14QSB-A77) :D

Don Quixote

07-10-11, 09:36 AM

Oops (http://wp.me/p14QSB-A77) :D
Didn't see that one coming. :D

dando

07-10-11, 10:25 AM

I'd make a joke about a Bengals trade but the Bengals haven't had an arrest in over a year.

You're banned from posting on the Bungles or Bucks. :gomer: :saywhat:

Ocho's tweet on the subject:

ochocinco Chad Ochocinco
I'm sure it's some kind of misunderstanding,he's a great teammate. RT @Jeremeyfinn: @ochocinco pacman got arrested n Hamilton last night.

:shakehead

-Kevin

nrc

07-10-11, 03:38 PM

Hey, that's one. :p The good news is that it gets Ward mentioned in the same stories as Jones and hopefully it will up the pressure on Brown to resign Joseph.

Don Quixote

07-11-11, 09:26 AM

Somebody please explain this mugshot. :confused: :laugh:

http://assets.sbnation.com/assets/657484/Pacman_mugshot_medium.jpg

From February 24th:

Robert Langford, an attorney for Jones, said the player was "looking forward to having this chapter behind him."

"He's grown up, and realized that there's more to life than just another big party. He doesn't go to strip clubs in Las Vegas anymore -- not even in Cincinnati," Langford said.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/02/25/us-crime-pacman-idUSTRE71N85J20110225

dando

07-11-11, 09:50 AM

Somebody please explain this mugshot. :confused: :laugh:

He had surgery for a herniated disc after week 7 last season.

-Kevin

Gnam

07-11-11, 12:58 PM

Somebody please explain this mugshot. :confused: :laugh:

Boobquake? :p

dando

07-17-11, 12:31 PM

See what you started, nrc?

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/07/17/cedric-benson-arrested-again/

:shakehead

-Kevin

Ankf00

07-17-11, 01:38 PM

i should bake a file into a cake and take it over to 10th st. actually, at this point, surprised he doesn't have a downtown bakery on retainer for just that purpose :gomer:

Don Quixote

07-17-11, 03:43 PM

See what you started, nrc?

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/07/17/cedric-benson-arrested-again/

:shakehead

-KevinI'm shocked, shocked I tell you!

Insomniac

07-17-11, 05:52 PM

See what you started, nrc?

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/07/17/cedric-benson-arrested-again/

:shakehead

-Kevin

You missed one: http://www.dailyworld.com/article/20110717/SPORTS/107170333/White-arrested

dando

07-17-11, 06:03 PM

You missed one: http://www.dailyworld.com/article/20110717/SPORTS/107170333/White-arrested

No I didn't...it was mentioned in the article to which I linked. :gomer: I'm on vacation. Gimme a break. :p

-Kevin

Insomniac

07-17-11, 06:43 PM

No I didn't...it was mentioned in the article to which I linked. :gomer: I'm on vacation. Gimme a break. :p

-Kevin

Hah! I didn't read the link, but I felt it had to be made clear how much of a jinx nrc unleashed. :D

nrc

07-17-11, 08:40 PM

Bah! They still have two to go just to reach Kenny Britt's personal total. Anyway, I'm blaming it all on Ward's bad example. :gomer:

Insomniac

07-19-11, 01:32 PM

They're supposedly close to a deal and now the plaintiffs are making demands for themselves. So far: Logan Mankins and Vincent Jackson want $10M or immediate free agency and Drew Brees and Peyton Manning want a lifetime exemption from the Franchise Tag.

As PFT says, not bad for signing your name to a piece of paper. Outside of that, none of them did anything to settle it.

I'd say the only plaintiff who is losing something is Von Miller. He's losing so much money being the #2 pick and agreeing to a rookie wage scale.

nrc

07-19-11, 07:54 PM

That's funny. "That deal sounds good for you guys - now here's what I want." :p

Don Quixote

07-19-11, 08:15 PM

Yeah, so how does that work? The employer has to deal with its employees on a collective basis, and then also with some subset of its employees individually. Nice.

Gnam

07-21-11, 08:19 PM

Teams agree to new Collective Bargaining Agreement.
Now the players have to accept.

Pre-season games would still occur on schedule, except for the Hall of Fame game on Aug 7. That's been cancelled.

chop456

07-21-11, 11:00 PM

I hope the owners tell the players that they'll need at least a year to look over the counteroffer.

Insomniac

07-22-11, 02:38 PM

I don't know what the owners were thinking with that circus yesterday. They have supposedly agreed to the following and should just shut up:

2001 $67.405M
2002 $71.101M
2003 $75.007M
2004 $80.582M
2005 $85.5M
2006 $102M (New CBA the owner's opted out of)
2007 $109M
2008 $116M
2009 $128M
2010 $135M (Patriots estimated cap number)
2011 $120.375M

The owners are basically getting a reset switch back to the old CBA's cap trajectory. I figure that's at least a $600M give back this year.

nrc

07-22-11, 04:29 PM

2009 was the last capped year so it's essentially flat with that. It's a 48/52 split of revenue - a higher percentage for the owners than before but with fewer exemptions. There are other non-salary benefits for the players that offset the owner gains as well. One source says about 200M positive for the owners initially, more over time.

extramundane

07-24-11, 10:24 AM

I'm suddenly much more in favor of a lockout. :irked:

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/07/23/report-eagles-interested-in-brett-favre/

Don Quixote

07-25-11, 09:27 AM

I think its time for me to make my annual prediction of a Brown's superbowl! :gomer:

dando

07-25-11, 10:50 AM

I think its time for me to make my annual prediction of a Brown's superbowl! :gomer:

I see you spent the weekend researching medical mary jane locations again. :D :p

-Kevin

Don Quixote

07-25-11, 01:13 PM

I see you spent the weekend researching medical mary jane locations again. :D :p

-KevinThere are now more dispenseries in Denver than Starbucks. Two new ones that I noticed last week: "Healing Buds" and "420 Wellness".

Gnam

07-25-11, 03:11 PM

Players approve deal. Training camps to open this week. Free agents to be signed starting tomorrow. Don't worry though no one is in a rush...

Under the terms of the CBA, teams can no longer hold two-a-day practices, a staple of past training camps. Teams will be able to conduct some non-contact practices, without helmets or pads, following their first practice of the day.

Those early games are going to be ugly.

Don Quixote

07-25-11, 03:27 PM

Those early games are going to be ugly.And they cost the same as a regular season game. :shakehead

Insomniac

07-25-11, 03:41 PM

And they cost the same as a regular season game. :shakehead

Not much you can do there. The total cost of season tickets are going to be the same any way you slice it. At least now, if you really hate them, you can donate them and get a write off for the absurd price vs if it was real cheap.

dando

07-28-11, 06:33 PM

LMAO! x11

http://espn.go.com/boston/nfl/story/_/id/6813469/cincinnati-bengals-deal-chad-ochocinco-new-england-patriots-source-says

First Haynesworth and now Ocho. L8r #85. :laugh:

-Kevin

Insomniac

07-28-11, 07:03 PM

LMAO! x11

http://espn.go.com/boston/nfl/story/_/id/6813469/cincinnati-bengals-deal-chad-ochocinco-new-england-patriots-source-says

First Haynesworth and now Ocho. L8r #85. :laugh:

-Kevin

Solid set of 3 receivers. This seemed a lot more possible than Haynesworth. That's a mystery given his whining about playing in a 3-4 (granted as a NT). They aren't going to pay him that much to play on passing downs only. But who knows. Either way, the media will call Belichick a genius. Giving up little for talent. It is good value I suppose, but it only works because of the rest of the team/organization.

I'll be happy when the Patriots get back to winning games 17-14. The Patriots wanted to become the Colts and unfortunately they succeeded.