The Nuclear Option

[hiko]

The players used their Nuclear Option and decertified and took the whole conflict to the courthouse, effectively stopping mediation and hoping that the court system would fight their fight for them. And it has worked (to an extent).

However, now there is rumbling that the Owners will use their Nuclear Option and shut down the league. Goodell didn't deny they might do that.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/05/11/goodell-on-nfl-shutdown-rumor-were-considering-a-variety-of-alternatives/

The courts can't force the NFL to open their doors if the NFL is not under operation.

That path would probably end up defeating the Players, since most of them don't have big fallback sources of income to tap into (just lucky ones like Kelly Holcomb and his assorted sandwich products). But is fraught with many other potholes, like licensing contracts and stadium leases and TV contracts and such.

Anyone know exactly how that would work?

I wonder if the NFL is just considering filing for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy protection. They could shut their doors and Bankruptcy law could protect them from lawsuits until they force the players to mediate. The Bankruptcy would never get discharged, but they can file it as many times as they want and are protected each time it gets filed (unless the players move to prevent future filings, which would require yet another separate hearing).

Course, this means that we'd be in for even more super-fun legal battles.

In the end, the only way this thing gets fixed is mediation. I hope the players are smart enough to realize this - the longer they wait, the worse the deal they strike is liable to be. They should be mediating their ass off in an effort to get this done while they still have an advantage.

But they won't.

[JCoz]

Well, the Mannings DO have....



So they have that going for them....

[Cerebral_DownTime]

Anyone know exactly how that would work?

Not me. But I do know this shit is becoming laughable.

They're all scum.

I ain't expecting no NFL this year.

[hiko]

Anyone know exactly how that would work?

Not me. But I do know this shit is becoming laughable.

They're all scum.

I ain't expecting no NFL this year.

I never thought that might even be an option, but I too am beginning to feel that way. Too many spoiled rich people on both sides.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

The whole thing is a farce, the NFLPA dissolving, the courtroom drama, all of it. It'll be the fans that really miss out, and I doubt the NFL comes back hat in hand with lowered ticket and merch prices. They'll still rape our wallets.

[motherscratcher]

If I'm understanding Hiko's new avatar, the only hope we have left as NFL fans is for President Comacho to step in and fix this thing.

[Erie Warrior]

If I'm understanding Hiko's new avatar, the only hope we have left as NFL fans is for President Comacho to step in and fix this thing.

Isn't that Coco B. Wear? And WTF is yours?

[motherscratcher]

If I'm understanding Hiko's new avatar, the only hope we have left as NFL fans is for President Comacho to step in and fix this thing.

Isn't that Coco B. Wear? And WTF is yours?

[hiko]

If I'm understanding Hiko's new avatar, the only hope we have left as NFL fans is for President Comacho to step in and fix this thing.

He would, too. A couple players and owners run over by a monster truck, and the rest would be agreeing to anything.

Camacho ain't puttin' up with discussions of Labor Law and Injunctions.

[Triple-S]

Weird hypothetical to play out, that was mentioned on ESPN just a few minutes a go.

The entire season is locked out...or..we only get 8 games in..whatever. The NFL decides to keep the draft order the same, or Carolina STILL winds up with the first overall.

Now on the other hand, Football LeBron is kicking ass at Stanford his senior season, and even winds up with the Heisman in the end. He doesn't suffer a Jake Locker senior-season, and blows everyone away at the combine, senior bowl, you name it.

McCoy on the other hand doesn't look bad, or doesn't play at all, either way the Browns are back in the top 10 range.

Do you stay the course and continue to try to build around Colt, who still has some uncertainty around him, or do you offer the farm for that first overall pick, making mike ditka blush?

[hiko]

Weird hypothetical to play out, that was mentioned on ESPN just a few minutes a go.

The entire season is locked out...or..we only get 8 games in..whatever. The NFL decides to keep the draft order the same, or Carolina STILL winds up with the first overall.

Now on the other hand, Football LeBron is kicking ass at Stanford his senior season, and even winds up with the Heisman in the end. He doesn't suffer a Jake Locker senior-season, and blows everyone away at the combine, senior bowl, you name it.

McCoy on the other hand doesn't look bad, or doesn't play at all, either way the Browns are back in the top 10 range.

Do you stay the course and continue to try to build around Colt, who still has some uncertainty around him, or do you offer the farm for that first overall pick, making mike ditka blush?

This is the easiest question ever.

If Colt sucks, you try to get Luck.

If Colt plays OK, you try to get Luck.

If Colt gets hurt, you try to get Luck.

If Colt plays pretty well, you try to get Luck.

The only way that you don't try to upgrade from Colt to Luck is if Colt just blows the socks off the world this season, b/c Luck is a once-in-10-years franchise QB and you don't pass that up for Colt McCoy.

Hell, if Carolina does pick #1 again next year, THEY should take Luck, even if they just drafted Newton.

[bac5665]

You realize of course, that now Luck will be a bust right? No one gets this much hype and pans out. Doesn't happen.

[hiko]

You realize of course, that now Luck will be a bust right? No one gets this much hype and pans out. Doesn't happen.

[SoulDawg74]

You realize of course, that now Luck will be a bust right? No one gets this much hype and pans out. Doesn't happen.

SD:

What no Joe Namath

[hiko]

SD:

What no Joe Namath

I was just going #1 overall picks that won championships and became Hall of Famers.

I even left off Eli Manning, who only won a championship (the HoF would be doubtful at this point).

[SoulDawg74]

SD:

What no Joe Namath

I was just going #1 overall picks that won championships and became Hall of Famers.

I even left off Eli Manning, who only won a championship (the HoF would be doubtful at this point).

SD:

I think Bradshaw went about 5th in the first round IIRC.

No matter Just tried to support your position that not all ballyhood prospects were busters.

Namath not only made the HOF his upset of Bmore as a 17/1/2 point dog put that event on the map and changed the league forever giving the AFL its first win just as they disbanded.

Joseph William "Joe" Namath (pronounced /ˈneɪmɨθ/; born May 31, 1943), nicknamed "Broadway Joe" or "Joe Willie",[1] is a former American football quarterback. He played college football for the University of Alabama under coach Paul "Bear" Bryant and his assistant, Howard Schnellenberger, from 1962–1964, and professional football in the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL) during the 1960s and 1970s. Namath was an American Football League icon and played for that league's New York Jets for most of his professional career but finished his career with the NFL's Los Angeles Rams. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1985.


SoulDawg

[hiko]

Per Wikipedia:

Bradshaw was the first player selected in the 1970 NFL Draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers; the Steelers drew the first pick in the draft after winning a coin flip tiebreaker with the Chicago Bears due to both teams having identical 1-13 records in 1969.[4] In either case, Bradshaw was hailed at the time as the consensus number one pick, regardless of which team drafted him.

FWIW, I didn't think he was a #1 overall either, but then again I was a zygote in 1970.

[Madre Hill, Superstar]

How did this turn from a labor drama thread into yet another fucking QB thread?

[jb]

How did this turn from a labor drama thread into yet another fucking QB thread?

He's gifted that way.

[Fire Marshall Bill]

How did this turn from a labor drama thread into yet another fucking QB thread?

He's gifted that way.

Who?

hiko or SD?

[hiko]

How did this turn from a labor drama thread into yet another fucking QB thread?

He's gifted that way.

Who?

hiko or SD?

He means SD.

I would've preferred this to stay a labor thread, but no one wants to talk about that so much (can't blame them).

It's all but a done deal that the NFL wins the appeal and the lockout becomes permanent. If the Players had any brains, they'd try to cut the best deal they could before the ruling comes back (probably by the end of June). But DeMo is a petty little man and maybe football players are as dumb as people figure they are, so they'll likely wait until the ruling (desperately hoping for a miracle that probably won't come), pout and whine for a while until Training Camp is lost, then cut a deal that they probably could've had back in March.

If the Players hadn't gone the nuclear option in the first place (decertifying) and just kept negotiating, this whole fuggin' thing would prolly be done already.

[SoulDawg74]

How did this turn from a labor drama thread into yet another fucking QB thread?

He's gifted that way.

Who?

hiko or SD?

He means SD.

I would've preferred this to stay a labor thread, but no one wants to talk about that so much (can't blame them).

It's all but a done deal that the NFL wins the appeal and the lockout becomes permanent. If the Players had any brains, they'd try to cut the best deal they could before the ruling comes back (probably by the end of June). But DeMo is a petty little man and maybe football players are as dumb as people figure they are, so they'll likely wait until the ruling (desperately hoping for a miracle that probably won't come), pout and whine for a while until Training Camp is lost, then cut a deal that they probably could've had back in March.

If the Players hadn't gone the nuclear option in the first place (decertifying) and just kept negotiating, this whole fuggin' thing would prolly be done already.

SD:

But then the malevolent little troll , and the fake prince would never have had their high noon show down .

Dumb ass players are getting pimped like looney tunes ,while Goody Goodell is sweating bullets for having overplayed his hand.

The problem all along has been the personalities in the room weren't large enough , both succumbed to the chattering blatherings of their minions .

The leadership void by both parties is quite shocking,,neither fool understands the art of the deal.

Lawyers are shit when it comes to negotiation, its incumbent upon the clients to be smart enough to reign them in and close the deal.


SoulDawg

[hiko]

SD:

But then the malevolent little troll , and the fake prince would never have had their high noon show down .

Dumb ass players are getting pimped like looney tunes ,while Goody Goodell is sweating bullets for having overplayed his hand.

The problem all along has been the personalities in the room weren't large enough , both succumbed to the chattering blatherings of their minions .

The leadership void by both parties is quite shocking,,neither fool understands the art of the deal.

Lawyers are shit when it comes to negotiation, its incumbent upon the clients to be smart enough to reign them in and close the deal.


SoulDawg

Agree - DeMo never had any intentions of negotiating a contract without going to war. And when a leader drags the masses into a war that he's convinced them they will win - and they lose - the masses eventually turn on that leader.

And like many leaders throughout history, I see DeMo's ego bringing his "nation" to ruin by continuing to fight when any reasonable chance of victory has passed.

Goodell hasn't looked all that great in this thing either. He passed up several chances to take the high road, and he's looked weak at times. Stronger leadership on both sides could've headed this thing off a long time ago.

[hiko]

Thought this was an interesting article in PFT today:

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/05/25/agent-wants-to-present-latest-labor-offer-to-players-these-guys-are-driving-these-players-right-off-a-cliff/

We don’t know if it’s a groundswell or a grassroots movement just yet, but there appears to be growing support for the players and owners to sit down and negotiate once again.

Falcons running back Jason Snelling, Falcons linebacker Coy Wire, and Eagles kicker David Akers have all publicly expressed a desire to negotiate soon rather than continue to pursue a litigation/leverage strategy. And if the NFLPA* doesn’t want to negotiate, at least one agent wants to do it for them.

Agent Joe Linta wants to get a copy of ownership’s most recent proposal and present it to his players.

“I’d like to see it myself so when I talk to my 45 guys, I can show them what it is – since there is no union,’’ Linta told Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “I would like Mr. Rooney to forward the offer to me. I represent two percent of the union, I’m not insignificant. Let me ask you something, who has the players’ back more, the players union or the player’s agent? Why can’t I get copy of this and disseminate it to my players?”

Agents generally have their interests aligned with the players. But we’ve also seen many of them implore the NFLPA* via Twitter to negotiate with the league again or make a counter proposal. That runs counter to the current player strategy.

Ultimately, agents have similar interests to fans: They just want a fair deal done quickly, with labor peace to follow. Linta worries that this litigation strategy could wipe out the season, and he wonders if most players would really oppose the current NFL offer.

He thinks that top agents, who negotiate for a living, could help if they were kept in the loop.

“These guys are driving these players right off a cliff right now. I told a father of one of my players who got drafted, it’s 50-50 this season is not going to happen. These coaches are starting to go looney-toon too,” Linta said.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

New rules changes are soooo awesome. Now a flag can only be thrown on a "forcible blow" to a QB's head. WTF is a forcible blow? Does Ray Lewis grab Big Ben's head and try to jam his phallus into his mouth while muttering "I need this".

They're also considering banning farting and swearing from the locker room. No more full pads at practice either, only heavy touching followed by a 30 minute cool down and tea party.

The NFL is gay.

[pup]

New rules changes are soooo awesome. Now a flag can only be thrown on a "forcible blow" to a QB's head. WTF is a forcible blow? Does Ray Lewis grab Big Ben's head and try to jam his phallus into his mouth while muttering "I need this".

They're also considering banning farting and swearing from the locker room. No more full pads at practice either, only heavy touching followed by a 30 minute cool down and tea party.

The NFL is gay.

Isn't "forcible blow" better than simply touching the helmet drew the same flag?

[hiko]

New rules changes are soooo awesome. Now a flag can only be thrown on a "forcible blow" to a QB's head. WTF is a forcible blow? Does Ray Lewis grab Big Ben's head and try to jam his phallus into his mouth while muttering "I need this".

They're also considering banning farting and swearing from the locker room. No more full pads at practice either, only heavy touching followed by a 30 minute cool down and tea party.

The NFL is gay.

Isn't "forcible blow" better than simply touching the helmet drew the same flag?

I agree. Scratching the helmet with the fingernail would draw a penalty last year - "forcible blow" might actually be an improvement.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

New rules changes are soooo awesome. Now a flag can only be thrown on a "forcible blow" to a QB's head. WTF is a forcible blow? Does Ray Lewis grab Big Ben's head and try to jam his phallus into his mouth while muttering "I need this".

They're also considering banning farting and swearing from the locker room. No more full pads at practice either, only heavy touching followed by a 30 minute cool down and tea party.

The NFL is gay.

Isn't "forcible blow" better than simply touching the helmet drew the same flag?

No.

[Gradysmanldy]

Yes. Last years rule was chizekopf, this is better.

[googleeph2]

I couldn't care less if David Akers ever plays football again.
I don't even know who Jason Snelling and Coy Wire are.

I do care whether the Falcons, Eagles et al plays again.
And I have in fact heard of Andrew Luck.

That all means something, I am sure.