I Blame Both Sides In This Football Dispute

So the NFL Players Group (or whatever they are calling themselves) is reviewing the deal that the owners blessed. And once again there is posturing going on.  The Hall of Game game has already been cancelled.  And the first preseason football game is now in danger.  I hear a lot of talk on the radio and TV blaming the owners for the last minute problems going on right now.  I can’t blame one side, I have to blame the football players AND the owners.

Now let me be clear.  It does appear that the owners pulled some last minute antics at the end here.  And I can’t blame the players for reviewing one more time and making sure that the deal that they agree to is, in fact, the deal that they want.   But I cannot and will not blame the coaches for the entire problem.  And, if the first preseason game is lost, I won’t put this all on the owners.

Why you ask?  Well, if both sides had been more willing to actually work towards a deal they wouldn’t be facing this deadline.  But no, both sides were, in my opinion, never going to do a deal until the very end.  I believe they were both hoping the leverage of lost games and revenues would pressure the other side into concessions.

Which just confirms that, as much as both sides were talking about the fans, neither side really cares about the fans.  It comes down to what it always comes down to …. the money.

Now I am still a fan, and I still love the game.  But going forward, anything that comes out of the mouths of the league, the owners, or the football players is suspect.  Maybe the only innocents in all of this are the coaches and the other employees of the teams.   Will I look at the players and owners with a little bit of distaste?  For sure I will.

And it’s not about the fact that there was a dispute or a lockout.  I think that is probably the normal order of things in professional sports.  It’s about the deception on both sides to the fans for the sake of money.  Now some may say “Hey the players deserve to fight for more money and benefits.”  Or they might say “The owners are business people and they have to protect their interests.”  And I am ok with that.

But a lot depends on how both sides conduct their business.  I heard Takeo Spikes say yesterday “That’s what they do!” in speaking about the owners.  He was referring to the moves at the end of the process.  But I believe that statement is valid for both sides.   Otherwise this deal could have been worked out a long time ago.

At this point, I just hope it gets done and we have football soon!  But I do blame both sides, not the owners by themselves or the players by themselves.