Cornerback Domonique Foxworth says the knee is coming along fine… but the union negotiations with the owners are not…
Listening to Domonique Foxworth tonight on WBAL-AM talking about his frustration with the ongoing union talks with the NFL owners was a bummer, to say the least… With his fellow defensive back Chris Carr sharing the NFLPA rep duties for the Ravens, Foxworth’s emotions are a focus of fans’ attention
as negotiations seem to be breaking down in the struggle to get a new collective bargaining agreement done in time for the 2011 season…
Foxworth was obviously depressed at the lack of progress in negotiations with owners as he fielded questions from WBAL’s Brett Hollander. At one point in the interview, Domonique flat-out revealed: “I don’t get it…I can’t imagine 2011 without NFL football…Can they not see how big a part of America the Super Bowl just was? The Super Bowl is bigger than Christmas…it may be the one thing all Americans agree upon, be it the game itself or the halftime show or the funny commercials…I can’t imagine living in America without the NFL in 2011…”
Foxworth went on to say he’s disturbed the owners walked away from the table on Wednesday.
The Associated Press said the collapse of talks came as a “surprise,” but neither the NFL nor the union’s Executive Director DeMaurice Smith commented on why Thursday’s session was called off.
That didn’t stop ESPN from trying to solve the mystery.
According to Chris Mortenson, owners walked away from the negotiating table Wednesday when the NFL Players Association proposed to take an average of 50 percent of all revenue generated by the league. He added that NFL owners cancelled Thursday’s meeting because the two sides are so far apart.
But NFL.com’s Jason La Canfora said frustration set in during Wednesday’s meeting because the two sides “weren’t getting anywhere” and the same arguments were coming up.
Local Ravens commentator Stan White, a lawyer and former Ohio State linebacker who played with both the Baltimore Colts and the Detroit Lions, had a somewhat analytical approach to the developments.
‘”The owners walking away from the table is a classic maneuver early on in negotiations”, said Stan. “The same thing happened in 1982 when I was the player rep. At this point, it doesn’t mean much, it ‘s only meant to intimidate the players and their union reps. There’s nothing to lose at this point for the owners. They’re basically saying to the players: ”See, this is all happening because your union leaders are making a mistake”…it’s a classic move to break the will of the players and their union…it’s all gamesmanship…Nothing will become urgent to the owners until we get close to July and what should be the opening of training camps…Until then, they have the luxury of playing the walk-away game…”‘
That veteran logic may be lost upon the emotions of young guys like Foxworth and Carr, who certainly are dealing with the anxieties of the possibility they will be unemployed in 2011…and that’s the fear factor the owners are counting upon.
The NFL released a statement Thursday night calling media reports “inaccurate” for putting the responsibility of the breakdown in talks on the league.
Said the NFL: “Despite the inaccurate characterizations of yesterday’s meeting, out of respect to the collective bargaining process and our negotiating partner, we are going to continue to conduct negotiations with the union in private and not engage in a point-counterpoint on the specifics of either side’s proposals or the meeting process. Instead, we will work as hard as possible to reach a fair agreement by March 4. We are fully focused on that goal.”
Foxworth, who is an NFLPA national executive committee member, wasn’t happy about the cancelled meetings.
”I was at the @NFLPA and @nfl meetings yesterday and am sorely disappointed that today’s meetings were canceled,” tweeted Foxworth.
“I can PROMISE you that @NFLPA is trying every avenue to bring you football next year. #letusplay or at least #letustalk,” he added.
As Stan White explained above, though, the maneuver of an early-round walk-away by the owners has a few players rattled…just as such a move is intended to do. It’s just a game to the owners…until we’re far enough into the summer to actually risk an America without NFL football in 2011. Then it’s time for the owners to panic a little, too… and the stage will be set for the real negotiations to begin.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
