Is Revenue sharing taking a hit?

Arizona Cardinals kicker Jay Feely has been sitting in on the negotiations between the NFL and the NFL Players Association as his team’s player representative. In comments on the Michal Kay Show on ESPN, Feely claims that Carolina Panthers owner Jerry Richardson talked down to Peyton Manning and Drew Brees. Normally that wouldn’t warrant a post on Buffalo Rumblings.

In his comments specific to content of negotiations, Feely used the Buffalo Bills as a reason the NFL is being so hard-line on the players.

“All the fans care about is watching football,” said Feely. “They don’t want to hear us bickering. If I took out a lot of lawyers, I could get a deal done tomorrow. Jerry Jones doesn’t want to share with the Buffalo Bills anymore. You have this disconnect between the owners. They want to take back from the players. That’s their answer right now. Their answer is, ‘We have leverage. We’re going to assert that leverage and fix our problem that we can’t settle between ourselves.'” (Buffalo Rumblings)

Mind of Joe

This doesn’t bold well for the Bills. As I mentioned in the Bills podcast from last week, if the Bills end up getting screwed in the revenue sharing process, we are going to be f#cked! Ralph Wilson has made no bones about his discontent with how larger markets, such as Dallas and New York City, make boatloads of money off luxury boxes. It’s his main reason for wanting to have one game in Toronto a year, and if this goes down as Jay Feely says, you can bet your bottom dollar that we may have another game north of the border.

I know some may think that if the owners get what they want from the players, all will be well. I don’t buy that because, as I’ve put it, the NFL is all about making money off luxury boxes and the Bills just can’t compete with the new stadiums. Plus, you have to wonder who is leading the parade of getting a deal done for the owners? I don’t think it’s Ralph Wilson or Mike Brown. Something tells me that the debt that some of these owners have incurred with building billion dollar palaces, have caught up with them. I think the Jerry’s and the Dan Snyders of the world, are spearheading this effort.

It’s going to be bleak, kids. I think even if the owners get a deal in their favor, Ralph is going to be complaining like he did in 2006 about the CBA.