The only people voting here are the NFL owner's lapdogs who sit on this website and try to sway normal people into thinking something incredibly stupid. If I ask you to give me $7 billion and then I say we will "negotiate" this offer. Well you don't want to part with any money, so ANY NEGOTIATION WOULD MEAN YOU ARE GIVING SOMETHING TO ME! Which is what I want. Well if you don't talk to me, then YOU ARE NOT NEGOTIATING! The players are like stick-up victims with their hands spread up against the wall and the owners are holding a gun to their head, saying "NEGOTIATE" my request of $7 billion or we will shut you down! It's basically a robbery taking place in slow, but real time. At the end of the day, that is exactly what the owners are doing to the players.
JLR - 13 years ago
All this poll shows is PFT posters are out of touch with the mainstream opinion. Even an ESPN poll showed less support for the owners.
JohnnyFootballHero - 13 years ago
Really bad poll.
Really, PFT? Polldaddy? You couldn't afford to run your own poll? I've personally voted three times on this very page - seems to think I'm a new user every time I return.
You can't honestly hope to use this as a basis for justifying anything since it is in no way scientific or accurate.
I mean, really. Can't you guys afford a decent web editor? You run a Wordpress site with a Polldaddy plugin! A 6-year-old could run your site! Use some of that NBC money and get yourself a makeover already!
I'm in sec.306 - 13 years ago
really? no,thats where my in-laws sit,I'm up in the suite>>>>>>..NFLPA is i a big mess...I think They will lose..
NFL Plants Everywhere - 13 years ago
Funny how if someone supports the players, everyone jumps on them and immediately calls them idiots. That is, in between making racist assumptions about what the players spend their money on. For every one player that may be blowing his money on strip clubs, "bling" or "homies" (egad, some of you really are just racist pigs), there are ten that spend it on the same things everyone else does. You know, their families, homes and futures. Stop with the BS propaganda. The bottom line is, the players aren't asking for ANYTHING more, they just don't want to give back a billion dollars unless the owners are willing to show them why. If you'd signed a contract with your management that said you were guaranteed a percentage of the profits you'd want to see the books, too - unless you really are an idiot that believes people tell the truth when it comes to money.
Nick - 13 years ago
Personally I don't support the owners at all in this. The players have messed up their efforts at pretty much every opportunity they can but I think the players have the right of it. The owners have no one to blame for the players' salaries but themselves. They control how much money they offer to a player and the salary floor was such a low level in comparison to the total profits.
Also people, its stupid to just say "As of now Players get over 51%. What companies in the real world do the employees get more than the owners." because they aren't just the employees, they're also the product. So if you look at it from that perspective I would ask you what company isn't willing to invest over 51% of the revenue towards their product/employees.
Look there was a CBA already. The NFL was breaking record after record in their TV deals, their ratings. Guys like Robert Kraft expanded their product beyond football.... using football (Patriot Place in Foxboro) and made even more money. The NFL experienced record growth under the last CBA! Everyone! was getting richer except the low market teams that didn't do the things that the Jerry Jones, Dan Snyder, and Krafts of the league were doing. Who opted out of the current deal? The owners, so I blame the owners. Why kill the golden goose
dave - 13 years ago
I am have been a hardcore fan for 25 years. I support the players. I support the players because I am tired of all the elitist in this country becoming more elite. At least the players give back to the communities and the families in America.
For everyone that truly believes that an owners win is beneficial to all is believing rhetoric
Ted - 13 years ago
I think it can be inferred that while the general public may be somewhat ambivalent on this issue, hardcore football fans are firmly siding with the owners.
Therefore, it can be argued that the more you know, the more inclined you are to support the NFL; the less you know, the more likely it is that you will support the players.
John - 13 years ago
This poll was done poorly, since the headline was about who people blame, and this poll is who you support.
Snowpea - 13 years ago
So PFT is just grasping at whatever polls they can. Regarldess of what their own polls, conducted with the segment of the population that is actually paying attention to what is going on in the matter, have to say.
Jeff - 13 years ago
after all the BS about the owners infiltrating this website to beef up their support... can somone verify how many platers are hitting that little I support the players button,... over and over and over.. hey they don't really have anything else to do. I am 1000 % owners in this...
Chris - 13 years ago
The owners undoubtedly have the upper hand right now. Seems like the longer the players drag this out, the worse the eventual deal will get for them. I'd say it's time to cut bait and sign a deal.
Just Call Me Daddy - 13 years ago
This poll is reflective of other online polls of fans I've seen. I don't know who they were polling, maybe the UAW.
Piemaster - 13 years ago
"I have to question why so many are anti-player on this issue? There must be some underlying reasons to be such haters. Football Players are the league!!!"
Football players... hmmm maybe, to an extent. But the thing is, not these football players in particular. While there is some affiliation with individual players, most fans will cheer on whoever puts on their team jersey. I first started watching football a lot in 1996 and in that time an entire generation, maybe even two generations have come and gone. Brett Favre was the last player who I really remember from when I first became a football fan and now he's retired too. Every time a player I love retires, I think "that's a shame" and then look immediately to who my team might select in the upcoming draft. My interest in individual players is completely transient.
If every player currently on an NFL roster quit tomorrow, would I stop watching football? Of course not. Sure, it would be weird at first watching JaMarcus Russell behind centre for the Colts instead of Peyton Manning, or the much hyped Packers linebacker corp replaced by a couple of UFL stars and a guy who wasn't drafted. But I would still be out there supporting my team, getting to know the new players, forming opinions of them, seeing which team could mould their new players into the best unit. Because it's football and, to a lesser extent, the NFLs brand of football that I love much more than the individual stars.
Michael - 13 years ago
If nobodies talking nobody can win..Listen to the words of a very wise man. "Where am I? Why am I in this handbasket? Please gentlemen....stay out of the damn basket!!!!
jimmy joe jackass - 13 years ago
Wally, you really are a big ol' douchebag.
Wally is a moron - 13 years ago
Wally........ You're a moron!
Michael - 13 years ago
Wally, that's a very simplistic point of view. I support the owners and the long-term health of the league. I like free agency, parity, and the draft. Therefore I MUST be jealous of professional athletes? That's ridiculous! Nobody is demonizing the athletes for making a lot of money (although most player-supporters seem to hate the owners BECAUSE they're billionaires). We think the athletes are just too naive to realize that their leadership is representing only the top few stars, and everyone but that group and their lawyers will lose in the end...especially the fans.
And BTW, no actor makes $100 million per movie.
Bryan Wenzel - 13 years ago
I'm *leaning* towards players, as someone that played football through his childhood, all through school, and reminds a die-hard football fanatic.
But in THIS: They both suck. The whole thing just...stinks.
Everything about it. The one and ONLY 'noble' bit left in this is that the players are the ones that, at the end of the day, strap on armor and go beat the hell out of each other, and risk life & limb for my amusement.
That puts the total for this crapfest at the players, negative 99999, while the owners are richer and a lot more pompous, plus no PLAYER ever inherited a roster spot (OK, ok, argument can be made for Manning and maybe Matthews 3, but only an argument), and they score a negative 100002.
The players should not be patting themselves on the back here. Fuck the lawyers (sorry Florio) and make this happen for both parties. Noone wins litigation but lawyers.
Wally - 13 years ago
I have to question why so many are anti-player on this issue? There must be some underlying reasons to be such haters. Football Players are the league!!! Actors get 100million for a hit movie and no one complains but an athlete who get 20 milliion is a villian.
All of you wanna bes' need to get a life. I am sorry you didn't turn out to be Jerry Rice or Dan Marino. You parents probably told you to work hard and you could be in the Pros or Big Leagues but I am sorry that was a myth. A special few are given the gifts that Pro Athletes possess and I think they deserve more than they have now.
There are idiots in every profession but most NFL players are great people who do alot of charity and work to improve their communities. The tone of the anti-player comments makes me wonder what the hidden agendas are???
Michael - 13 years ago
I'm always amused by the player supporters who claim that anyone who would support the owners must be on the payroll of the NFL. These people truly believe that all rich people would torture puppies if given the chance, and union bosses are the benevolent heroes of our time. And don't get them started on Roger Goodell....I mean that guy has got to be related to Hitler! These guys are so naive and out of touch (like the players they support) that they can't see that their views are skewed and they accept that they're in the minority.
Frank - 13 years ago
Rich you are beyond stupid. As a season ticket holder for 40 years it's clear you have no understanding of how much ticket prices have gone up since free agency. You probably have plopped yourself down in front of a tv and watched for free. No owner of a private business should be required to their books, that's why they're not public. De Smith part of Eric Holders justice dept is the reason it's in the courts.
erik - 13 years ago
I do not really support either side, but if I pulling for one side or another to get this resolved I am pulling for the owners. The players (especially Smith) are wearing on me with their stances. I am tired of the lies being spread by the NFLPA*
Curt - 13 years ago
Oh, and Rich........
You're an idiot. I am surprised anyone supports the players anymore. They really have no good reason why they deserve the money they are getting or more money. Sure, they put their lives on the line, considering that they are gonna have brain damage some day, but so do LOTS of other professions that make no where near the money they do, like Cops, FireFighters, Construction Workers, Coal Miners, etc...... F-ck these greedy @ss players.
Curt - 13 years ago
If the owners and players were to split up right now, and start anew...... Who do you think would be better off having a successful league? The owners with all new players that most probably never heard of or don't know much about? Or the players?
I can tell you that I would follow the owners because they already proven they can run a successful league for many years, and players come and go all the time, yet we always find new players to love. Plus, the NFL/owners own the rights to my hometown team name and I don't think I could root for another Philadelphia football team not named the Eagles with those amazing green jerseys.
Brad - 13 years ago
I support the owners for 1 main reason. Their whole reason for doing this is for a bigger piece of the pie. As of now Players get over 51%. What companies in the real world do the employees get more than the owners. They (Owners and Players) are all greedy but the owners are the owners. They get the bigger piece of the pie. It's just the way it works. Why they made the last deal i have no idea and now we are all paying for it.
Dawkfan1 - 13 years ago
Isn't Kevin Mawae retired from the NFL? Why is he negotiating on behalf of active players in the No Way in Hell They Aren't A Union NFLPA? These dumb players will wake up and realize they are fortunate to have an opportunity to make in 4 years (the argued length of a career) what most of us can only DREAM of. Jeffrey Kessler and DeMaurice Smith are laughing their asses off on the way to the bank. Dummies don't realize that Smith will get his money. Just see Upshaw's $15 mil to his wife upon his death! ANd Kessler doesn't see a case he won't rush to file so he can pad his $500/hr fee. Big dummies! I hope the league shuts dowen all operations so these imbeciles will realize they aren't all the Brady's, Manning's, Breeze's...they need the income.
Lint - 13 years ago
Well, from the look of things I may be canceling my subscription to Sirius/XM radio. All the news on the radio is bad enough and with no football either, I will just watch Netflix!!
VaBrownsFan1 - 13 years ago
Rich,
Your comments are beyond moronic! You will never see "star" players putting up their own money to finance to support other players. The smart ones' money is tied up in real investments, the not so smart ones' in girls, homeys, jewelry etc. Are you telling us a player who could lose an earring worth tens of thousands of dollars on a practice field in Miami is capable of running a sports league? The players will eventually cave anyway. An "average career is 4 years, for most it's probably a year maybe 2. They cannot afford to stay away long. You have to remember for every 21 year vet Brett Favre there are several hundred who will only be on the roster long enough to learn the playbook. I'm no expert but I would bet that anyone drafted in the 4th round or later may not even have a career if they have to compete with next years draftees. You have to remember, the lower you are drafted the more you have to rely on seizing an opportunity in training camp, in preseason or in a game. The longer the strike goes, the fewers opportunites there will be.
jimmy joe jackass - 13 years ago
Screw the union.
Pack93z - 13 years ago
I can understand the positions and issues on both sides of this battle.. but the manner and rhetoric used by both parties is borderline pathetic for an industry as successful as the NFL.
Both parties failure to see the value of the product they had, yes "had" because believe it or not the damage has been cast for at least a couple of seasons of repair.. or at least it should be if the collective body of fans are as fed up as this lifelong fan.
I will continue to refuse to spend a dollar on the NFL product.. even when "my" team won the Superbowl.
There are no words that can salvage the damage cast.. only actions that serve the rest of this society as a whole.. and that is action and behaving like the astute business people they pretend to be. Not the actions of late, resembling children fighting over the greater lot of the toys from the toy box.
Grow a pair.. come out from behind your lawyers and strike a labor deal to split record revenues fairly, agree to take care of those players of the past, and maybe even find some room to pass along a cookie or two to the fans that ultimately drive this vehicle.
Either that.. or continue along the current path of destroying a truly fine game and league.
Not an ower - 13 years ago
I support the owners from a philosophical standpoint however I would like to see a deal that gets done that is liked by both sides and keeps this issue from coming up again for years.
As for any player that thinks I support their movement, I scoff in your general direction.
richisanidiot - 13 years ago
Rich you really are an idiot.
David - 13 years ago
Rich - 4 minutes ago
This poll has to be fixed or ridiculously voted on by NFL owners. No way that many support the owners. Fans will not benefit from a better deal for the owners so why not let the players get as much as possible. My family and I can spend three days ay Disney for what it would cost to get decent seats at a game. I am a huge football fan and am terrified at not seeing football played this fall. The players should threaten to start a new league and be prepared to follow through with it. Also, I think the star players should open a lockout bank and make low interest loans to other players to help get a better deal. They may even find investors to assist with the monies needed to set it up.
The owners refuse to open their books because they don't want anyone (including other owners) to see that they are raking it in and wasting it just as fast as it comes in.
No the fans won't you idiot. You know what happens when player salary raises? The ticket prices raise. If the players get more money and more benefits, guess who will take the hit? The fans! The owners are NOT going to take a hit on their steady profits. They are going to raise ticket prices, concession prices, parking prices, merchandise prices, EVERYTHING. They will do that so they can offset the money they are losing for the player salary/benefits raise. You honestly think if the players win this battle, the ticket prices will go down? You honestly think the Owners will allow the players to get more benefits, and more money, and lower ticket prices? You have got to be out of your mind. This is why I don't comment on this as much. People like you have ZERO clue of what's going on, and what's worse, ZERO clue of running a business.
The reason why you can go to Disney World cheaper is because of the fact that their workers DO NOT go on strike and demand over HALF of the revenue. They don't demand lucrative benefits after retirement. They get to "retire" after 4 years! It takes you and I 20 years to retire, and we are not even getting a low percentage of money these clowns make! These players make more money in 1 year, than we do in 20 years of doing hard, blue collar, work! Why do they need better benefits? How about you get health insurance like the rest of us!
Better yet, how about the PLAYERS open their bank account, so the owners can see why the players need a raise? Oh, that's right, it's because they are too busy buying multi-million dollar houses, multiple hundred thousand dollar cars, thousands of dollar nights at the clubs, thousands of dollars in jewelry, and 20 baby mommas.
commoncents - 13 years ago
I never went into this thinking i would be on the owners side, but I am. how can you respect the players when they won't negotiate, when they hire someone like de Smith who has done nothing but threaten the game, as we know it. it doesn't even seem like the players know what they want, other than to see the owners books. In what other profession do the employees get to see the books?? The owners are trying to get a deal done, and the players are only interested in hiding in the shadows of big brother Suzie nelson, hoping she can save them. i can't imagine that anyone could be on the players side when it seems, even they don't know what they want.
Paul - 13 years ago
Rich, your an idiot! These players are not smart enough to open a savings account, and you want them to try and run their own league?!?! LOL That would be entertainment!!
Rich - 13 years ago
This poll has to be fixed or ridiculously voted on by NFL owners. No way that many support the owners. Fans will not benefit from a better deal for the owners so why not let the players get as much as possible. My family and I can spend three days ay Disney for what it would cost to get decent seats at a game. I am a huge football fan and am terrified at not seeing football played this fall. The players should threaten to start a new league and be prepared to follow through with it. Also, I think the star players should open a lockout bank and make low interest loans to other players to help get a better deal. They may even find investors to assist with the monies needed to set it up.
The owners refuse to open their books because they don't want anyone (including other owners) to see that they are raking it in and wasting it just as fast as it comes in.
De-Mo Smith - 13 years ago
i hope these moron players keep listening to me and never negotiate. I can't believe the billable hours i am getting. I can't wait to buy some more hats with all their money.
Mark - 13 years ago
At least the owners have sent an offer. When I buy a house, or a car, I offer the lowest price I can even if it is an insult. If I am the only one buying that day, they can counter my offer with what they want to sell it for. If I don't like their counter offer, I will send them back an offer more to my liken. They usually don't like it because it is just a little better than my original offer, so they will counter back to me. Usually about this time we have worked through many of the small things, and the actual price is what we start to work on here. Yes it hardly ever ends up meeting in the middle, because either the seller needs to sell worse than the buyer needs to buy, or the buyer wants it more than the seller needs to sell it, but a deal can get done if one side needs or wants it bad enough. The problem with the NFL is neither side wants or needs it bad enough yet, but we are getting close to one side or the other caving in. The owners have BILLIONS to lose while the players have MILLIONS to lose. If I were losing thousands I would cave. I guess it really is about who needs the NFL the most? You know the answer to that WE, US, THE FANS, yep we are the big losers in this tug of war game.
gary hall - 13 years ago
time for the fans to say that we are tired of paying the prices for the owners and players to maintain their life styles.bet alot of america : CAN`T DO IT?
The only people voting here are the NFL owner's lapdogs who sit on this website and try to sway normal people into thinking something incredibly stupid. If I ask you to give me $7 billion and then I say we will "negotiate" this offer. Well you don't want to part with any money, so ANY NEGOTIATION WOULD MEAN YOU ARE GIVING SOMETHING TO ME! Which is what I want. Well if you don't talk to me, then YOU ARE NOT NEGOTIATING! The players are like stick-up victims with their hands spread up against the wall and the owners are holding a gun to their head, saying "NEGOTIATE" my request of $7 billion or we will shut you down! It's basically a robbery taking place in slow, but real time. At the end of the day, that is exactly what the owners are doing to the players.
All this poll shows is PFT posters are out of touch with the mainstream opinion. Even an ESPN poll showed less support for the owners.
Really bad poll.
Really, PFT? Polldaddy? You couldn't afford to run your own poll? I've personally voted three times on this very page - seems to think I'm a new user every time I return.
You can't honestly hope to use this as a basis for justifying anything since it is in no way scientific or accurate.
I mean, really. Can't you guys afford a decent web editor? You run a Wordpress site with a Polldaddy plugin! A 6-year-old could run your site! Use some of that NBC money and get yourself a makeover already!
really? no,thats where my in-laws sit,I'm up in the suite>>>>>>..NFLPA is i a big mess...I think They will lose..
Funny how if someone supports the players, everyone jumps on them and immediately calls them idiots. That is, in between making racist assumptions about what the players spend their money on. For every one player that may be blowing his money on strip clubs, "bling" or "homies" (egad, some of you really are just racist pigs), there are ten that spend it on the same things everyone else does. You know, their families, homes and futures. Stop with the BS propaganda. The bottom line is, the players aren't asking for ANYTHING more, they just don't want to give back a billion dollars unless the owners are willing to show them why. If you'd signed a contract with your management that said you were guaranteed a percentage of the profits you'd want to see the books, too - unless you really are an idiot that believes people tell the truth when it comes to money.
Personally I don't support the owners at all in this. The players have messed up their efforts at pretty much every opportunity they can but I think the players have the right of it. The owners have no one to blame for the players' salaries but themselves. They control how much money they offer to a player and the salary floor was such a low level in comparison to the total profits.
Also people, its stupid to just say "As of now Players get over 51%. What companies in the real world do the employees get more than the owners." because they aren't just the employees, they're also the product. So if you look at it from that perspective I would ask you what company isn't willing to invest over 51% of the revenue towards their product/employees.
Look there was a CBA already. The NFL was breaking record after record in their TV deals, their ratings. Guys like Robert Kraft expanded their product beyond football.... using football (Patriot Place in Foxboro) and made even more money. The NFL experienced record growth under the last CBA! Everyone! was getting richer except the low market teams that didn't do the things that the Jerry Jones, Dan Snyder, and Krafts of the league were doing. Who opted out of the current deal? The owners, so I blame the owners. Why kill the golden goose
I am have been a hardcore fan for 25 years. I support the players. I support the players because I am tired of all the elitist in this country becoming more elite. At least the players give back to the communities and the families in America.
For everyone that truly believes that an owners win is beneficial to all is believing rhetoric
I think it can be inferred that while the general public may be somewhat ambivalent on this issue, hardcore football fans are firmly siding with the owners.
Therefore, it can be argued that the more you know, the more inclined you are to support the NFL; the less you know, the more likely it is that you will support the players.
This poll was done poorly, since the headline was about who people blame, and this poll is who you support.
So PFT is just grasping at whatever polls they can. Regarldess of what their own polls, conducted with the segment of the population that is actually paying attention to what is going on in the matter, have to say.
after all the BS about the owners infiltrating this website to beef up their support... can somone verify how many platers are hitting that little I support the players button,... over and over and over.. hey they don't really have anything else to do. I am 1000 % owners in this...
The owners undoubtedly have the upper hand right now. Seems like the longer the players drag this out, the worse the eventual deal will get for them. I'd say it's time to cut bait and sign a deal.
This poll is reflective of other online polls of fans I've seen. I don't know who they were polling, maybe the UAW.
"I have to question why so many are anti-player on this issue? There must be some underlying reasons to be such haters. Football Players are the league!!!"
Football players... hmmm maybe, to an extent. But the thing is, not these football players in particular. While there is some affiliation with individual players, most fans will cheer on whoever puts on their team jersey. I first started watching football a lot in 1996 and in that time an entire generation, maybe even two generations have come and gone. Brett Favre was the last player who I really remember from when I first became a football fan and now he's retired too. Every time a player I love retires, I think "that's a shame" and then look immediately to who my team might select in the upcoming draft. My interest in individual players is completely transient.
If every player currently on an NFL roster quit tomorrow, would I stop watching football? Of course not. Sure, it would be weird at first watching JaMarcus Russell behind centre for the Colts instead of Peyton Manning, or the much hyped Packers linebacker corp replaced by a couple of UFL stars and a guy who wasn't drafted. But I would still be out there supporting my team, getting to know the new players, forming opinions of them, seeing which team could mould their new players into the best unit. Because it's football and, to a lesser extent, the NFLs brand of football that I love much more than the individual stars.
If nobodies talking nobody can win..Listen to the words of a very wise man. "Where am I? Why am I in this handbasket? Please gentlemen....stay out of the damn basket!!!!
Wally, you really are a big ol' douchebag.
Wally........ You're a moron!
Wally, that's a very simplistic point of view. I support the owners and the long-term health of the league. I like free agency, parity, and the draft. Therefore I MUST be jealous of professional athletes? That's ridiculous! Nobody is demonizing the athletes for making a lot of money (although most player-supporters seem to hate the owners BECAUSE they're billionaires). We think the athletes are just too naive to realize that their leadership is representing only the top few stars, and everyone but that group and their lawyers will lose in the end...especially the fans.
And BTW, no actor makes $100 million per movie.
I'm *leaning* towards players, as someone that played football through his childhood, all through school, and reminds a die-hard football fanatic.
But in THIS: They both suck. The whole thing just...stinks.
Everything about it. The one and ONLY 'noble' bit left in this is that the players are the ones that, at the end of the day, strap on armor and go beat the hell out of each other, and risk life & limb for my amusement.
That puts the total for this crapfest at the players, negative 99999, while the owners are richer and a lot more pompous, plus no PLAYER ever inherited a roster spot (OK, ok, argument can be made for Manning and maybe Matthews 3, but only an argument), and they score a negative 100002.
The players should not be patting themselves on the back here. Fuck the lawyers (sorry Florio) and make this happen for both parties. Noone wins litigation but lawyers.
I have to question why so many are anti-player on this issue? There must be some underlying reasons to be such haters. Football Players are the league!!! Actors get 100million for a hit movie and no one complains but an athlete who get 20 milliion is a villian.
All of you wanna bes' need to get a life. I am sorry you didn't turn out to be Jerry Rice or Dan Marino. You parents probably told you to work hard and you could be in the Pros or Big Leagues but I am sorry that was a myth. A special few are given the gifts that Pro Athletes possess and I think they deserve more than they have now.
There are idiots in every profession but most NFL players are great people who do alot of charity and work to improve their communities. The tone of the anti-player comments makes me wonder what the hidden agendas are???
I'm always amused by the player supporters who claim that anyone who would support the owners must be on the payroll of the NFL. These people truly believe that all rich people would torture puppies if given the chance, and union bosses are the benevolent heroes of our time. And don't get them started on Roger Goodell....I mean that guy has got to be related to Hitler! These guys are so naive and out of touch (like the players they support) that they can't see that their views are skewed and they accept that they're in the minority.
Rich you are beyond stupid. As a season ticket holder for 40 years it's clear you have no understanding of how much ticket prices have gone up since free agency. You probably have plopped yourself down in front of a tv and watched for free. No owner of a private business should be required to their books, that's why they're not public. De Smith part of Eric Holders justice dept is the reason it's in the courts.
I do not really support either side, but if I pulling for one side or another to get this resolved I am pulling for the owners. The players (especially Smith) are wearing on me with their stances. I am tired of the lies being spread by the NFLPA*
Oh, and Rich........
You're an idiot. I am surprised anyone supports the players anymore. They really have no good reason why they deserve the money they are getting or more money. Sure, they put their lives on the line, considering that they are gonna have brain damage some day, but so do LOTS of other professions that make no where near the money they do, like Cops, FireFighters, Construction Workers, Coal Miners, etc...... F-ck these greedy @ss players.
If the owners and players were to split up right now, and start anew...... Who do you think would be better off having a successful league? The owners with all new players that most probably never heard of or don't know much about? Or the players?
I can tell you that I would follow the owners because they already proven they can run a successful league for many years, and players come and go all the time, yet we always find new players to love. Plus, the NFL/owners own the rights to my hometown team name and I don't think I could root for another Philadelphia football team not named the Eagles with those amazing green jerseys.
I support the owners for 1 main reason. Their whole reason for doing this is for a bigger piece of the pie. As of now Players get over 51%. What companies in the real world do the employees get more than the owners. They (Owners and Players) are all greedy but the owners are the owners. They get the bigger piece of the pie. It's just the way it works. Why they made the last deal i have no idea and now we are all paying for it.
Isn't Kevin Mawae retired from the NFL? Why is he negotiating on behalf of active players in the No Way in Hell They Aren't A Union NFLPA? These dumb players will wake up and realize they are fortunate to have an opportunity to make in 4 years (the argued length of a career) what most of us can only DREAM of. Jeffrey Kessler and DeMaurice Smith are laughing their asses off on the way to the bank. Dummies don't realize that Smith will get his money. Just see Upshaw's $15 mil to his wife upon his death! ANd Kessler doesn't see a case he won't rush to file so he can pad his $500/hr fee. Big dummies! I hope the league shuts dowen all operations so these imbeciles will realize they aren't all the Brady's, Manning's, Breeze's...they need the income.
Well, from the look of things I may be canceling my subscription to Sirius/XM radio. All the news on the radio is bad enough and with no football either, I will just watch Netflix!!
Rich,
Your comments are beyond moronic! You will never see "star" players putting up their own money to finance to support other players. The smart ones' money is tied up in real investments, the not so smart ones' in girls, homeys, jewelry etc. Are you telling us a player who could lose an earring worth tens of thousands of dollars on a practice field in Miami is capable of running a sports league? The players will eventually cave anyway. An "average career is 4 years, for most it's probably a year maybe 2. They cannot afford to stay away long. You have to remember for every 21 year vet Brett Favre there are several hundred who will only be on the roster long enough to learn the playbook. I'm no expert but I would bet that anyone drafted in the 4th round or later may not even have a career if they have to compete with next years draftees. You have to remember, the lower you are drafted the more you have to rely on seizing an opportunity in training camp, in preseason or in a game. The longer the strike goes, the fewers opportunites there will be.
Screw the union.
I can understand the positions and issues on both sides of this battle.. but the manner and rhetoric used by both parties is borderline pathetic for an industry as successful as the NFL.
Both parties failure to see the value of the product they had, yes "had" because believe it or not the damage has been cast for at least a couple of seasons of repair.. or at least it should be if the collective body of fans are as fed up as this lifelong fan.
I will continue to refuse to spend a dollar on the NFL product.. even when "my" team won the Superbowl.
There are no words that can salvage the damage cast.. only actions that serve the rest of this society as a whole.. and that is action and behaving like the astute business people they pretend to be. Not the actions of late, resembling children fighting over the greater lot of the toys from the toy box.
Grow a pair.. come out from behind your lawyers and strike a labor deal to split record revenues fairly, agree to take care of those players of the past, and maybe even find some room to pass along a cookie or two to the fans that ultimately drive this vehicle.
Either that.. or continue along the current path of destroying a truly fine game and league.
I support the owners from a philosophical standpoint however I would like to see a deal that gets done that is liked by both sides and keeps this issue from coming up again for years.
As for any player that thinks I support their movement, I scoff in your general direction.
Rich you really are an idiot.
Rich - 4 minutes ago
This poll has to be fixed or ridiculously voted on by NFL owners. No way that many support the owners. Fans will not benefit from a better deal for the owners so why not let the players get as much as possible. My family and I can spend three days ay Disney for what it would cost to get decent seats at a game. I am a huge football fan and am terrified at not seeing football played this fall. The players should threaten to start a new league and be prepared to follow through with it. Also, I think the star players should open a lockout bank and make low interest loans to other players to help get a better deal. They may even find investors to assist with the monies needed to set it up.
The owners refuse to open their books because they don't want anyone (including other owners) to see that they are raking it in and wasting it just as fast as it comes in.
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No the fans won't you idiot. You know what happens when player salary raises? The ticket prices raise. If the players get more money and more benefits, guess who will take the hit? The fans! The owners are NOT going to take a hit on their steady profits. They are going to raise ticket prices, concession prices, parking prices, merchandise prices, EVERYTHING. They will do that so they can offset the money they are losing for the player salary/benefits raise. You honestly think if the players win this battle, the ticket prices will go down? You honestly think the Owners will allow the players to get more benefits, and more money, and lower ticket prices? You have got to be out of your mind. This is why I don't comment on this as much. People like you have ZERO clue of what's going on, and what's worse, ZERO clue of running a business.
The reason why you can go to Disney World cheaper is because of the fact that their workers DO NOT go on strike and demand over HALF of the revenue. They don't demand lucrative benefits after retirement. They get to "retire" after 4 years! It takes you and I 20 years to retire, and we are not even getting a low percentage of money these clowns make! These players make more money in 1 year, than we do in 20 years of doing hard, blue collar, work! Why do they need better benefits? How about you get health insurance like the rest of us!
Better yet, how about the PLAYERS open their bank account, so the owners can see why the players need a raise? Oh, that's right, it's because they are too busy buying multi-million dollar houses, multiple hundred thousand dollar cars, thousands of dollar nights at the clubs, thousands of dollars in jewelry, and 20 baby mommas.
I never went into this thinking i would be on the owners side, but I am. how can you respect the players when they won't negotiate, when they hire someone like de Smith who has done nothing but threaten the game, as we know it. it doesn't even seem like the players know what they want, other than to see the owners books. In what other profession do the employees get to see the books?? The owners are trying to get a deal done, and the players are only interested in hiding in the shadows of big brother Suzie nelson, hoping she can save them. i can't imagine that anyone could be on the players side when it seems, even they don't know what they want.
Rich, your an idiot! These players are not smart enough to open a savings account, and you want them to try and run their own league?!?! LOL That would be entertainment!!
This poll has to be fixed or ridiculously voted on by NFL owners. No way that many support the owners. Fans will not benefit from a better deal for the owners so why not let the players get as much as possible. My family and I can spend three days ay Disney for what it would cost to get decent seats at a game. I am a huge football fan and am terrified at not seeing football played this fall. The players should threaten to start a new league and be prepared to follow through with it. Also, I think the star players should open a lockout bank and make low interest loans to other players to help get a better deal. They may even find investors to assist with the monies needed to set it up.
The owners refuse to open their books because they don't want anyone (including other owners) to see that they are raking it in and wasting it just as fast as it comes in.
i hope these moron players keep listening to me and never negotiate. I can't believe the billable hours i am getting. I can't wait to buy some more hats with all their money.
At least the owners have sent an offer. When I buy a house, or a car, I offer the lowest price I can even if it is an insult. If I am the only one buying that day, they can counter my offer with what they want to sell it for. If I don't like their counter offer, I will send them back an offer more to my liken. They usually don't like it because it is just a little better than my original offer, so they will counter back to me. Usually about this time we have worked through many of the small things, and the actual price is what we start to work on here. Yes it hardly ever ends up meeting in the middle, because either the seller needs to sell worse than the buyer needs to buy, or the buyer wants it more than the seller needs to sell it, but a deal can get done if one side needs or wants it bad enough. The problem with the NFL is neither side wants or needs it bad enough yet, but we are getting close to one side or the other caving in. The owners have BILLIONS to lose while the players have MILLIONS to lose. If I were losing thousands I would cave. I guess it really is about who needs the NFL the most? You know the answer to that WE, US, THE FANS, yep we are the big losers in this tug of war game.
time for the fans to say that we are tired of paying the prices for the owners and players to maintain their life styles.bet alot of america : CAN`T DO IT?