This could be a huge deal:
NFLPA Files Lawsuit Alleging Collusion in the LeagueThe contentious relationship between the NFL and the NFL Players Association continued Wednesday when the union filed a federal lawsuit alleging that the league and its owners conspired in collusion to establish a "secret $123 million salary cap" in 2010, which under the previous labor agreement was designated as an uncapped year of spending.
The NFLPA filed its collusion complaint in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis, claiming that it falls under the supervision and oversight of Judge David Doty, who presided over the 1993 settlement of the Reggie White litigation case.
That settlement led to an unprecedented stretch of labor peace that lasted through 2010, which was designated as an uncapped year in which teams would not be restricted in their spending on players' salaries.
Instead, the NFLPA claims that it learned on or about March 12 of this year that four teams -- the Washington Redskins, Dallas Cowboys, Oakland Raiders and New Orleans Saints -- did not abide by the NFL's secret rules that effectively advised teams to operate in 2010 under a $123 million salary cap.
The NFL in March penalized the Redskins and Cowboys in cap spending at $36 million and $10 million sums, respectively, during the next two years, a decision that was recently upheld by Special Master Stephen Burbank's ruling, citing the NFLPA's agreement to an arrangement that would redistribute the money to other teams for cap spending.
An NFLPA source said that the union was "strong-armed" into the agreement because the cap would have been set at a league-wide $113 million per team, instead of $120 million.
The union is seeking $1 billion in actual damages for players primarily in the 2010 free-agent class and $3 billion in damages as violation of the 1993 White agreement.
"When the rules are broken in a way that hurts the game, we have an obligation to act. We cannot stand by when we now know that the owners conspired to collude," NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith said in a statement.
NFL spokesman Greg Aiello scoffed at the union's lawsuit, saying the league expects it to be dismissed.
"The filing of these claims is prohibited by the Collective Bargaining Agreement and separately by an agreement signed by the players' attorneys last August. The claims have absolutely no merit and we fully expect them to be dismissed," Aiello said.
"On multiple occasions, the players and their representatives specifically dismissed all claims, known or unknown, whether pending or not, regarding alleged violations of the 2006 CBA and the related settlement agreement. We continue to look forward to focusing on the future of the game rather than grievances of a prior era that have already been resolved."
PDF of the NFLPA ComplaintJust from what we know about the NFL penalizing the Cowboys and the Redskins, it seems pretty obvious that the NFLPA allegation is true.
The question is - can it stand up legally?
I hope it does. The NFL is smart in a business sense in a lot of ways (I appreciate them threatening to shut down the Pro Bowl). But, I absolutely hate the league's treatment of its players. In this case, EVERYONE (players and owners) got screwed. Why should Goodell be able to get away with this?
EDIT: Because I'm not a lawyer and I'm not sure if I understand this correctly.
The NFL's response is essentially saying 'The NFLPA signed multiple contracts in the past saying they can't file this lawsuit and that the NFL never violated the 2006 CBA. Therefore, this lawsuit should be thrown out.'
Two things stand out:
- He never said "we didn't make a secret salary cap." Which I find rather conspicuous.
- If the NFLPA's allegations are true, then didn't the NFLPA essentially sign the old agreements under false pretenses? That seems to be what their complaint is suggesting happened. Therefore, if the old agreements were signed with improper information, then would they be rendered invalid? Obviously, anyone remotely ethical would agree. But, does this idea hold up legally? Because that's all that really matters.
EDIT 2: Not trying to say that the NFLPA are necessarily the good guys either. They're fighting the NFL's decision mandating thigh and knee pads purely to maintain their own power, not to help the players. And DeMaurice Smith saying the collusion was 'bad for the game' is insulting to people who actually care about Football. The Salary cap is probably one of the three most important reasons the league is successful and the game is enjoyable to watch. The collusion was bad for the league, but good for the game. There's a difference.
Topic: The 2012 NFL Thread (Read 284902 times)
