Phase 2 of the league’s offseason workout program kicked off yesterday, and with it came the news that negotiations between the league and the union with respect to that program are officially dead (via Albert Breer of SI.com). Of course, the union advised players to stay away from team facilities for voluntary offseason activities, and the NFLPA and NFL were ultimately unable to come to an agreement on a number of key points.
Instead, players and coaches negotiated their own structures, and per Dan Graziano of ESPN.com, roughly 15 teams have implemented some sort of change as a result of those conversations. Browns center and union president J.C. Tretter predictably approved of the modifications, saying, “The offseason program has gotten out of hand. OTAs have been ratcheted up year after year, and they’ve turned into — especially for big guys and guys on the line of scrimmage — legitimate full-contact, non-padded practices. Nobody puts any restraints on them; they let guys go at it.”
Some teams are even making changes to the non-voluntary sessions. According to Fowler, the Packers moved their mandatory minicamp up a week, which could mean that a week of OTAs gets canceled, and as Charean Williams of Pro Football Talk writes, the Colts and Eagles have canceled mandatory minicamp altogether. Interestingly, although the Broncos were the first team to support the union’s stance on OTAs, Mike Klis of 9News.com reports that over 70 Broncos players showed up for the first day of Phase 2. The off-site injuries suffered by former Broncos Ja’Wuan James and DaeSean Hamilton and the potential money battle that could ensue may have played a role in that attendance figure.
The initial push from the union to have players boycott OTAs was due to persisting COVID-19 concerns, but as that situation improved in this country, NFLPA assistant executive director of external affairs George Atallah says the union began to shift focus. He says that, despite the complete absence of OTAs in 2020, injuries were down and the quality of the games remained the same (Twitter links via Lindsay Rhodes of the NFL Rhodes Show podcast). So, as Tretter implied, a permanent modification of OTAs into a purely mental exercise is appropriate.
Rhodes asked Atallah if the union is essentially attempting to renegotiate the CBA on the fly, and he conceded as much (Twitter link). And players are also pushing to make last year’s approach to training camp the new normal. Tretter said the ramp-up period that was instituted out of necessity last summer was widely embraced by players, who felt better both going into the regular season and coming out of it.
To be sure, the issue of the quality of the games is a subjective one, and whether there is a direct correlation between the ramp-up period and the absence of OTAs and any data showing a decrease in injuries is debatable. But, if everything was clear-cut, there wouldn’t be much need for negotiation.
In related news, masks are no longer required for fully-vaccinated players, coaches, or staff members, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. And teams will once again be permitted to hold training camp away from club facilities (Twitter link via Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network).
Someone figured out if you don’t overwork players they feel better and get injured less…..
Genius!
that suggests them coming into the season colder wolnt just cause more injuries then.
The NFLPA needs to be representing ALL of the players, not just the stars. Players trying to move up to the next level can benefit from these voluntary workouts.
Peter King, on his podcast, explained the situation really well.
The OTA’s are important for the guys trying to make the team, both to show the coaching staff their abilities and to make a little money.
If you exclude the 20 to 25 players who are probably locks on each team, there are 65 to 70 guys in camp trying to make the final 53 and will do whatever they can to help their cause.
So, if they changed the OTA’s to just exclude the offense vs defense activities (which is the big problem), it would basically solve the issues.
The NFLPA is not a “stars-run” union. In fact, many of the stars were very unhappy with the last CBA (Rodgers and Wilson, among them) because it basically ignored issues important to them, like the franchise tag, while addressing bread and butter issues dealing with the health and wallets of the majority of the union. And it’s going to prioritize the health of its membership – 23% reduction in missed-time injuries, 30% reduction in concussions – over who does or doesn’t make the team.
“So, as Tretter implied, a permanent modification of OTAs into a purely mental exercise is appropriate”.
Everyone knows those players with CTE are especially skilled at mental exercises…doh! No wonder many fans have a hard time taking the NFLPA seriously.
its true that this is a medical thing. its very likely the league wants more Ja’Wuan James DaeSean Hamiltons so they can squirm their ways out of more contracts.
The players union is a joke. They don’t represent the players these days as much as they’re doing or saying whatever needed to have jobs of there own.