Tag: NFLPA

Broncos adding players’ family room to stadium after poor NFLPA grade

The Broncos received a “D+” for family treatment on their NFLPA report card last season, in part because they did not have a family room.

In their NFLPA report card following the 2023 season, the Denver Broncos were given a “D+” grade for their treatment of families.

The biggest complaint players had was that there was no family room at the stadium, something that 20 other NFL teams provide for players on game days.

The Broncos took note of that low grade and they quickly addressed it. Before the team’s preseason game against the Green Bay Packers on Sunday night, 104.3 The Fan‘s Andrew Mason shared an image of a family room that’s “coming soon” at Empower Field at Mile High:

The graphic says the family room will arrive for the 2024 regular season. The amenities are as follows:

  • Private hospitality space for player and coach families
  • Complimentary snacks and non-alcoholic beverages
  • Comfortable seating and furniture options and Game TVs
  • Dedicated heating and cooling
  • Men’s and women’s restrooms
  • Nursing mother’s suite

That’s quite an upgrade from previously having no family room at the stadium. Another smart move from Denver’s new ownership group.

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NFL, NFLPA inch toward possible 18-game regular season

NFL, NFLPA inch toward possible 18-game regular season:

The discussions toward what seems inevitable, an 18-game regular season in the NFL  have begun, acoording to the Washington Post:

“We have talked at a very, very, very high level superficially, with a recognition … about, ‘Yeah, this is something that we should be talking about. And we should really kick the tires and understand what else goes into that decision-making process,'”  NFLPA executive director Lloyd Howell told the newspaper. “Where does the 18th game come from? I think the foregone conclusion is well, you just grab it, like, in what would otherwise be [preseason games] in August. You play it forward.

“But these are details that really need to be fleshed out. But again, there are other economic, health and safety matters that also need to be clear to our members before there’s ever an agreement about an 18th game.”

Of course, there will be high-level discussions about how to work an extra regular-season game into the CBA. Players already are concerned about the injuries the 17-game season has seen and how an 18-game season will impact them financially.

“The simple fact of the matter is when you have a growing enterprise and there are opportunities within that intervening period of time where progress could be made and you could tweak the existing CBA legal document, why wouldn’t you want to do that?” Howell said. “So whether it’s field surface, whether it’s the [offseason] schedule, if you want to call that formal — I call it bargaining. I call it amendments. I call it updates to what is now a living document called a CBA. Yeah, I want to be able to have our membership in a position to jump on it when we can, not wait until their playing days are done and it’s like you go through the cycle all over again.”

Would this mean a second bye for each of the 32 NFL teams? How would it impact roster levels? Just a couple questions that will be addressed before this becomes close to reality.

The 17-game regular season was instituted in 2021 and teams rotate each year having one more road and home game every other season. At 18, teams would go back to and even number of games each year.

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NFL, NFLPA discuss possible 18-game regular season

Is an 18-game regular season in the NFL on the horizon?

The discussions toward what seems inevitable, an 18-game regular season in the NFL  have begun, reports the Washington Post.

“We have talked at a very, very, very high level superficially, with a recognition … about, ‘Yeah, this is something that we should be talking about. And we should really kick the tires and understand what else goes into that decision-making process,'”  NFLPA executive director Lloyd Howell told the newspaper. “Where does the 18th game come from? I think the foregone conclusion is well, you just grab it, like, in what would otherwise be [preseason games] in August. You play it forward.

“But these are details that really need to be fleshed out. But again, there are other economic, health and safety matters that also need to be clear to our members before there’s ever an agreement about an 18th game.”

Of course, there will be high-level discussions about how to work an extra regular-season game into the CBA. Players already are concerned about the injuries the 17-game season has seen and how an 18-game season will impact them financially.

“The simple fact of the matter is when you have a growing enterprise and there are opportunities within that intervening period of time where progress could be made and you could tweak the existing CBA legal document, why wouldn’t you want to do that?” Howell said. “So whether it’s field surface, whether it’s the [offseason] schedule, if you want to call that formal — I call it bargaining. I call it amendments. I call it updates to what is now a living document called a CBA. Yeah, I want to be able to have our membership in a position to jump on it when we can, not wait until their playing days are done and it’s like you go through the cycle all over again.”

Would this mean a second bye for each of the 32 NFL teams? How would it impact roster levels? Just a couple questions that will be addressed before this becomes close to reality.

The 17-game regular season was instituted in 2021.

Should the NFL go to an 18-game schedule?

The NFL and NFLPA are talking about adding another game to the schedule.

According to NFL writer Mark Maske, The NFL and the players union have begun discussions to see if the league can adopt an 18-game regular season. Maske says that if both sides can work out the details, this could be adopted ahead of the new CBA.

Lloyd Howell said during a meeting Monday with Washington Post reporters and editors at the NFLPA’s headquarters in D.C. that the talks between the union and the league have not yet progressed to formal negotiations. But the discussions between the two sides, which have not been previously reported, indicate that the latest pursuit by the league and team owners of an 18-game season has moved beyond the hypothetical stage.

We already talked about the proposal for an 18-game schedule that Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow offered up and we are on board with the notion of moving the Pro Bowl to a second bye week.

Obviously the biggest hurdle from the NFLPA point of view will be compensation. If the players are going to play another game, they should be compensated for it. This would create ripples into the salary cap as well as roster size to accommodate teams over an even more grueling schedule.

Cast your vote and tell us if you think the NFL should move to an 18-game schedule or leave it as is for now.

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How to define success for the New Orleans Saints in 2024

2023 was Dennis Allen’s first winning season, but it didn’t feel good enough. What needs to change for 2024 to feel like a success?

What does success look like for the New Orleans Saints in 2024?

The Saints were 9-8 last year. It is the best record of Dennis Allen’s coaching career. Still, Allen has been projected to be on the hot seat and labelled the worst head coach in the NFL. His own players voted him lowly on an anonymous NFLPA survey. This all comes after the best season of his career with a 9-8 finish.

The Saints lost the tiebreaker for first place to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Winning the division or making the playoffs would’ve made the season feel like a success.

I was forced to confront the idea of success in a conversation with a friend of mine after Amon-Ra St. Brown’s comments on the Saints’ Super Bowl aspirations. My friend, a Green Bay Packers fan, gave an approximate ceiling of a 9-8 finish. That shouldn’t be good enough.

I used his team as a reference. The Packers and Saints both had a 9-8 record, but they didn’t feel the same. The difference goes deeper than the Packers making the playoffs, though it does separate the two. It was here where I realized what the Saints must do for the year to be considered a success.

They must beat quality opponents. All records aren’t created equal. The Packers were 9-8 in the midst of a youth movement offensively and saw their first-year quarterback show potential. The Saints achieved the same record by struggling against nearly every quality opponent.

A division title will also make the year a success, but that is difficult if you only feast on bad teams. It was an obvious criticism of last year’s season and is a mandatory fix this campaign. If the Saints don’t accomplish this, they’ll be a disappointment again. It’s playoffs or bust after three years without a postseason appearance.

New Orleans must pair a good record with quality wins in 2024. Otherwise, the future will still feel bleak.

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Commanders continue to make positive changes under new ownership

Ownership has taken those NFLPA grades seriously.

When the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) released its team report cards last season, the Washington Commanders received bad news.

Let’s take a trip down memory lane to see how bad things were for Washington:

  • Treatment of Families: F-
  • Food/Cafeteria: D+
  • Nutritionist/Dietician: B-
  • Locker Room: F-
  • Training Room: F-
  • Training Staff: F
  • Weight Room: C
  • Strength Coaches: A
  • Team Travel: F
  • Head Coach: C
  • Ownership: B

The only reason why the Commanders scored as high in some categories (ownership) as they did was because new owner Josh Harris had taken over in July. Unfortunately, it was too late for Harris to impact many of the categories where Washington players handed out bad grades to the franchise.

Earlier this year, Harris famously reacted to the NFLPA report card: “I’m not an F- guy.”

Harris and his ownership group have committed over $75 million to improve the team’s stadium in Landover (Maryland) and the franchise’s headquarters in Ashburn (Virginia). Additionally, Harris has focused on adding qualified personnel throughout multiple departments, where the franchise was lean under former owner Dan Snyder.

One of the bad grades the Commanders received was in the food/cafeteria category.

According to Sarah Barshop of ESPN, Harris has made significant changes to this area, too.

In Barshop’s story, one Washington player said the food wasn’t necessarily bad, but it was “repetitive, and players have gotten bored.” Something needed to change.

One of Washington’s captains, safety and special teams ace Jeremy Reaves, has been impressed by new ownership’s changes.

“It was very selective in what we were eating [before], obviously,” Reaves said. “And new ownership and new coaches came in, and they changed all of that stuff. They made an emphasis on that. When we came in, when new ownership came in, they took the time personally to come talk to some of the leaders that’ve been here for a while and ask us what we want to exchange and what we wanted different. And we are seeing it.”

There are a lot of positive vibes around the Commanders right now. From new ownership to general manager Adam Peters to the new coaching staff. Returning players are refreshed by all of the changes, while new players are anxious to be a part of the change that hopefully turns the franchise around.

Don’t expect many — if any — F- grades for Washington in 2024. Two things are out of Harris’ control: The locker room and training room. However, the Commanders are working on both, and it will take time. As far as the treatment of families, that’s unlikely to be an issue moving forward for players.

Sean Payton comments on NFLPA’s pitch to end OTAs

“It just is what it is. I’ll worry about that when we get there,” Sean Payton said of potential changes to the NFL’s offseason schedule.

The Denver Broncos concluded 2024 organized team activities earlier this month and if the NFL Players Union has its way, those OTAs might have been the final installment conducted in the current format.

The NFLPA has proposed changing the offseason calendar by essentially eliminating OTAs in the spring and starting training camp earlier with a longer ramp-up period beginning in mid-June or early July.

Broncos coach Sean Payton was asked about the proposed schedule change earlier this month.

“It’s a topic every year that gets brought up,” Payton said on June 4. “Is that three, four, five years from now? I don’t know. I try to focus on the things that are like — when you get older and you hear those things, you’re just like, ‘All right. I don’t need to worry about that right now.’

“Ultimately, you’re going to have a period of time where the players are working prior to the season, and you’re going to have a time where they’re gone. I think I have a grasp as to what the proposal might look like. It just is what it is. I’ll worry about that when we get there.”

If approved, the new format could take effect as early as 2025, but Payton’s focused on the present. Ironically, the NFLPA’s pitch has been met with some resistance from the players the union represents. No change is imminent, but it is being discussed, and the NFL’s offseason schedule might look different in the future. Payton will deal with any potential changes when they happen.

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Commanders held a family picnic after conclusion of minicamp

Washington finishes minicamp with a picnic for players, staff and their families.

Remember when Washington Commanders owner Josh Harris said, “I’m not an F- guy?” Harris said this in response to the organization’s NFLPA grades, which showed the Commanders at the bottom of the league in several categories, one of which was the treatment of player families.

Washington’s new leadership group is much different from any it had in the past. It begins with the ownership group, led by Harris but including minority owners Mark Ein, Mitch Rales, Magic Johnson, David Blitzer, and others.

Harris then hired Adam Peters as general manager and Dan Quinn as head coach. Both were known for being great at their jobs but even better human beings that others wanted to work with and play for.

The Commanders concluded their three-day mandatory minicamp on Thursday, and afterward, the organization held a picnic for the players, staff and their families. Ein confirmed this on X.

It’s important to note that Harris and Ein didn’t hold a picnic because of Washington’s NFLPA rankings. This is who they are. This is who Quinn and Peters are. They treat people right. That’s why players love being at the team facility these days.

This isn’t to knock some of Washington’s other coaches in the past. They weren’t always the problem. The problem always started at the top with the former owner. Harris and his partners are not only good people and successful businessmen, but they treat people right and understand the value of family.

After the picnic, the offseason officially ended. The team has six weeks off before reporting back to Ashburn next month for training camp. In past years, players would talk of exotic vacations and wanting to be anywhere but Ashburn, but the tide is changing because of Washington’s current ownership and management.

While some grades, such as the stadium and team facilities, will still likely be lower than ownership wants due to no fault of their own, you can bet those grades will be much higher on the personal side of things next time.

Mac Jones, Kenny Pickett sold more official merch than Derek Carr did in 2023

Mac Jones and Kenny Pickett were benched and later traded, but the NFLPA says they still sold more licensed merchandise in the last year than Derek Carr:

New Orleans Saints fans haven’t exactly embraced Derek Carr. They’ve kept high standards at quarterback after enjoying so many years of Drew Brees’ excellence, and their hesitance to support Carr after he failed to lead the team to the playoffs may have felt warranted.

That lukewarm reception was backed up by the NFL Players Association annual report on licensed merchandise sales, which didn’t include Carr inn its top 50. Here are the criteria:

The NFLPA Top 50 Player Sales List is the only verified ranking of all officially licensed, NFL player-branded merchandise sold from online and traditional retail outlets as reported by over 85 NFLPA licensees such as Fanatics, Outerstuff, Nike, Fathead, FOCO and Funko. Licensed product categories included trading cards, men’s, women’s and youth game jerseys, T-shirts and hoodies, backpacks, wall decals, pennants, collectible figurines, matted and framed photos, bobbleheads, plush, drinkware, pet products, and many more

While Carr didn’t make the cut, other quarterbacks did — and several of them were benched by the teams they played for last year, traded after the season, or both. Mac Jones was sidelined by the New England Patriots after stumbling to a 2-9 record, and later traded to the Jacksonville Jaguars, but he clocked in at No. 50. Both of the quarterbacks the Pittsburgh Steelers acquired in trades this offseason made the list (Russell Wilson at No. 42, Justin Fields at No. 31), as did their own former first-round quarterback bust Kenny Pickett (No. 34).

So if it felt like there weren’t many Carr jerseys inside the Caesars Superdome last year, you were probably right. Carr needs to do better than what we saw from him last year to win Saints fans over. Another year without reaching the playoffs and on-field chirping with his coaches and teammates won’t convince anyone he’s worth supporting with an autographed photo, refrigerator magnet, or even a trading card. Hopefully he’s up to the challenge.

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How many Commanders were among the NFL leaders in officially licensed merchandise sales?

How many Commanders were among the NFL leaders in officially licensed merchandise sold?

The Washington Commanders weren’t marketable over the past few seasons. Whether it was the multiple name changes, fans hating the current jersey lineup, or the lack of a franchise quarterback, the Commanders weren’t at the top of NFLPA’s leaders in jersey sales.

That could change in 2024. Washington drafted quarterback Jayden Daniels at No. 2 overall, and many fans have already ordered his jersey. If Daniels takes Washington by storm, which ESPN’s Louis Riddick said he would do, Daniels will be one of the NFL’s top jerseys sold around Christmas.

The NFLPA revealed the year-end top 50 list for all officially licensed NFL player merchandise. This doesn’t mean only jersey sales but all officially licensed merchandise of that player.

Two current Washington Commanders made the list — but only one played for Washington last season.

Linebacker Bobby Wagner, who played for the Seahawks, came in at No. 35. Wide receiver Terry McLaurin was No. 46. Could you imagine the merchandise McLaurin could sell if he had consistent quarterback play?

If the Commanders have a surprise season in 2024, multiple players could be on this list one year from now. Daniels is almost a certainty.