On the issue of active NFL players participating in the Olympics, the owners have spoken. The NFL Players Association has, too.
However, the two sides have yet to speak to each other in a meaningful — or binding — fashion.
According to the NFLPA, substantive talks between the league and the union regarding Olympic participation have not yet happened. “The resolution just green lit that process which has yet to be designed or debated,” NFLPA chief external affairs officer Liz Allen said. “Everything laid out so far is just the opening bid from which to work on participation and safety terms.”
It’s an important point. Although the NFLPA has expressed full support for the participation of players in the Olympics, Tuesday’s formal announcement of the passage of the resolution contained a not-so-subtle caveat from executive director Lloyd Howell: “We look forward to working with the league, IFAF, and Olympic authorities on the terms of their participation to ensure players who compete will do so with protections to their health, safety, and job.”
That sets the stage for potentially harder-than-they-look negotiations regarding issues such as field quality, tryout duration and intensity, pre-Olympics practice sessions, and salary protection in the event of serious injury.
There’s another issue into which we stumbled while trying to unpack during _PFT Live_ the many non-obvious issues arising from NFL players playing flag football.
For example, will players be able to waive their right to participate in the Olympics through individual negotiations with their teams?
The NFLPA notes that receivers are the players who are the most interested in playing Olympic flag football. What if a team approaches a star receiver who is inclined to accept a spot on the U.S. flag football team and offers him a contractual sweetener to pass on the invitation? Will that be permitted?
If the player has the right to participate in the Olympics, expressly waiving that right has financial value. Why shouldn’t he be able to capitalize on a decision to refrain from assuming the injury risk?
The league office may not like that. But if the teams and players want to do it, why should it be prevented? It’s a way for the players to leverage greater compensation for his full and complete commitment to the team, as evidenced by turning his back on Olympic flag football.
The key word is leverage. The NFLPA has it, given that the league has announced that players will be eligible to participate without first formalizing an agreement with the union. And while the NFLPA is taking the position that it supports the players who choose to play, the circumstances give the union the ability to squeeze various concessions from the NFL as the resolution works its way toward becoming a binding codicil to the Collective Bargaining Agreement.
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