The NFL Players Association has a mess on its hands. The effort to clean it up commences tonight.
Via Mark Maske of the _Washington Post_, the NFLPA board of player representatives [will meet on Friday night](https://x.com/MarkMaske/status/1946311485375889906) to discuss the union’s next steps following Thursday night’s sudden and surprising resignation of executive director Lloyd Howell.
The most important decision in the short term becomes the selection of an interim executive director. The NFLPA Constitution contains no procedure for such a move.
An interim executive director was last appointed in 2008, after the death of NFLPA executive director Gene Upshaw. General counsel Richard Berthelsen served as the interim executive director until DeMaurice Smith was hired, the following year.
Rumors began to circulate eight days ago regarding the possibility of Don Davis becoming the interim executive director. Some have suggested retiring general counsel Tom DePaso. Until an interim executive director is named, it’s unclear who is or will be running the union.
Eventually and inevitably, a search will begin for a new executive director. The question becomes whether it will be an open and transparent process, or whether it will be a top-secret, closed, hand-picked search.
At some point, someone from the union needs to say something. NFLPA president Jaylen Reeves-Maybin has been silent and invisible throughout this entire process.