The NFLPA’s yearly report cards won’t see the light of day in 2026. After years of releasing report cards where teams were ranked on categories ranging from treatment of facilities to strength coaches to ownership, the NFLPA will not be allowed to release them publicly going forward. The NFL filed a grievance against the NFLPA that the report cards were a violation of the CBA, and an independent arbitrator agreed, according to an email sent from the league to it’s 32 teams that was posted to Twitter by ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Sources: The NFL informed all 32 teams today in a memo that it prevailed in its grievance vs. the NFLPA and its “team report cards.” An arbitrator determined that the NFLPA’s conduct violated the CBA and ordered it to stop making public any future report cards. pic.twitter.com/mss5WUQjhF
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) February 13, 2026
It’s news that will sure to be music to the ears of owners around the league, especially Art Rooney II. The Steelers received poor marks in recent reports, ranking 25th or worse last year in treatment of facilities, nutritionist/dietitian, locker room, training room, weight room, strength coaches, and ownership. The Steelers have an outdated facility, and Rooney doesn’t seem willing to invest in upgrades and the luxuries other clubs have. The players’ disdain will no longer be released publicly in a report-card format.
The NFLPA report cards gave media and fans a peek behind the curtain into how players felt about parts of the organization that we don’t always think about on a daily basis. It also allowed players around the league to see which owners were investing into their teams and facilities and doing things right, and vice versa. It was a clear-cut way for players to express what they felt was a strength or weakness of their organization and try to use it to enact change.
The NFL wrote in the email that they’ll work with the NFLPA to “design and conduct a survey in the coming seasons.” Surely, whatever comes out won’t be as detailed as the report cards and won’t reflect as poorly on some of the league’s ownership. The job of Roger Goodell and the NFL league office is to protect its biggest shareholders in team ownership, and stopping the release of the report cards prevents owners from being exposed for being cheap and not investing in their club, which can lead to fan and further player outcry.
While the report cards may have served as a potential incentive for change, the Steelers didn’t really do a whole lot to upgrade since they’ve been getting hammered, something Mike Florio criticized Rooney for. Now, there’s going to be no public grades released to know just how little (or how much) investment is being made into the little things that matter and make players happy.
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