NFL player leaders voted yesterday to retain DeMaurice Smith as the executive director of the NFL Player's Association. His current term was set to expire in March. The unanimous vote of the 14-member selection committee allows Smith to retain his job without having to face competition during the election cycle. His contract will likely be extended through 2021 so he'll lead the union in the next labor negotiations. The current Collective Bargaining Agreement runs through 2020. He negotiated the current CBA. He'll negotiate the next one. The biggest problem I have with his negotiating strategy is that he's already saying he believes there will be a strike or lockout in 2021. Perhaps that's what he has to say for the position that he's in but no one needs an NFL player strike or lockout. Ever. The 2011 lockout was a nightmare and it didn't even touch regular season games. Neither the owners nor the players are in a position to gamble with the faith of the fans yet that's their bargaining chip.
DeMaurice Smith has received a good deal of grief for the current CBA. Critics claim that he gave too much disciplinary control to Roger Goodell. That criticism is a bit misguided since no one could've predicted that the "Goods" would discipline players like a madman. The punishments handed down have been so random that throwing darts blindly at a board could be part of the process. The punishments are only the beginning. The league's investigations into some of the recent allegations have been a clown show. When it comes to the league's disciplinary apparatus words like moronic, inconsistent, untrustworthy, and insane can describe it. There's no way that Smith could've predicted that. In the 2009 labor negotiations the disciplinary process was more bargaining chip than goal for the players. That was because it impacted such a small percentage of the players. Those players stepping across social, legal, and game lines might dominate headlines but they represent a very small number of the players. Smith and his union had greater concerns in 2009. The commissioner being "judge and jury" wouldn't be a problem for the players if the commissioner's decisions are consistent, sane, and just. That shouldn't be too much to ask.
Coming off the sometimes-too-cozy Paul Tagliabue-Gene Upshaw labor relationship, the Roger Goodell-DeMaurice Smith pairing is scary. Actually, it'd be scary no matter the situation that came before it. There appears to be no trust between the two. Everything's falling into place for round 2 of Goodell-Smith in 2021. They need to get it together. A lockout/strike isn't an option.
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