After months of seeing players at the combine and reports of college players having private workouts with teams, everything comes down to having teams on the clock to make their picks for the draft. The fun begins in primetime, live from Radio City Music Hall.
The Chiefs at home against the Saints in 2008.
Wikimedia Commons
Too bad the party may be muted this year. Instead of current NFL players being in the audience to greet their new teammates, they will be hosting a separate party across town in New York City.
The Los Angeles Times reports rookies will be ready to go no matter what. Training camp may be abbreviated and the season may even be shortened. Maybe they're just happy to be getting paychecks. No matter what happens, every team will be equally yoked by the proceedings. Until a collective bargaining agreement is reached, regular players won't sign contracts or have team training camp.
A federal judge sided with the players in a lawsuit saying the league must end the lockout. The owners appealed and wanted a stay of execution of the order. A plaintiff for the players countered with a motion to grant a $1 billion bond if the judge grants the stay.
Judge Susan Nelson's decision on legal motions and the appeal can come at any time. How ironic that this legal wrangling is coming to a climax on the geekiest day in NFL history when the draft commences.
The draft is the only thing that can happen without a working collective bargaining agreement because the incoming players don't belong to the NFL or any team yet. This year, it is the lone beacon fans can look forward to in a sea full of bull-headed sharks feeding on the frenzy. Innocent bystanders, the fans, get bitten in the process.
Greed drives everything in this fight, of course. Owners worth hundreds of millions complain they aren't making enough money. Players who get the crap beat out of them on a weekly basis gripe they need more money for the poundings they take.
Perhaps the NFL should look to the federal government and its deficit spending spree. When budget cuts loom in Congress, everyone should suffer equally. Owners and players should suffer equally. They both need to give up a little to regain the respect of fans.
Is this circus worth it? Every sports league came back from their previous work stoppages to have better attendance overall. The longer the battle, the more worn out the warriors will become. Eventually fans will get sick of the bickering if they aren't already. Are fans going to embrace their gridiron heroes every Sunday knowing they and the owners jilted the fans?
When you see Tom Brady shaking hands with Patriots' owner Robert Kraft the minute after players sign on to a new collective bargaining agreement, remember just months earlier those pearly whites where gnashed in a struggle for dominance to see who would be the Alpha male.
The Draft and the lawsuit are just the beginning of the show. Hold on for a long game that's not even midway through the first quarter yet.
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