There is a rumor out there that the Eagles are under investigation for violating the Collective Bargaining Agreement’s rule that prohibits offseason contact in mini camps.
The CBA states that there is to be no contact at all between players, which is why you’ll notice that there are no pads at this time of year. The problem, is that there is plenty of contact by every single NFL team.
The Raiders were recently punished for violation of this rule, and now it sounds like they have their eyes on the Eagles. Do I think they are guilty? I don’t think it; I know it. Everyone is guilty, but this rule is never enforced, much like offensive pass interference. So, this brings a few thoughts to mind.
First of all, why punish only a few teams when they all do it? The evidence is everywhere. There was a column in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer last week talking about the Seahawks working on the bump and run. That’s not allowed. You can find photos right on team websites that show contact in these camps. Yet, no one does anything about it. That is until now it seems.
I guess the case against a team relies on a player complaining about it. And you had better believe that there is a lot of pressure to not be the guy popping off about it.
So, does anyone else find it intriguing that the league is looking into this issue after Gene Upshaw, the head of the player’s union, has come under so much fire? He’s been accused by numerous people lately about his lack of doing anything about anything. Former players such as Mike Ditka and Joe DeLamielleure (yes, I had to look up the correct spelling) have publicly stated their disapproval for Upshaw and what he’s done to get money for ex-players. Bryant Gumbel was the latest to lob a grenade in the union leader’s direction, when he said that he has become “the league’s biggest embarrassment.”
The big problem with off-season contact, as Mike Florio of Profootballtalk.com has continued to point out, is that this was negotiated in the CBA. Meaning, if this rule isn’t enforced, what else could the players have negotiated in their favor instead? And isn’t it up to the head of the player’s union to crackdown on this and levee penalties against the teams?
If you take a look at Major League Baseball, is there any chance that a rule such as this would go unnoticed? No way. That union is iron-clad and they get everything they can – and more – for their players. Sometimes it is to the detriment of the players (ahem, no steroids tests until recently). The NFL players union is almost the exact opposite.
It just seems that Upshaw might be worried about his job security. Even his reported annual salary has come under fire. This guy has been defending himself relentlessly lately and there are too many issues that he is soft on. Gumbel put him in his crosshairs when Roger Goodell took over for Paul Tagliabue as NFL Commissioner, when he said (paraphrasing), “he should find out where Paul Tagliabue keeps Upshaw’s leash.” That didn’t go over so well with a lot of people. But it actually rings quite true when you take a look at issues – like, say, offseason contact – on which Upshaw has been lax.
The offseason contact taking place all over the NFL will be an interesting rule to keep an eye on. It looks to me like Upshaw is all of a sudden trying to look like he has a spine.
