If one player was going to stand up against the mighty NFL, most figured it would have been future Hall of Famer Tom Brady. But after a drawn-out legal battle between Brady and the league during the entire Deflategate scandal, the Patriots’ quarterback gave up.
It was a decision that was made with his team in mind. Instead of potentially being suspended late last season, Brady sat out the first four games.
It worked well. Jimmy Garoppolo and Jacoby Brissett held down the fort in the first quarter of the season, posting a combined 3-1 record. Brady returned, ultimately throwing 28 touchdowns compared to two interceptions en route to leading New England to the Super Bowl title.
The micro of this made sense. But when it comes to the NFLPA’s continual collective bargaining issues with the NFL, Brady should have taken one for the team and exhausted every legal avenue.
Now, one year later, Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott finds himself in pretty much the same situation. After initially being suspended six games for his alleged role in multiple domestic violence incidents, Elliott has received two temporary restraining orders (TROs) and will be eligible to play for the remainder of October.
After that, it’s pretty much anyone’s guess as to how this will play out. Elliott could ultimately be suspended from Weeks 9-14, leaving the Cowboys themselves out in the cold as they look to vie for a playoff spot. That’s the risk you take.
A report came out Thursday suggesting that Elliott and the NFL have now discussed a settlement that would likely reduce his suspension.
After the NFLPA took a hard-line stance against the league, this would pretty much be a counter-productive move.
It would be telling the masses that a union that’s been weakened under the leadership of executive director DeMaurice Smith doesn’t have the strength to stand up against the mighty NFL.
It would be a horrible precedent for both Elliott and the union.
There’s a reason why we’re seeing widespread court battles between the league and the union. The current collective bargaining agreement, ratified in 2011, has handed NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell too much power in arbitration. In many ways, he continues to act as jury, judge and executioner when determining suspensions around the league.
While the NFLPA refused to push back against these broad powers in negotiating said CBA, it has since been an outspoken critic of Goodell’s over-reaching ability to suspend and penalize those the union are tasked with protecting. It’s a double standard of sorts, one that threatens the very fabric of continued labor relations between the two sides.
With the current CBA set to expire in 2020, a lack of precedent in the court system will likely lead to a work stoppage. Both the NFL and the NFLPA are to blame for this. The league seeks powers unparalleled in the professional sports world. Meanwhile, the union has given in to said power at pretty much every turn.
It’s now up to Elliott and his representatives to stem this tide. That is to say, the Cowboys’ running back has to take this battle all the way. If that means a date in the United States Supreme Court, so be it.
We’re talking about a multi-billion dollar industry. We’re talking about one the most fiscally-relevant unions in the United States. We’re talking about the future labor health of the most popular league in North America.
Elliott’s next step could define how all this plays out for the next decade-plus. It’s not an individual or team decision. They crossed that Rubicon when deciding to take the NFL to court.
For the players, there’s no going back. Elliott and the NFLPA need to understand this before it’s too late.