Darnell Dockett: The NFL’s Dirty Laundry

[Thordaddy]

The average career span of an NFL player is 3.3 years. Most don't make millions. I'm much more interested in their plight than someone like Darnell Dockett
How about this NFL? Pay the players less and use the extra money you saved to set up the best insurance and pension plans to ensure that these men are well taken care of into their old age.
Junior Seau was inducted into the Hall of Fame yesterday. If he were alive today I wonder what he'd say about all this?

I guess it is like my ole friend Rush says "It ALL depends on whose ox is being gored".

 

[beej]

If the players can get guaranteed contracts that's great. Good for them. But I work with guys who are missing fingers, get bad backs and knees. A lot of them don't make it to retirement and I'm not sure if any of them make as much in there lifetime as most of these guys make in 3 years. Or even 1 year for that matter. Most of them just shrug off the injuries and aches and pains and say old age is hell

So I am weary of nfl players whining about how much they hurt for their 5 million dollars. sell what ya got give it to the poor and go work in a coal mine, run a stamping press, or load boxes in a grocery store for a few years, then tell me how bad you had it in the nfl.

 

[Ballhawk]

Since this is such a problem why doesn't the union do something? They could come to an agreement with the players that they have to block and tackle properly and also that cheap shots could mean that you are out of the union and then won't be able to play in the NFL.
They have the power to correct the injury issues and that would add more playing time and earning power to the players.

 

[Merlin]

Live like a rock star during free college ride. Get paid more in one season than most make in ten years. Be remembered in history and in the hearts and minds of the faithful forever.

NFL players can suck it. Cry me a river.

 

[Athos]

Is there not enough money for the colleges to begin paying players? Please!

Just a thought I know is crazy for 90% of the US......but colleges/the Fed could actually start paying students to go to school, get a quality education, that impacts the economy, before schools start paying players to play a game of entertainment.

That may be too Star Trek level utopian though.

 

[ozarkram]

Speaking about unions in general. One of their biggest problems is self-policing. Once their were standards you had to meet or you were out. Today its all about the dollar or dues if you will. I am saying this as a long time union member and former union Vice-Pres.

 

[Mackeyser]

Seriously, whatever.

Just go get a job? So, rather than actually respond on the merits, we get a dogmatic diatribe. I think the topic deserves better than that.

Like, perhaps addressing the FACT that from 2007 to 2010 that the NFL was in possession of PROOF that multiple concussions led to CTE and did NOT inform those three rookie classes nor the rest of the league because they did NOT want to diminish their standing in their case.

THREE FREAKING YEARS of withholding crucial information.

Now, as a service-connected disabled vet, I really don't need anyone to speak for me. I KNOW what I signed up for, consciously. But how can a person make an informed decision without all of the facts? It's one thing to put one's BODY on the line. It's quite another to risk early onset dementia or Alzheimer's or CTE due to multiple concussions or severe PCS or Post Concussion Syndrome. Especially since just since 2007, the concussion protocols have changed DRAMATICALLY.

Further, we've now seen with the Dave Duerson and Junior Seau suicides as well as the numerous former NFL players who died of CTE, dementia related illnesses or Alzheimer's and couldn't get any relief because the NFL fought like mad dogs to ensure that no connection could be made EVEN AFTER THEY POSSESSED THE PROOF.

So, seriously, screw all that. Sideways. For almost 40 years the chop block has been illegal. And yet, Zone Blocking schemes are still utilized that employ illegal chop blocks and they are rarely caused. Tons of injuries result. So, is this the Wild West where rules mean nothing and players should just fend for themselves? If so, why the anger over Suh's retaliations? So DO players know what they are getting into? Based on what? The rules? What they see on TV? What they experience once they see the field? What? Because NONE of those are the same. So, a new player has no way to make an educated decision about the PRO game. He has an approximation based on the College game, but as we know, there are substantial and critical differences which are paramount for making such an important decision. He's supposed to make this decision based on the nebulous notion of "danger"? Funny, insurance companies are allowed and EXPECTED to gather information and quantify risk to the 4th significant figure, yet a young college person is supposed to make a decision about endangering his body with incomplete and sometimes wrong information... and that's just okay. And if something goes wrong in all that, he's supposed to be 100% responsible for all of the information, even the incomplete and wrong information, including the parts that are withheld and distorted?

Got it. Cuz that happens in real life. Like in wrongful death lawsuits involving cancer clusters. That's what this discussion feels like. "You knew what you were doing when you drank that water. Drink the water or move. Lots of people don't even have water."

Also, why act like crabs in a barrel? Seems like job safety should be a good thing. Essentially, we should want the NFL to be better AND other professions as well. Just because someone has worked a hard job doesn't mean we can't want that job to be better and safer.

And speaking of college, I realize people have college debt. I'm still paying off college loans plus I have one kid in college and in a few years, I'll likely have two more. So, I'm VERY sensitive to the costs of college. That said, what they offer to college athletes are an N+1 product. What that means is that when a school educates 30,000 students, educating 85 scholarship athletes in the football program isn't a hardship. They represent .283% of the student population which amounts to a negligible additional workload and negligible additional allocation of resources. That said, they bring in MILLIONS of dollars, some special students much more than that. A study by Business Insider, I think it was, showed that Johnny Manziel was worth $30M directly in his final year to Texas A&M just to the Athletic Department. When adding additional endowments, that figure was estimated to top $100M to the university. The long term effect should Manziel have a successful pro career was estimated to be in the hundreds of millions. Now, NO ONE is going to argue that Johnny Manziel got anything remotely commensurate with his value at Texas A&M.

What Darnell Dockett was talking about is the Short Attention Span Theater which is the current media environment which allows the Corporate Lawyer/Acting Commissioner Pro Tem to fail at this job so badly and not have any consequences. There are BIG issues in the NFL and the sports media once again fall below entertainment correspondents with respect to dwelling on today's shiny versus sticking with the real and tough issues.

MLB and NBA have guaranteed contracts. One massive benefit which would help the NFL immensely is that guys who have tough injuries that take longer to heal would have the chance to properly rehab it and the NFL and NFLPA could work on adjusting the CBA so as to mitigate the cap hit for players on IR. It's not that hard of a problem. Moreover, I don't see either of the other sport's economics withering because of that. Especially with the amount of control that the NFL wants over the player's lives, I see no problem with a player advocating for guaranteed contracts.

It's really easy to have an opinion about someone else's livelihood. Certainly, you've heard some unworkable opinions about doctors... you'd also see why your personal expertise and knowledge would give you more than a casual outsider's insight into the profession, the risks, compensation and consequences. I mean, surely you would disagree about a similar diatribe as yours about why doctors are paid too much and they shouldn't complain about insurance companies because "they knew about it when they got into medicine" and doctors should be responsible for their decisions, so if patients die, they need to be held directly responsible... there would be a response countering the dogma with information, insight and facts.

 

[Stranger]

What type of people are put in power to run labor unions and why?

Well that makes it so much better then. Glad to know that when most people get treated like that it's totally fair, unless the entity you work for has non profit status and anti trust laws. I don't see what difference that makes to players being treated as they are, or normal employees being treated as they are. That seems a totally different issue that seems to apply to the rant above about relocation more than injuries.

Hey, that's not what I was trying to say at all. And anyone here that's read any of my posts would know that I'm totally against the little guy getting the shaft.

My point is that the NFL has even a greater obligation to be equitable given that it's getting special treatment, very special treatment, by the public through it's governmental ruling on non-profit status and anti trust. So, while I'm against any business shafting it's labor, I'm particularly disturbed by the NFL doing it. And I'd argue that given the way NFL ownership treats labor, the public, through it's gov't representatives, should pull its non-profit status as well as it's anti-trust exception, and let the NFL operate like everyone else.

 

[fearsomefour]

I can see both sides of it.
I think player contracts, given the injury risk (both short and long term) should be guaranteed with some protections for owners (so a guy doesn't sign an 8 year contract then blow a knee and get himself declared unable to play and collect for 8 years like what happens in baseball).
On the flip side there are warehouse workers, truck drivers and many other people working in pain, with bum knees and shoulders because of their work. There are fisherman lost at sea every year and tons of disabled veterans. Cry me a river about Goose hurting. Its a free market and these are the choices they made.
As for him not taking school seriously be is lucky (by that I mean a seriously talented guy who luckily did not have a serious injury in college)....it worked out for him, bad advice for most guys.
Found this little news blip from 2010....

"The Arizona Cardinals announced on Wednesday that they have signed the two-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle to a four-year extension worth up to $48 million with $30 million guaranteed."

I like Darnell and I like his game a lot, but, if Dockett wants to feel like he is wronged someway he can piss off.

 

[Dieter the Brock]

Just a thought I know is crazy for 90% of the US......but colleges/the Fed could actually start paying students to go to school, get a quality education, that impacts the economy, before schools start paying players to play a game of entertainment.

That may be too Star Trek level utopian though.

No shit
I'd have loved to get paid for painting pictures.... Oh wait I did with that scholarship
But anyway I'd have loved more drug and falafel money

 

[Athos]

And speaking of college, I realize people have college debt. I'm still paying off college loans plus I have one kid in college and in a few years, I'll likely have two more. So, I'm VERY sensitive to the costs of college. That said, what they offer to college athletes are an N+1 product. What that means is that when a school educates 30,000 students, educating 85 scholarship athletes in the football program isn't a hardship. They represent .283% of the student population which amounts to a negligible additional workload and negligible additional allocation of resources. That said, they bring in MILLIONS of dollars, some special students much more than that. A study by Business Insider, I think it was, showed that Johnny Manziel was worth $30M directly in his final year to Texas A&M just to the Athletic Department. When adding additional endowments, that figure was estimated to top $100M to the university. The long term effect should Manziel have a successful pro career was estimated to be in the hundreds of millions. Now, NO ONE is going to argue that Johnny Manziel got anything remotely commensurate with his value at Texas A&M.

I'm not sure I get the point of this one unless you can provide tangible statistics of how the AD benefits the school at large, particularly non-athlete students. I'm well aware how much of a money boon athletics is, but let's not pretend school's give a shit about academics and sports as long as it means money, and money for more athletics, bigger stadiums, etc, etc. Or how much of the pie non-football athletes actually see of that. Public institutions of higher learning have been money making schemes of the level of Wall Street for the last several years. If not decades. They certainly don't give a shit about students. They care less about professors. People are just bags of flesh meant to generate more money. And they weasel and guilt trip you (at least, that Devry BS does) into giving them more and more money and in-debt yourself more and more and more. Why do you think private companies starting popping up all over the map buying student loan debt? Because it is a million, if not billion dollar industry.

I'm not arguing players not being able to make their own money outside of the school. It's stupid and retarded that colleges can make money off players through outside means (EA Sports, etc, etc) , memorabilia, and so on, and they can't even sign autographs for money. I have no problem with that. I just have a problem with Universities to start dolling on thousands of dollars on athletes on top of the thousands they get in free tuition. I just can't. Especially when the amount of students that are NON-ATHLETES, actually getting scholarships that put a dent in 4-year tuition, is most likely a paltry % of students. It's a failed system, made all the more glaringly annoying by entitled athletes who don't give one fuck about they education they are being given.

Which is why I have made respect for pro-players who finished their EDU and graduated BY their 3rd year or stayed all four years. THEY aren't the mockery I'm talking about.

It's the BB one and dones, the stupid fucks who spend 3 years in college and shirk studies or just take a bunch of BS.

------

Also, if you want to educate athletes and actually get them to learn about the costs of NFL and hell, the costs of life in general, they beat them over the head again and again and again and again on how to use the money from the contracts they get in the 1st place instead of putting themselves in debt when they're 5 years out of the league with most of the expenses not even coming from medical bills.

---

And since I'm on a roll, I don't think anyone is arguing against accountability by the NFL to instill the true dangers of playing the game on the biggest stage. Lying about head trauma is as bad as the assholes not informing people about the dangers of asbestos back in the day. But we can't even get around the everyday BS work lies, dangers, etc.

It isn't just the NFL these people should be crying out against. It's the fucking man behind the screen controlling all the BS.

No crap
I'd have loved to get paid for painting pictures.... Oh wait I did with that scholarship
But anyway I'd have loved more drug and falafel money

Of course it'd be a cold day in hell I allowed your typical A&S degree to be included in such an arrangement. But technical skills? Medical? Engineering? You damn well bet. So your ass would be outta luck good sir.

Seriously though, if this country actually gave a damn about its students and teachers, we may actually have claim to "best country in the world" or "we're #1 in something other than the military industrial complex again! Woohoo!"

 

[blue4]

Speaking about unions in general. One of their biggest problems is self-policing. Once their were standards you had to meet or you were out. Today its all about the dollar or dues if you will. I am saying this as a long time union member and former union Vice-Pres.

Like in politics, there are elections and those elections reflect the people voting in them. I've had good union officials and bad, but I've yet to encounter a merciful CEO. I find my local union has the most problems like the one you describe when they are allowed to become complacent, like low participation in votes or meetings. I've a feeling these players representatives are doing exactly what the players actually want, getting the most money.

 

[Dieter the Brock]

I'm not sure I get the point of this one unless you can provide tangible statistics of how the AD benefits the school at large, particularly non-athlete students. I'm well aware how much of a money boon athletics is, but let's not pretend school's give a crap about academics and sports as long as it means money, and money for more athletics, bigger stadiums, etc, etc. Or how much of the pie non-football athletes actually see of that. Public institutions of higher learning have been money making schemes of the level of Wall Street for the last several years. If not decades. They certainly don't give a crap about students. They care less about professors. People are just bags of flesh meant to generate more money. And they weasel and guilt trip you (at least, that Devry BS does) into giving them more and more money and in-debt yourself more and more and more. Why do you think private companies starting popping up all over the map buying student loan debt? Because it is a million, if not billion dollar industry.

I'm not arguing players not being able to make their own money outside of the school. It's stupid and retarded that colleges can make money off players through outside means (EA Sports, etc, etc) , memorabilia, and so on, and they can't even sign autographs for money. I have no problem with that. I just have a problem with Universities to start dolling on thousands of dollars on athletes on top of the thousands they get in free tuition. I just can't. Especially when the amount of students that are NON-ATHLETES, actually getting scholarships that put a dent in 4-year tuition, is most likely a paltry % of students. It's a failed system, made all the more glaringly annoying by entitled athletes who don't give one freak about they education they are being given.

Which is why I have made respect for pro-players who finished their EDU and graduated BY their 3rd year or stayed all four years. THEY aren't the mockery I'm talking about.

It's the BB one and dones, the stupid fucks who spend 3 years in college and shirk studies or just take a bunch of BS.

------

Also, if you want to educate athletes and actually get them to learn about the costs of NFL and hell, the costs of life in general, they beat them over the head again and again and again and again on how to use the money from the contracts they get in the 1st place instead of putting themselves in debt when they're 5 years out of the league with most of the expenses not even coming from medical bills.

---

And since I'm on a roll, I don't think anyone is arguing against accountability by the NFL to instill the true dangers of playing the game on the biggest stage. Lying about head trauma is as bad as the assholes not informing people about the dangers of asbestos back in the day. But we can't even get around the everyday BS work lies, dangers, etc.

It isn't just the NFL these people should be crying out against. It's the freaking man behind the screen controlling all the BS.





Of course it'd be a cold day in hell I allowed your typical A&S degree to be included in such an arrangement. But technical skills? Medical? Engineering? You damn well bet. So your ass would be outta luck good sir.

Seriously though, if this country actually gave a damn about its students and teachers, we may actually have claim to "best country in the world" or "we're #1 in something other than the military industrial complex again! Woohoo!"

Hahahah
I fully get it but without us art freaks all of our lives would suck

BTW My school was a trade school actually
Art Center College of Design
The car you are driving was designed by one of our alumni - 100% guarantee

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_Center_College_of_Design

 

[blue4]

What type of people are put in power to run labor unions and why?

Hey, that's not what I was trying to say at all. And anyone here that's read any of my posts would know that I'm totally against the little guy getting the shaft.

My point is that the NFL has even a greater obligation to be equitable given that it's getting special treatment, very special treatment, by the public through it's governmental ruling on non-profit status and anti trust. So, while I'm against any business shafting it's labor, I'm particularly disturbed by the NFL doing it. And I'd argue that given the way NFL ownership treats labor, the public, through it's gov't representatives, should pull its non-profit status as well as it's anti-trust exception, and let the NFL operate like everyone else.

My apologies, I misunderstood your post.

 

[ozarkram]

Like in politics, there are elections and those elections reflect the people voting in them. I've had good union officials and bad, but I've yet to encounter a merciful CEO. I find my local union has the most problems like the one you describe when they are allowed to become complacent, like low participation in votes or meetings. I've a feeling these players representatives are doing exactly what the players actually want, getting the most money.

You make good points. I have been a member of two large well known unions. In the beginning and I go a ways back they were all about the worker. Safety, wages, benefits. While at the same time holding the worker to a high standard with apprenticeship's, tests, steps etc. Over time I watched much of that change for the worse. I speak only for myself and my experience.

 

[Mackeyser]

Well, one way is that Schools with successful football programs get more applications and can thus be more selective regarding student enrollment. They can better control the level of student financial aid as well as other goals like student achievement, diversity, student educational direction, etc.

And, frankly, the benefits of the endowments can't be understated. Some universities are so well endowed that they could likely run for decades without income.

Actually, I don't disagree with much of what you're saying.

 

[Ladoc]

Nice snuck in irrelevant tangent there.

I did not "sneak" anything in. It's in plane print for anyone to see. I take liberty in voicing my opinion on anything I choose to. If it differs from your opinion, I don't really care.. Maybe you should start screening all posts for views you feel are relevant or not.

 

[Boffo97]

I did not "sneak" anything in. It's in plane print for anyone to see. I take liberty in voicing my opinion on anything I choose to. If it differs from your opinion, I don't really care.. Maybe you should start screening all posts for views you feel are relevant or not.

It was completely irrelevant to the rest of your post, and we have a thread for discussing that issue. I'm actually an L.A. fan, but you're not really putting yourself in the best light early on here...

I would suggest that you familiarize yourself with the Terms and Rules around here before deciding what you'll "take liberty" in, but other than that, wish you a good day.