Much has been made about one specific comment made by NFLPA president Eric Winston at his Bengals locker about the future of the NFL. The click-magnet headline cultivated by some (like ESPN.com) attributes to Winston the notion that he doesn’t care if NFL “dies out in 20 years.” We didn’t even use the quote in the PFT story on his remarks, because the context made Winston’s comments far less innocuous.
Winston was asked whether the NFL can survive another work stoppage (which frankly was kind of a dumb question because another work stoppage is far less of a long-term concern for the game than head trauma). In response, Winston said this: “Honestly, I don’t care and I don’t think the guys in this locker room care whether this thing’s going to be around in 20 years because none of us are going to be playing. So if these guys [the owners] want to own for a long time, then they can own for a long time. But another work stoppage might kill the golden goose. So I’m certainly not worried about it, I’m not going to be around that long. And I don’t care even if there are rookies in here, they’re not going to be playing that long. So if this thing dies out in 20 years, it dies out in 20 years. But that’s not really my concern and I don’t think it’s any of the players’ concern in here either.”
There’s nothing wrong or inflammatory or even surprising about his response. The players have no equity in the league; all they have is their bodies and what they can do with them until age or injury stops them. It’s the owners who have the long-term interest in keeping the game as viable as possible, and if they’re willing to engage in tactics that threaten it, that’s their problem.
Winston addressed the issue separately on social media, apparently in response to the focus on his “20 years” remark.
“The league’s spin doctors are at it again,” Winston said. “I was asked whether I worry about the league in 20-30 years if another lockout occurs, I plainly stated, ‘no.’ And no other players in the locker room should either. Players have always chosen to be good stewards of the game because we are the game but quite simply, if the owners choose to lock us out again as they did in 2011, or if they continue to deny the health and safety risks of football, then they have signaled that they are not worried about the game in 20-30 years. I love the game of football but every players knows this is a business.”
The broader point is this: If the owners are willing to drive a bargain so hard in 2021 that it drives the game to the brink, the owners are the ones who will bear the brunt of it over the long haul, because today’s players will be long gone by the time the proverbial chickens come home to roost.
