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This situation is simple, yet complicated.
Talking about the battle between the union and teams about off-season workout programs.
For instance, the Philadelphia Eagles just caved after meeting with veteran players, and will not hold mandatory mini-camp this year.
“We had some really good conversations with our players, some of our team leaders, about the off-season program,” Eagles coach Nick Sirianni told the team’s website.
Think about how counterproductive that is with a new Eagles coaching staff putting in new schemes. You can also throw in the fact that they have a young developmental QB, Jalen Hurts, who could use the work.
If the union had such a big issue with the off-season program, why didn’t they negotiate the changes they wanted during the CBA talks last year? They knew a 17-game season was coming. This was no surprise.
The issue here is simple. Most of the team union reps pushing for cancelling workouts are older players, perhaps feeling the wear-and-tear of playing a lot of football in their lives. Of course those guys would rather not have off-season practices.
But they aren’t the ones who need the work. It’s the younger players, who aren’t as far along in their development as the veterans.
So the older players, pushing teams to cancel the off-season work, are hurting younger players. There is no way around it.
The needs of NFLPA President J.C. Tretter, the 30-year-old Cleveland center and eight-year NFL veteran, are different than James Hudson, a 2021 fourth-round tackle, who needs a lot of technique work.
The tough part is getting the union and older player reps to show more empathy for the younger players, who need spring field work with their coaches.
Look, all the spring work is voluntary (aside from the three day mandatory mini-camp), so the veterans don’t need to show up for any of it, but stop lobbying to take away needed work for younger players.
So far, the Jets haven’t cancelled anything that I’m aware of, and this could give them an advantage over teams that have. Robert Saleh knows how important this (negotiated) spring work with the player is, especially for a new staff.
“Obviously (we) respect the fact that it’s voluntary,” Saleh said on May 7. “I am biased, obviously, to our coaching and our performance staff. I think there’s no better or safer place to get better than at your home facility where everybody knows you and everybody knows what you need to reach your maximum potential to take advantage of your 2021 season.”
He added: “To be real, of course we’re always going to lean on a bias towards wanting everybody here and the importance and all that stuff, because we think we’re good at what we do and there’s no better way to teach than in-person, where we can have face-to-face contact, and we can do things on the football field.”
The Jets’ attendance has been excellent this week. Kim Jones tweeted on May 17: “My understanding: The #NYJ had more than 80 players show up today in Florham Park for the voluntary start of Phase Two of the offseason program. Coach Robert Saleh has to be thrilled.”
And this will benefit the Jets a great deal, especially their young players.
I find it hard to believe that the older union reps don’t understand the importance of this work for the younger players.
Which all of them once were.
May 19, 2021
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