Management Furious That Workers Speak Out, News at 11
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A couple of years ago, the NFL Players Association started asking its members to grade the various qualities of different teams, including locker rooms, food, support for families, and a bunch of other things. The union then released the report cards, totally calling out cheap ass franchises such as the Cincinnati Bengals for their shitty conditions to put public pressure on the teams to improve things. I particularly appreciate the Bengals getting an F- in the Treatment of Families category. Read the whole report card here. The NFL owners are furious about this, enough that this is likely to be an issue in the next union negotiations.
The NFL filed a grievance against the NFL Players Association, asking the union to stop its annual team report cards and saying the exercise violates the collective bargaining agreement by airing public criticism of teams, according to documents obtained by ESPN.
The league claims the report cards, which poll players on various aspects of working conditions, violate a CBA clause that says NFL owners and the union must “use reasonable efforts to curtail public comments by club personnel or players which express criticism of any club, its coach, or its operation and policy,” according to an August letter from the league’s management council to NFLPA general counsel Tom DePaso that was obtained by ESPN.
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In 2025, 1,695 players leaguewide responded to the surveys. The Minnesota Vikings and Miami Dolphins earned the highest marks for workplace environment, with Zygi Wilf of the Vikings, Stephen Ross of the Dolphins and Arthur Blank of the Atlanta Falcons receiving A-plus grades.
At the NFL league meeting in March, New York Jets chairman Woody Johnson — who along with Art Rooney of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Robert Kraft of the New England Patriots, Michael Bidwill of the Arizona Cardinals and David Tepper of the Carolina Panthers received ownership grades of D or worse — called the survey “totally bogus” and hinted that it violated the CBA.
Johnson said he took issue with “how they collected the information [and] who they collected it from. [It] was supposed to be according to the agreement we have with the league. It’s supposed to be a process [where] we have representatives and they have representatives, so we know that it’s an honest survey.
Woody Johnson of course is Donald Trump’s best friend in the NFL. He received an F from the NFL players for his ownership. Seems generous. It’s really shocking too given the Jets amazing success over the last decades.
Call the fucking whaaaaaambulance you cheap ass owners.