NFL - NEWS & NOTES

We might have a bomb dropping about Dan Snyder today.

 

How so? Whats your hunch?

 

Football world waits for supposed Washington Post story on Washington team
Posted by Mike Florio on July 16, 2020, 8:32 AM EDT

It was supposed to land Tuesday. Then, it was supposed to land Thursday. Thursday has arrived, and whatever it is that the Washington Post supposedly will be reporting about the Washington team has yet to be published.

The anticipation has reached fever pitch, with “Dan Snyder” trending on Twitter and speculation running rampant regarding the basis for the report.

Said John Gonzalez of ABC7 last night: “Working my sources but apparently changing of the Redskins name will be old news come tomorrow when a bombshell report is expected to surface. There’s growing buzz that unflattering news about organization could come out in just hours.”

This follows the collection of tweets posted Tuesday night by Dan Steinberg of the Washington Post, which helped make the looming news a major focal point. As of last night, Washington fans and the football world at large are watching closely and waiting impatiently for whatever it is.

Here’s what I personally know: Eleven days ago, PFT caught wind of dissatisfaction from minority owners that had morphed into rumors of an effort to get former employees of the team to talk. Within a few phone calls, it became clear that Dwight Schar and Fred Smith were trying to sell their interest in the team. The Post thereafter confirmed that fact, adding the third minority partner — Robert Rothman — to the list of potential sellers.

We don’t know whether former employees have talked, to the Post or to anyone. We don’t know what they said. Beyond the efforts by the minority owners to cash out, we only know what we’re reading from folks with verified Twitter accounts who currently cover or who have covered the team. So, like everyone else, we will continue to play the waiting game.

 

There's no doubt that the minority owners all wanting out at the same time meant there was a fire somewhere. But I genuinely hate this "There's a story coming" atmosphere that gets churned up. The purpose of news shouldn't be to drum up profit, it should be to report the facts. I hope the delay in this story breaking is that the journalists involved are doing necessary fact and source checking before publishing. That would be well worth any hand-wringing people may be doing.

 

NFLPA Reveals 72 Players Were Diagnosed with COVID-19 as of July 10

https://bleacherreport.com/articles...om&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=editorial

 

Washington Post allegedly has a story coming that if true would likely result in Snyder selling the team.

 

72 players = 2.5% of the 2,880 NFL players (32 teams X 90 roster spots). That's pretty much in line with the general population.

 

Snyder selling would be such a positive step for that franchise.

 

No fans at training camp this year, for any team



Some teams have begun to announce that they won’t be hosting fans at camp. Eventually, every team will say the same thing, because no teams will have fans at training camp in 2020.

“Fans will not be permitted at training camp this year,” NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy told PFT via email. “This is a league-wide policy. Clubs may hold up to two events at their stadium provided they adhere to all state and local guidelines.”

This is one of the agreements that the league and the union have reached in working out the protocols for pro football in a pandemic. Training camps will be off limits, but for a pair of stadium events that are permitted locally, and that follow all applicable rules and regulations.

NBC

 

15 female employees of Washington NFL team say they were sexually harassed

The much-anticipated Washington Post exposé of the Washington NFL team has been published, and it details widespread sexual harassment within the organization.

Describing women who worked for the franchise, the Post reports, “they cried about the realization their dream job of working in the NFL came with what they characterized as relentless sexual harassment and verbal abuse that was ignored — and in some cases, condoned — by top team executives.”

In all, the report cites 15 different women who say they were sexually harassed while working for the team. Among the employees accused of sexual harassment is Larry Michael, the team’s radio announcer, who abruptly announced this week that he was leaving the team.

Also named in the article are two employees who were recently fired, director of pro personnel Alex Santos and assistant director of pro personnel Richard Mann II.

Team owner Daniel Snyder refused to be interviewed for the report. But he won’t be able to stay silent for long, as this will become the talk of the NFL — and is likely to lead to calls for Snyder to sell the team, whether he wants to or not.

NBC

 

Source: One preseason game is the “very likely” outcome

The NFL wants two 2020 preseason games. The NFL Players Association wants none. The obvious compromise has been hiding in plain sight since the battle lines were drawn.

One.

A league source tells PFT that one preseason game is currently the “very likely” outcome to the negotiations aimed at getting the various rules resolved before camps open. Ideally, the games would consist of minimal travel (e.g., Jets vs. Giants, Chargers vs. Rams, Ravens vs. TBD), with the goal of having all games proceed with no teams flying.

That could become unrealistic for some teams, given their location. Seattle, for example, isn’t within short driving distance of any other NFL city. Denver also is in a football no-man’s land.

Regardless, that’s the direction in which things are pointing as the time for making decisions gets closer and closer.

NBC

 

NFL: Washington allegations serious, disturbing and contrary to our values



Thursday saw the Washington Post publish an article featuring numerous allegations of sexual harassment by members of the Washington organization made by former employees and journalists covering the team

The NFL did not respond to that report on Thursday, but their silence came to an end on Friday morning. The league released a statement about the allegations.

“These matters as reported are serious, disturbing and contrary to the NFL’s values,” the statement said. “Everyone in the NFL has the right to work in an environment free from any and all forms of harassment. Washington has engaged outside counsel to conduct a thorough investigation into these allegations. The club has pledged that it will give its full cooperation to the investigator and we expect the club and all employees to do so. We will meet with the attorneys upon the conclusion of their investigation and take any action based on their findings.”

Washington head coach Ron Rivera has commented on the allegations, but team owner Daniel Snyder and the rest of the team’s representatives have been silent.

NBC

 

As the NFL and NFLPA continue to negotiate the economic proposal to deal with predicted steep revenue decreases due to COVID-19, how a player might opt out of the 2020 season remains a discussion point.

NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported part of the NFL's proposal sent to the NFLPA allows for any player to opt out with written notice by August 1.

It's the first time a date has been tagged to potential opt-outs.

The union and league have planned an opt-out option for players with pre-existing conditions, family members with pre-existing conditions, or those with general concerns about playing during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Several players in the NBA and MLB have decided to sit out their respective sports' return to action. It's unknown how many NFL players would consider skipping the season, but several veterans have already offered thoughts of trepidation as we press toward the season.

Rookies for the Kansas City Chiefs and Houston Texans have been instructed to report for COVID-19 testing on Monday, July 20. Veterans for those teams are scheduled to report July 25. Rookies for the other 30 clubs are slated to report next week, with veterans scheduled for July 28.

The Aug. 1 opt-out date is part of ongoing league and union negotiations. It's unclear, given the dates of reporting, whether a player would be permitted to report and then opt out.

NFL owners are scheduled to hold a conference call Friday to discuss the latest in COVID-19 talks between the union and league.

NFL.com

 

NFLPA: Player safety has to be dealt with before cap issues



Among the issues that have been discussed by the NFL and the NFL Players Association ahead of training camp has been how to deal with the projected loss of revenue due to the COVID-19 pandemic and that question came up during a conference call with union leadership on Friday.

Word on Thursday was that the league wants to take the financial hit over the next two years rather than stretch it out over the life of the current Collective Bargaining Agreement. The latter position is the one proposed by the union and executive director DeMaurice Smith said Friday that a drastic cut in the size of the salary cap for next season would lead to a slew of players being cut around the league.

The NFLPA isn’t making the economic discussion their top priority at the moment, however. Smith and NFLPA president JC Tretter both said that the issues governing player safety, which include protocols at team facilities and testing frequency, have to be settled before moving onto the cap issues.

Smith said that the union began to receive Infectious Disease Emergency Response from teams on Thursday night and they will be reviewing them to make sure they are in compliance with the protocols discussed with the league. That would be a step toward nailing down the safety issues that would allow other conversations to take center stage.

NBC

 

A.J. Green signs franchise tag



The Bengals are set to report to training camp in a little more than a week and wide receiver A.J. Green is set to join them.

Green signed his franchise tag on Friday and that puts him on track to get on the field with his teammates for the first time in a long time. Green missed all of last season after injuring his ankle in one of the team’s first training camp practices last summer.

“A.J. is one of the best receivers in the NFL,” Bengals head coach Zac Taylor said in a statement. “He’s an important part of our plans, and we’re thrilled to have him in the fold from Day 1. We’re looking forward to the impact of his talent and leadership on our offense this season.”

Green stands to make just under $18 million this season under the terms of the tag. Bengals executive vice president Katie Blackburn said in a statement that the club looks forward to “the opportunity at the end of the season to discuss keeping him here long-term” by signing another contract.

Green told Geoff Hobson of the team’s website that he hopes to do the same, play four more years and then retire as lifelong member of the Bengals. We’ll have to wait to see if that happens, but Green will be on hand as Joe Burrow starts his run in Cincinnati at the very least.

NBC

 

That's odd. In an article posted here previously about an interview with JC Tretter concerning the Covid-19 pandemic as it relates to NFL training camps, he mentioned economic issues no fewer than 6 times.

 

Honest question: was that interview before or after the most recent spike? If it was when the numbers appeared to be going down then that makes sense. At that point, numbers appeared to be going down and they appeared to have a handle on the safety aspect so economic aspects could be brought closer to the front. If it was after the rise in cases then I agree that it’s pretty hypocritical.

 

It was, if I recall, about a week ago. At that time, the numbers across the country were starting to spike and the interview was obstensively about what the NFLPA was looking for in terms of player safety with the onset of training camps. Yet he still mentioned economics.

It just struck me as being hypocritical on his part. And he's the starting Center for my Browns.