A number of NFL players visited members of Congress on Wednesday, asking lawmakers to take a look at NFL owner’s profits. NFL player’s union executive director DeMaurice Smith also asked members of Congress to consider the impact of labor trouble. The current contract between the league and the players doesn’t expire for two years as NFL betting information tells us but the signs don’t look good for an agreement to be reached.
Smith is also lobbying congress for the NFL to take responsibility for funding the retired and disabled player’s fund. “I don’t think it’s morally right when a league makes $8 billion a year” Smith said, for the benefits to players to be cut.
Smith was also lobbying for congress to force the NFL to open its books. Smith has said that negotiating a new deal is tough without knowing the exact figures of each team. The NFL is not happy with the labor union’s lobbying of Congress. “Congressmen understand and passed laws to keep labor talks such as ours at the negotiating table and out of the halls of Congress.” The NFL responded.
NFL betting information tells us that about 20 current and former NFL players were at the Capitol visiting members of congress. The players are worried that the owners are getting ready for a lockout and they are urging members of Congress to help them avoid that. Online betting info shows that last year the owners voted to opt out of the current contract in 2011 and that has made a work stoppage very possible. The owners do not like the agreement which gives players 60 percent of revenues. A work stoppage would be very disheartening to fans and NFL betting gamblers. It has been a long time since the league had a labor problem but the 2011 season could see a work stoppage.
The players had a study done that showed the value of teams has grown substantially in the last 10 years. The increase came to about 14% per season as NFL betting statistics show. That doesn’t mean the NFL players will get much sympathy though from fans and gamblers who bet NFL odds at the online sportsbook, considering they make millions of dollars.
NFL odds information tells us that some of the players in the group that were lobbying Congress included Kansas City’s Mike Vrabel, Baltimore’s Domonique Foxworth, San Francisco’s Takeo Spikes and Cleveland’s Joe Thomas.