Twitter burns as Owners ratify

Anyone else still on the players' side? I have waffled a bit back and forth but I think these recent shenanigans prove the players are the worse of the two evils in this situation. That's hard to do when your opponent is a bunch of rich entitled multi-millionaires. Good job De Smith...not only did eff this up in the beginning now can't even bring it home. What a useless pile you have proven to be.

Anyone else still on the players' side? I have waffled a bit back and forth but I think these recent shenanigans prove the players are the worse of the two evils in this situation. That's hard to do when your opponent is a bunch of rich entitled multi-millionaires. Good job De Smith...not only did eff this up in the beginning now can't even bring it home. What a useless pile you have proven to be.

The players deserve the chance to review what's on the table. And Smith now has to sell them on it. Did you expect an instant resolution?

I'm absolutely on the players's side. The owners ratified their own deal, including in it some terms the players had said they would not agree to. Maybe the players will agree to them, but they certainly won't (and shouldn't) approve anything they haven't seen.

Players have been getting information piecemeal, some like what they heard others didn't. Now the players reps are looking over the proposal, and likely won't vote on it tonight. But, as much as all of us wish they would agree to the deal and get on with it, that's not a fair or realistic expectation. They've been locked out for over four months. They have every right not to be pressured into anything.

There are 32 owners, 1700 players. It makes sense that player ratification may take longer.

The players deserve the chance to review what's on the table. And Smith now has to sell them on it. Did you expect an instant resolution?

Yes. They hired someone to negotiate a CBA for them. They should rubber stamp it plain and simple or fire Smith. Either they trust him or not. They certainly don't need to come in at the last minute and derail the whole thing. Their asses needed to be involved to be able to say anything in my opinion.

They hired someone to negotiate a deal... not to negotiate it and then approve it for them in blind faith.

It's not about trust, it's about knowing and understanding what they are signing off on for the next decade.

Rubber stamp a deal of this magnitude?? Wow.

I probably shouldn't have said Smith thinks it's a fair deal, that's not entirely accurate. My understanding is he thinks it's a better deal than previous proposals. But still there's a ways to go.

They have, I believe, until Tuesday.

But people seem to be confusing not accepting with rejecting. It's two very different things

Sorry, but if the players are coming in at this point and crying because they don't know what is in it, that is their own fault. They should have been questioning and demanding better info throughout the process. Mankins had his rep come out and say
Frank Bauer, Mankins' agent, said, "Are we disappointed there has been no communication? Hugely. He trusted the union and Kessler to fight for Logan Mankins and the other players."

Read more: Could players' legal counsel Jeffrey Kessler be holding up CBA talks? - NFL - Sporting News (http://aol.sportingnews.com/nfl/story/2011-07-21/could-players-legal-counsel-jeffrey-kessler-be-holding-up-cba-talks#ixzz1SnGL4NRb)


The players have consistently claimed they are in the dark about these negotiations, and that fault lays in their leadership.

Now, the owners have approved a solution that contains the framework that the players leadership has been negotiation day in day out, and if they can't accept it, then I don't see why the owners would ever expect that a final deal could be reached.

The players aren't helping themselves on Twitter right now. I think they would be wise to shut up and communicate with their reps.