Adjusted Winner Applied to the 2011

NFL CBABy: Matt Renault and Joe Moleski

History of Collective Bargaining Agreements• The NFLPA was formed in 1968, and in that year the first

CBA was reached• New CBAs are agreed on in 1977, 1982, and 1993• The 1993 agreement is extended until the owners opt out

in 2008, meaning it will expire in 2011

Why the Owners Opted Out

• Officially, the owners stated that they were losing money due to increased costs and needed a higher share of revenue• In reality, under 1993 CBA, higher earning teams gave

money to lower earning teams• This didn’t account for the extra costs higher earning teams had• This was a dispute between owners, but needed a new CBA to

settle it

The Lockout

• NFLPA votes in 2010 to renounce collective bargaining rights in event of CBA expiring• This would make an antitrust lawsuit possible

• CBA expires on March 11, 2013• NFLPA renounces collective bargaining rights• 10 NFL players file Brady antitrust suit against owners

The Lockout, cont.

• The lockout was invalidated and revalidated multiple times by different courts over the summer• While both sides want an agreement, owners have contingency

plans• 2011 Draft was still allowed to happen

• Owners approve a settlement on July 21• Ten players in Brady suit approve an adjusted settlement July 25• Players ratify on August 4, ending the lockout• Only one preseason game was missed

The Conflict

The OwnersThe NFL Players Association

Points of Contention

1. Salary Cap2. Player’s Safety and Health Benefits3. Revenue Sharing and Television Contracts4. Transparency of Financial Information5. Rookie Salaries6. Season Length7. Free Agency Guidelines

Salary Cap

The Owners – 10 Points• Would like to keep this where it is

to save money• Are willing to agree if they can

cover most of it with money saved from decreasing rookie salaries

The NFLPA – 15 Points• The players want more money• Want an increase in the

maximum salary cap, minimum salary cap, and minimum individual player salary

Player’s Safety and Health Benefits

The Owners – 5 Points• The owners do not really care

about this• They only care about their best

players not getting injured• Owners have no reason to put a

lot of value into it

The NFLPA – 20 Points• Players want less rigorous off-

season and in-season training and practice

• They want to build more health facilities and get more physical trainers and doctors.

Revenue Sharing and Television Contracts

The Owners – 20 Points• The owners wanted more money

off the top. Around $2.4 billion instead of $1 billion

• Wanted to increase their percentage of the remaining revenue (about 41%) because of an increase in costs

The NFLPA – 15 Points• The players want to remove the

money off the top and divide everything instead.

• Wanted to remain around the same percentage they had (about 59%)

Transparency of Financial Information

The Owners – 15 Points• The owners don’t want to

disclose anything (perhaps because they were really making more than enough money)

The NFLPA – 10 Points• The players want the owners to

disclose financial information to prove they really need the money

Rookie Salaries

The Owners – 25 Points• The owners want to impose a

new rookie wage scale or salary cap to prevent exploding rookie contracts

• This is very important because it has essentially been a black hole for revenue

• See: JeMarcus Russell’s $61 million contract

The NFLPA – 5 Points• Players don’t care about this

(veterans are negotiating)• Will use this as a bargaining chip

to appease owners

Season Length

The Owners – 15 Points• Owners want to extend season to

18 games to make more money (increase league’s total revenue)

• Somewhat important, not as big as revenue percentage

The NFLPA – 20 Points• Players really want to keep

season the same length for health reasons

• Same value as safety/health because players see it as a safety/health issue

• Season had not been extended since 1978

Free Agency Guidelines

The Owners – 10 Points• The owners want unrestricted

free agency to remain limited to 6 year veterans

• Prevents them giving massive contracts to players when rookie contract expires

The NFLPA – 15 Points• The players want this deadline

moved up to 4 years in league• This would allow players to make

the money they deserve

Applying the Adjusted Winner Method

The Owners NFLPA

Salary Cap 10 15

Players Safety and Health Benefits 5 20

Revenue Sharing and Television Contracts 20 15

Transparency of Financial Information 15 10

Rookie Salaries 25 5

Season Length 15 20

Free Agency Guidelines 10 15

TOTAL 60 70

Adjusted Winner Showing RationsThe Owners NFLPA Ratios

Salary Cap 10 15 1.5

Players Safety and Health Benefits 5 20 4.0

Revenue Sharing and Television Contracts 20 15

Transparency of Financial Information 15 10

Rookie Salaries 25 5

Season Length 15 20 1.333

Free Agency Guidelines 10 15 1.5

TOTAL 60 70

Splitting Season Length

This is entirely possible. While the item is not fluid per-se, there is possibility for different compromises.

60 + 15x = 70 - 20 x x = 0.29

Therefore, the Owners would get 29% of season length, and the Players would keep 71%. This would result in 60 + 15(0.29) = 70 - 20(0.29) = 64.3 points each.This split could be represented by extending regular season to 17 games and shortening preseason to 2 games

Final Results – Adjusted Winner

• The owners get revenue sharing and television contracts, transparency of financial information, rookie contracts, and 29% of season length.• The players get player salary cap, safety and health

benefits, free agency guidelines, and 71% of season length.

Final Results – What Actually Happened

• The owners got revenue sharing and television contracts, transparency of financial information, and rookie contracts• The players got player salary cap, safety and health

benefits, free agency guidelines, and season length

Comparing our Solution to Reality

• Only difference was that season length was not split in reality and went entirely to players• So easy to predict because many items were essentially

predetermined• Everyone knew a new rookie wage system would be devised, players

would get health benefits, and owners would end up with more revenue• This agreement could have been made without lockout IF both

sides had been reasonable• Both sides end up better off due to winning most important

points and only missing one preseason game

Sources

• http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/story/15348620/lockout-judgements-winners-losers-turning-points (how it ended up)

• http://sports.yahoo.com/news/fans-guide-nfl-labor-battle-195100738--nfl.html (some of the disputes coming into lockout)

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2011_NFL_lockout (general information on lockout)• http://www.forbes.com/sites/sportsmoney/2011/07/21/who-won-the-2011-nfl-

lockout/ (Who won overall)•

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2013/10/how-the-nfl-fleeces-taxpayers/309448/ (Owners secretly making a ton)