Are owners and players on a collision course?

By: Larry Fitzgerald
Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder
Originally posted 2/26/2009

There is no harm in dreaming, and while dreaming you might as well dream big. It's ironic that you never seem to hear a child say, “I want to be a sports commissioner one day.” They might start considering that a potential reality.

Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig made $18 million last year. National Basketball Association czar David Stern made $12 million. National Football League boss Roger Goodell made $10 million, and National Hockey League Commissioner Gary Bettman made $5.7 million.

Wow, not bad, and no broken bones or trips to the training room. Despite difficult economic times, the four major sports leagues continue to thrive.

Labor issues can wreck the golden parachute, however. We've seen it in recent times with the NHL and MLB after their owners' lockout opened the door to the haunting steroid era that exists today.

The NFL is hoping to avoid a major collision in 2009. Gene Upshaw, the longtime NFL Players Association executive director, died last year, and the players have not yet decided who will lead them.

The owners want to change some of the rules; they think the players have it good. The NFL has not had a work stoppage since 1987, when an ill-fated strike by the union led to three games being played by replacement players. Upshaw's stroke of genus was to decertify the union, which led to the breakthrough in 1993 that opened the door to unrestricted free agency for the players and a salary cap.

The owners don't like the fact that the salary cap has exceeded $100 million per team and continues to go up every year. Their option is to opt out.

I sat down with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell (RG), who had just witnessed Super Bowl XLIII, the number-one rated program in television history.

LF: Congratulations on all you've done to guide the game to where it is.

RG: We've got a great game. We gotta keep making it better and better, and I think we have great potential.

LF: Tough economic times are faced by many fans. What are the prospects as you see them?

RG: I believe they are very good just because there's a flight to quality at times like this. People are going to have less money to spend on things, but they will spend them on things that they think deliver quality entertainment, and the NFL does that.

I think we've proven that, but we're also going to have to be sensitive. We reduced playoff tickets prices this year. Three quarters of our clubs are not going to increase tickets prices going into this 2009 year. And, there is a lot of uncertainty for our fans, our business partners, and we're going to have to be smart.

LF: The labor situation with the players — there is speculation here and speculation there. Is there such a thing, being commissioner, of a position of neutrality?

RG: There is, because my responsibility is to the game. I want the players to do well. I want the owners to do well. I want there to be a business model that works for everybody.

My view is, I have to figure out how we build a consensus around something that can meet both of those objectives. So that's how I'm going to look at it and make sure we continue to make this game great.

LF: Number-one rated Super Bowl for TV ratings in 2009 and the most viewed program in television history — you gotta be happy with that.

RG: The game is great, and we have great athletes and great coaches, and the competition is so extraordinary out there. I think our fans are reacting to it, and that's why we have to keep a system that allows us to continue to grow the game, because I believe there is a great deal of potential still left in the NFL.

LF: Commissioner, will the Minnesota Vikings ever get a new stadium?

RG: I hope so. They've been very patient up there. Zygi Wilf and his family have worked hard to make sure that they are positioned properly. It's something that is necessary; it needs to get done. They've got a new college stadium, as you know, and a new baseball stadium. I think at some point here we've got to get to the point where we sit down and find a way to get something done up there.

Larry Fitzgerald can be heard weekday mornings on KMOJ Radio 89.9 FM at 8:25 am, and on WDGY-AM 740 Monday & Saturday mornings at 7:50 am and Fridays at 3:50 pm; he also commentates on sports 7-8 pm on Almanac (TPT channel 2). Larry welcomes reader responses to lfitzgerald@spokesman-re corder.com, or visit www.Larry-Fitzgerald.com.