SEATTLE WEATHER REPORT: 50º cloudy, 20% chance of rain, 6 mph winds out of the southeast. 100% chance of bloviating . . .
For all you Al Di Meola/Stanley Clarke/Chick Correia fans out there . . .
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSksWyHsYw8
Well, the inevitable has happened. We remain road warriors and now travel to Seattle for the be-all end-all showdown. Everyone knows the particulars. Seattle wore us down in week two 29-3. The Niners took them at the Stick 19-17 on a game-winning field goal. the trash talk is prety intense, at least among the fans. I posted a couple innocuous posts on Field Gulls (an SBNation blog) and was promptly banned. Much like the Seahawks themselves blocking anyone from the state of California from buying tickets to the game. Pretty fricking hokey if you ask me.
Anyhow, as much as Seattle fans want to deny it, the Niners are coming in pretty hot. Russell Wilson has posted very pedestrian numbers these past games starting with the Niners. I’ll post them soon when I get them, but Kappy is spreading the ball around nicely. He looked off Keuckly on a couple completions over the middle, and generally looks a lot more comfortable in the pocket. Gore was Gore, and the defense took a little while to wear down the Carolina line, but they eventually did in the 3rd quarter.
Should be a hard fought game, and the winner truly deserves to bring home the trophy.
Bring it on.
Forty Niners Forever 
I don’t know if this was already noted but a federal judge has thown out the 765 million settlement that NFL agreed to pay 4500 ex-players
“In a ruling issued Tuesday, Judge Anita B. Brody of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania rejected the proposed settlement because the league and the plaintiffs’ lawyers had not produced enough evidence to convince her that $765 million would cover the potential costs for 18,000 retirees over the 65-year life of the agreement.”
The players’ lawyers have said that economists and actuaries they hired said that there would be sufficient money available., but they didn’t provide supporting evidence. Stay tuned. In a better society than ours, people would be going to prison over this
I meant that the NFL lawyers have said there was sufficient money available.
Twinfan1 – The NFL has but one option on that topic.
Guarantee the Funds, through some form of recognized funding vehicle.
Should the NFL ever go bankrupt during that span, a financial fund has to be available to see it through.
Sounds simple I’m sure, but, the Judge is correct in combing through the language, to assure that this isn’t some loosely worded proposal, that gives the NFL an out in the future.
No hiding behind bankruptcy loopholes.
I congratulate the judge on this. Seemed to me from the get go that $765M was chump change for the number of bodies involved. As far as guarantee, were I the players I’d require the funding all up front into an escrow account managed by a trustee group with delineated parameters of investment to insure money was available for future pay out….
In a country where money talks and affluenza is considered a real malady, well there you go. The NFL is all about CYA.
No doubt in my mind that the League will, at some point, force language into Player Contracts that would put the potential concussion effects into some sort of waiver clause.
Up to the Players’ Union to protect them from that.
No different than a tobacco company slapping a warning on a pack of cigarettes.
It’s all Lawyer-ease (sleaze) to me.
CBAs circumvent traditional application of Employer/Employee negotiations and the ability to enforce workplace related job hazards I’m sure.
Watch what happens with A-Roid Vs. the MLBPA and MLB for a taste of what’s coming.
The Skankees are looking for any leverage they can find, to get out from under a ridiculous Contract they entered into with a cheater, who’s testing the limits of the Drug Testing System.
Suing everyone involved could bring a real focus on just how strong the System is in terms of applicable workplace rules.
Lawyers Vs. Lawyers = Higher Costs for everyone else.
What a bunch of bovine scatology. Plenty of others bang their heads for money and no one’s having a fit over it or even demanding better gear or protection. Meanwhile MMA is ABOUT beating a man’s head by whatever means possible as violently as possible. Never mind boxing and other head-contact sports.
I’d say people that were lied to about their medical conditions or the risks involved with repeated exposure should have some claim to compensation. Those other folks that thought slamming their heads into each other and/or the ground would be fun and profitable should have to bear most of the responsibility themselves.
There are still today plenty of players that would keep playing through concussions except for the team forcing them to sit out.
In a better society we would take responsibility for the things that are our responsibility instead of looking for a scapegoat and a free ride as soon as we find ourselves in a bad situation of our own doing.
Last time for those geni who don’t know it yet, playing football can get you and others hurt.
“Here’s a million dollars a year, wanna play?”
You’re right NoFear49er.
I’ve never heard or seen the language involved with the MMA, so you make a good point.
What sparked this litigation in the NFL, I’d wager is, the boatloads of money the Players of this era have obtained in comparison to the early generation of Players who made the game what it is today.
This goes directly to my point about Lawyers and higher costs to the rest of us.
Had the NFL Elite taken precautions and, done right by their early generation of Players, this action may have been avoidable.
No different than any Pharma Corporation hiding known side effects from a product in the name of shareholders and profits.
When you’re an ex-Player with dimentia and, a good Lawyer can find a loophole to expose, the smell of all that NFL money is too attractive not to attack.
Sure, plenty of the earlier generation Players would have played for free to some extent.
The same could be said for many of today’s Players.
If Ownership would have been more fair in their dealings with the NFLPA, this certainly could have been avoided.
Greedy Owners getting rich off the Players for far too long IMO.
Show me an NFL Owner struggling to turn a profit in this game and, I’ll show you a good Accountant hidng the truth for him.
TV money has gone through the statusphere over the years.
The real challenge now will be, to validate the true post career health damages, from those that simply squandered their money and are looking to profit off the backs of those that truly are in need.
Enter…. more Lawyers.
Which is why it’s conceivable that this Judge is challenging the Settlement Offer.
Owners may decide somewhere down the road that the cost of doing business in the NFL isn’t profitable enough.
Once the revenue streams diminish, the Big Boys at the top turn tail and run with the profits.
Screwing the employees is the Corporate motto in the modern era.
Hey NJ49er,
I don’t think it’s quite the same as a drug company selling you something. There are plenty of hazardous jobs out there that folks seek out for various reasons. Most folks are happy and even anxious to see the military take it in the shorts compensation-wise and are currently being mandated to do more while taking cuts in compensation that was already promised. No one in an uproar over that. What’s the difference? Oh yeah, these guys are getting hurt playing a game, a few months a year on Sunday afternoons while becoming millionaires, overnight for some.
Your point to the Military is the perfect comparison NoFear49er.
It appalls me too.
You, and many others, were promised compensation for your risks and contributions.
The bureaucrats at the top of the food chain are notorious for stepping on the little guys in the end.
Pisses me off to no end.
All about greed and disregard for common human decency.
The almighty bottom line is more important than human sacrifice.
Hard to compare football to Military sacrifices for sure but, it is about screwing the little guy IMO.
Money and Power delude the ability to think fairly.
Same scenario with the Employer Sponsored Pension Plan systems of yester-year going to 401k-type vehicles of today.
Tying your retirement years to the Wall St Greed Machine.
Looks good on the monthly statements so long as the gamblers at the top invest it properly.
Sucks for everyone when they don’t.
Sorry, we had a bad year. But the Execs will get their bonuses.
Tell that to the folks that can’t afford to work anymore and depend on that retirement check to survive.
The whole damn system is out of control.
Too easy to hide behind the Lawyers, Accountants and Politicians.
Corruption wears many layers of protection.
I saw it said here that if the military guys don’t like the way they’re treated they shouldn’t sign up. I guess that logic doesn’t extend to football players. Anyway, you’re right about greed driving the process. I think there may be a little disagreement about who is the greedier though. I’ll also agree that the players are the pawns here. The money is between the lawyers chasing it from both ends.
Another of the things that bother me about this is that a judge says an agreement between the two parties is not fair to one. WTF? Nothing like rendering the years of negotiating and the right to make a contract between two parties worthless. Let’s cut to the chase, judge. What is it you will approve? Let’s go from there and save everyone some time in this farce of fleecing the deep pockets. The point that keeps coming up that shows this whole thing for the robin hood deal it is, is that the NFL’s gross take is always a main part of the discussion.
That’s the rub NoFear49er, they lose sight of the objective.
Sure, no one knew 30 years ago that repeated head trauma from the Sport could cause long lasting health issues today.
Hard to place blame at the feet of ownership for not knowing what they didn’t know.
What rubs me wrong is, now that it’s been identified and there’s a Union trying to provide assistance for their legacy members, ownership attempted to hide revenues in an attempt to damage the process.
With the massive successes of the game and, the opportunity to foster good will going forward, greedy owners did what greedy owners typically do, cry poverty.
Sad commentary all around.
I guess you forgot that the owners wanted to give more money to the retired players in the last CBA but the current players and union balked. Seems they wanted that money for themselves. Who’s greedy, just the owners? Hmmm. The NFL’s problem is they are a cash cow and everybody wants a piece. Enter the lawyers, they make money no matter who wins the debate. And who is a judge, a former lawyer. The judge just made all of those lawyers a lot more money! Imagine that.
In conclusion: BLEEP……
All that matters is VICTORY! Nerds can suck on their lemons.
No one said any such thing regarding soldiers here, NoFear. If anything the commentary was regarding Bush hiding behind the soldiers and 9/11 at every turn and then denying VA benefits as part of his tax cuts, and the Rebublicans holding up first responder money unless the 3% tax hike on the rich was waived back in 2010.
As far as the NFL goes, even Ditka got frustrated with the end-game of the vets committee that was nominally trying to help the older players. It was just another money grab by the top of that group, and the lawyers involved. That being said, through all of this, the owners are the ones throwing up roadblocks, providing smokescreens, and generally dragging their feet when it comes to anyone taking any piece, no matter how small, of the billions upon billions of dollars that they reap.
I liken some of this to the X games. These kids are basically cannon fodder for ESPN as these guys jump, twist, and maim/kill themselves for public consumption. What happens afterwards? Well, nothing. They don’t have a union or anyone looking out for them, so they are shit out of luck when shit goes wrong. Last year we got the joy of seeing a 21 year old kid kill himself on live TV trying to do a backflip on a snowmobile. Dumb? Sure. Edgy sports fun? I guess. Point being, no one bemoans the fact that for every death there are 50-60 paralyzing accidents, and these guys are quickly replaced by other crazy kids doing crazier shit. At least the NFL players get tons of money for their risk. But they fall under the same cloak of invincibility. No one thinks this shit will happen to them.
I understand the vets of yore being compensated because the medical staff for a given team’s goal was get the guy back out there as fast as possible. Nowadays, there is enough knowledge to out there to understand the risks involved, even with the so-called safety precautions and needless penalties. Like someone said somewhere, there are going to be concussion clauses written into contracts and even if so, it won’t stop players from suing later in life when they get symptoms of brain fuckedness.
The point? Who knows? The facts are, the owners involved do not want to assume any of the risk that their ’employees’ withstand, at the cost of losing a tiunmy fraction of the billions flooding their coffers.
Chuck, you know it was you who said it or it wouldn’t have rung your bell. That Bush was cutting VA benefits was a lie told by the liberal nutjobs and parroted as truth by the dupes who listen to them for talking points. Ask the vets if GW hid behind them or 9/11. Same with the tripe about first responder benefits. The Repubs were against giving out the benefits to all comers without vetting them. Turns out they were right. More liberal nutjob bullshit happily reported here as truth.
As far as the NFL goes: They didn’t always reap “billions upon billions.” Any revenue sharing plan should, “to be fair,” include an expense sharing component. If the teams don’t reach their projected profit levels or lose money the players take should be dinged as well. That never happens. The sixty percent share the players want for salaries should be dinged accordingly for whatever the expense of the compensation fund ends up being year by year. Then let the judge swing for the fences.
Find it, then. Don’t ascribe shit to me you can’t prove.
Right. It’s all a media construct. Jeezus. Spare me the tinfoil hat analysis. What never ceases to amaze me is you think there are differences between the parties. Both sides are equally culpable. The Rebublicans are just more overt about it.
If you listen to the owners, they never reach their projections. Because they don’t have to open their books. The players don’t get a pass either, but in the end they will be affected as they are denied the benefits they themselves didn’t pass on to their forebears.
New thread is up . . .