Steve Serby of the NY Post has an interview with former Jets center and NFLPA President Kevin Mawae. It discusses the current labor situation and some very interested tidbits about his time with Gang Green.
Q: As of now, you're scheduled to be meeting each Tuesday and Wednesday with the owners from next week until March 4. But there doesn't appear to be much trust between the sides.
A: You're telling me you're losing money but you won't show me how much you're losing. You're telling me it costs too much but you're not willing to show me the cost. . . . I was at the Super Bowl -- I saw Daniel Snyder's plane on the runway. He wasn't flying first class on American Airlines. It's a business deduction and you're writing it off and you're saying it's a cost the players should incur because you choose to fly that way. I'm being facetious . . .
The one thing I wish Serby had asked was about Mawae's contention last year that he was being blackballed by the league. He seemed to feel the reason no team signed him was his role with the players in the impending labor strife.
I have been pretty quiet, but it is very difficult for me to do anything other than side with the players based on what I have read. Almost everything I hear from fans talk about how the NFL has the perfect business model. The owners are looking to upset the status quo and get more of the pie from the players who make them money by putting their health on the line each week (see Ray Lucas). These owners are looking for more because they have built new stadiums recently, often with taxpayer assistance. They don't have a problem reaping the benefits of luxury box sales and ripping fans off through PSL's and higher ticket prices.