hammer, nail

damn skippy. I commute on a motorcycle, out of necessity for the most part, which is a hell of a lot riskier than playing in the NFL, and I do it EVERY damn day.

I know it's a weak comparison, but y'all get the point. The players are making, what, 60% of 9 billion annually? How much more do they want exactly? It is better for the league as a whole and for each individual player if they cap rookie salaries. Yes, CEO's make a LOT of money in some cases, but usually after they've been in business for a while and not often do they land financial windfalls right out of college.

I find it hard to believe there will be a lockout that costs a season, but I fully expect there to be some drama after the super bowl while these extremely fortunate people haggle over how to split a kings ransom.

Join the club Fujita. I'm still waiting for medical treatment from the VA for my wounds from Afghanistan. And their system only aims to hit the target not hit the bullseye like the treatment NFL players get. My arm could be fixed but their answer is good enough. The treatment and pay you guys get is beyond exceptional for playing a game.

I wish every single athlete that plays in any sport would read this very post and take it to heart the next time they think about how they are getting shafted by not getting what they are worth. When are armed forces, police officers, firefighters, teachers, and many other jobs across the nation are getting very little recognition and very little pay for what they do, athletes still have the audacity to piss and moan about not making five or ten million a season. People all across the United States are struggling to make ends meet with higher risk jobs than athletes, and yet so many athletes complain about their salaries. Many of us would gladly take and cherish in a lifetime what these guys make in one season. When greed becomes the focus of these owners and players mentalities, it makes it even more difficult for any of us average Americans to sympathize with them. Instead of *****ing about more money, they should be thankful for what they do have when there are so many others are barely getting by or not getting by at all.

butt slap and high five.

in our world if we wanted to see our owners bank book we would be considered compitition and given the axe.

This is the case with many other forms of "entertainment" as well. Are Clooney, Penn, Deniro, and other actors worth what they get paid for movies? Are those twits "judging" American Idol worth the cash and praise they receive? Are Kanye West and Eminem worth the millions they get for the BS they "create"? What about Jersey Shore and all the other low life "reality" shows? I know my answer is "hell no". Our society has become obsessed with money, glitz, and glamor. And when people/masses don't have it themselves, they use TMZ, ESPN, and ET to blindly follow the lives of those who do as if it is important. It's sad that, in a time when our country is facing the social and economic issues it is, more people could pick Lady Ga Ga from a lineup than could pick their locally elected mayor, governor, or representative. In this country, Entertainment has replaced religion as the opiate of the masses.

i totally agree S.M.

Sorry guys. I know that there are professions in this world that deserve to be paid far more than what they are, and some far less. However, if you worked for a company that made huge profits but decided to ask you to do more work but take a cut in pay, please don't tell me you would be happy with it. As Fujita has said, if the NFL was making a loss and told the players that cuts have to be made then they would understand but to pay less for more work? It isn't fair whatever way you look at it.

I wasn't going to take sides, and usually don't, on sports labor disputes. That changed when it became evident the owners were pushing for an 18-game season. Convincingly, they're the ones making the CBA difficult.

And yes, I don't think the vast majority of NFL players are "charity cases" and are quite doing well. You can't even begin to compare them to people who work in the real world and are grinding through. The real issue here is that the owners are trying to screw over the players and put the NFL in jeopardy with what they're asking.