Yes, the NFL and/or the NFL Players Association should do something about Cowboys owner and G.M. Jerry Jones negotiating directly with players like linebacker Micah Parsons.
We asked both the league and the NFLPA about the situation. The NFL has not responded; the union had no comment.
A former player who recently declared his intention to run for the position of NFLPA executive director had a comment.
“There should be an immediate grievance filed by the NFLPA for Jerry directly negotiating with Micah Parsons,” Matt Schaub said on Twitter. “It is a clear violation of the CBA.”
One factor could be whether Parsons and his agent, David Mulugheta, want to push the issue. Even if it’s easy to prove, the penalty would be a slap on the wrist. If that much.
Under the Collective Bargaining Agreement, negotiating with someone who is not an NFLPA-certified agent results in no penalty for a first offense, and a measly $62,000 fine for all violations thereafter. (It’s $47,000 in 2020 with a five percent increase for each year of the current CBA, starting in 2021.)
Still, at some point, someone needs to take a stand. Even if it’s only a $62,000 fine, the mere fact of securing a ruling that Jones violated the CBA would make it clear to fans and the media (many of whom seem to think it’s OK to ignore a player’s agent during negotiations) that Jones and the Cowboys are in the wrong on this.
Because they absolutely are.
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