
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said Thursday that “our culture” may be in danger as the NFL economy slows and inflationary expectations set in for the next decade.
“Our culture is a thing that is important, that we’re very passionate about,” Goodell said during a conference call with reporters.
“It’s a thing we’ve been talking about for a long time and it’s something that we’ve made our case to everybody.
We’re going to continue to do that.”
But the commissioner said that “it’s hard to say” whether “we’re going into this next decade in a recession, and we’re going in a downturn, but that it’s not going to be as bad as it looks.”
The NFL and the NFL Players Association are locked in a battle over the future of the league after the players voted to collectively bargain in a last-ditch effort to keep the team in the league and the union in place. “
We need to be careful not to go too far too fast.”
The NFL and the NFL Players Association are locked in a battle over the future of the league after the players voted to collectively bargain in a last-ditch effort to keep the team in the league and the union in place.
The union had been hoping for the league to allow the players to negotiate with teams on a long-term basis and also get a bigger share of revenue from TV rights.
But the NFL and union reached a tentative deal on a four-year extension in June.
Goodell, however, told reporters that there is still a chance the union might strike the agreement in a bargaining session.
The NFLPA has threatened to strike.
“I can tell you that the union is very much looking forward to having this deal in place,” Goodell told reporters.
But it’s unclear whether the deal will be final, given that Goodell has previously indicated he wants the players on the negotiating table.
He said Thursday he wants to be sure that “this is a fair deal for all sides.”