CLEVELAND, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – The NFL’s collective bargaining agreement with players stipulated that the offseason program was voluntary.
For years, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, it felt anything but voluntary. NFLPA president and Browns center JC Tretter made it his mission this offseason to change that, and from his perspective, mission accomplished.
“I think this is the first time in a long time players felt like they actually had a choice,” Tretter said Tuesday.
Tretter and the NFLPA encouraged players to stay away from in person workouts this offseason and the majority players from teams issued statements indicating they would do just that, including the Browns.
The boycott didn’t last long as players across the league participated in OTAs following agreements with their coaches about reducing the intensity of the workouts.
“We never used the word ‘boycott.’ That was kind of used by other people. I do not think you can boycott a voluntary program,” Tretter said. “When it comes to how successful it is, I think anytime as a union you educate your membership on what their rights are under the CBA, whether that is a win or whatever, I think that is positive. When you have over two-thirds of teams negotiate with their players for better language, better rules and better working conditions than what is in the CBA, I think that is extremely positive; I think that is a win. Our goal and our hope is to make the offseason better.
“We know that the vast majority of players realize and understand that the offseason is kind of an archaic model and it is not in the best interest in the health and safety of the players.”
The cancellation of the offseason program last year as a result of the OVID-19 pandemic allowed players to see the benefits of reduced or eliminated offseason work.
“Players in general knew that the offseason programs were getting out of hand and the intensity was being ramped up and becoming more and more dangerous,” Tretter said. “I think what COVID did was allow us to see and/or feel what the change would be like.
“The players know how their bodies feel. We are very in tune with that. When the vast majority are saying that little wear and tear that we get rid of by getting rid of the offseason that makes our bodies feel significantly better by the end of the season, that is good, and that is what we fight for.”
Tretter, who is entering his eighth NFL season and fifth with the Browns, felt the value just isn’t there for him to attend OTAs.
“I know if I go to OTAs at this point, there’s really only two things that can happen,” Tretter said. “One, I’m going to have more wear and tear on my joints. That’s not great for me. And two, I have an increased likelihood of a season-ending injury by practicing.”
Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski modified the team’s OTAs to include seven workouts over the last two weeks instead of the 10 that are allowed.
Still, Tretter along with most of the offensive starters skipped OTAs while 50 attended Week 2 and 58 were on hand last week raising questions about potential peer pressure to support Tretter as their teammate and union president.
“I do not think there was any pressure, and I am definitely not mad at anybody for coming,” Tretter said. “I think we laid that out very clearly. We had our own calls with just players where we could talk about it just as a group, and we made it really clear that we are a team and there are no hard feelings either way. For the guys that came in and for the guys who stayed away, there should be no hard feelings for the guys who stayed away, and vice versa, the guys who came in should not be upset that guys stayed away.”
