Facts About the Voluntary Offseason

Men,

The fact that the majority of players have made a decision to not expose themselves to an increased risk of injury in the midst of an ongoing pandemic has caused the NFL to respond by sending a memo to the clubs that distorts the injury data.

All the data that we have shared both with you and publicly comes directly from comprehensive reports which are provided to the NFLPA by the NFL every year. We understand that the League office is getting pressure from general managers and coaches to counter the facts about the necessity of a voluntary offseason program, but they are naturally putting the interests of the clubs ahead of player health and safety.

The NFL memo is a classic maneuver by management to allege that your union is lying to you to sow mistrust and discord. Each one of you has the CBA right to not participate in voluntary offseason workouts, and the facts support that it is the best decision to limit your exposure to injury. No matter how the NFL tries to counter the truth, the injury data from the 2020 season shows that nearly all injuries were down compared to previous years.

The bottom line is that the majority of our membership has made a decision to not put themselves at risk in an ongoing pandemic during a time in the NFL calendar when it is not necessary.

As a reminder, the following are straight facts:

1. Before 2020, there were more than 500 missed time injuries during a normal voluntary offseason program. That makes up more than 14% of all missed time injuries throughout the year. By simply choosing to not attend, you are choosing to be your own health care and NFL professional advocate.

2. Within the VOLUNTARY offseason program, 8 concussions occurred in 2019. In their memo, the NFL conveniently frames that as ONLY 8 concussions. That casual perspective on head injuries is all too common throughout the NFL’s history.

3. Infection rates for COVID-19 are higher in America now than they were at this point last year.