NFLPA files collusion claim, says NFL had secret $123M salary cap in uncapped 2010

Posted: 12:27 PM ET May 23, 2012

By Josh Katzowitz | NFL Blogger

The NFLPA's collusion lawsuit has a nice little 'lockout' feel to it. (Getty Images)

The NFLPA has filed a collusion claim against the league, only a day after an appeal was denied made by the Cowboys and Redskinsto protest the NFL's punishment for front-loading contracts of players during the 2010 uncapped season.

According to the union, the complaint details a conspiracy in which the NFL imposed “a secret $123 million per-Club salary cap for that uncapped 2010 season.” The claim was filed with the U.S. District Court in Minnesota, which means Judge David Doty -- certainly not a favorite of the NFL -- likely would oversee the claim. “When the rules are broken in a way that hurts the game, we have an obligation to act. We cannot stand by when we now know that the owners conspired to collude,” NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith said in a statement. Said union president Domonique Foxworth: “Our union recently learned that there was a secret salary cap agreement in an uncapped year. The complaint today is our effort to fulfill our duty to every NFL player. They deserve to know, above all, the facts and the truth about this conspiracy.”Responded NFL spokesman Greg Aiello: “The filing of these claims is prohibited by the Collective Bargaining Agreement and separately by an agreement signed by the players' attorneys last August. The claims have absolutely no merit and we fully expect them to be dismissed. On multiple occasions, the players and their representatives specifically dismissed all claims, known or unknown, whether pending or not, alleged violations of the 2006 CBA and the related settlement agreement. We continue to look forward to focusing on the future of the game rather than grievances of a prior era that have already been resolved."But in its release, the NFLPA writes that these collusion claims were previously unknown to the players and are “entirely new.” That's why this complaint could not have been asserted in the Brady v. NFL case and why this complaint wouldn't be barred by the CBA.As many on Twitter have noted, Smith signed off on the NFL's decision to penalize the Redskins $36 million of their cap space and the Cowboys $10 million of theirs. If, by doing so, he tried to set off this trap, that's certainly an interesting move.In the NFLPA release, the union says the complaint also cites Giants owner John Mara's words when discussing the penalties of the Redskins and Cowboys, saying, “What they did was in violation of the spirit of the salary cap. They attempted to take advantage of a one-year loophole … full well knowing there would be consequences.” Also, since the NFL approved those Cowboys and Redskins contracts in the first place, the NFLPA says the NFL is punishing those teams for breaking the unwritten salary cap.So, if this is what 10 years of labor peace means, I think I'd rather not embrace it. Or as the New YorkTimes' Judy Batista writes:

Is it possible the NFL and NFLPA were getting along better DURING the lockout than they are now?

— Judy Battista (@judybattista) May 23, 2012
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