Tom Brady calls for players to stand united and have 'very intense negotiations' with NFL on offseason program

The debate over offseason activities and workload for players is far from finished, and a legend has gotten involved.

Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady joined an NFL Players Association call on Friday and delivered an impassioned speech, NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported, calling for unity among players in what Brady believes should be “very intense negotiations” with coaches on modifying offseason work rules.

“There’s no f—ing pro baseball player that’s throwing 95 miles per hour in mid-December,” Brady said, referring to the league’s offseason activities as “overly competitive” prior to providing such an example, per Pelissero.

In line with NFLPA’s consistent stance on the matter, Brady leaned on the all-virtual 2020 offseason as proof that players believe it isn’t necessary to bring them in for weeks of workouts and on-field sessions in late spring and early summer.

The NFLPA continues to push for a boycott of all offseason activities prior to training camp, per Pelissero.

Pelissero added that multiple player reps said on Friday’s call that they have already negotiated modified offseason work with their coaches.

The Packers are moving up their minicamp dates and will allow for virtual participation in two other OTA weeks, while the Dolphins plan to shorten days and have OTAs at a walkthrough pace, per Pelissero.

The NFL had no comment on Friday’s NFLPA call, per Pelissero.

Brady is notoriously dedicated to taking care of his body with a regimented, if not eccentric, diet and workout routine that focuses more on stretching and remaining limber — pliability is the buzzword — than it does packing on pounds of muscle. If anyone understands the impact of the game on a player’s body over the course of many years in the NFL, it’s the man who just won a Super Bowl and the game’s MVP at 43-years-old.

Brady’s opinion, then, carries plenty of weight and won’t be lost on the membership of the NFLPA. We’ll see if the league and union can arrive at common ground this offseason.

Source: Read Full Article