New NFL-NFLPA Covid protocols

[716er]

11 minutes ago, DrDawkinstein said:

 

Thinking back to the "Patriot Way" and how BB ran such a tight ship during those dynasty years, and how McD is pretty much doing the same thing and had all his players in line... How do you think BB would have handled a #3 WR stepping out of line and going public like this? Would he even make it back into the facility? Or would they have just shipped the player his stuff from his locker?

Great question.
 

I recall when Josh made his “keep it in the locker room” comments there was speculation it was to protect teammates against the vaccine from being slammed (or even questioned) by the media. If you subscribe to this theory, Josh, and Tremaine for that matter, both stuck their necks out to have the backs of their teammates. 
 

Just an awful look from a process POV.

[Jauronimo]

1 hour ago, DrDawkinstein said:

If anyone is looking for some laughs, Beasley getting absolutely roasted in the thread on /r/NFL

 

 

 

We brought in Sanders. Just swap him in.

 

Speaking of which...

 

Does anyone believe he did that totally naturally? Or did he, like every other NFL player, have the team Dr shoot some chemical into his body which he has no clue what it contains, in order to numb the pain?

 

Little punk hypocrite.

If I'm Beane, I call the trainers office and have all the demerol and toradol spiked with the J&J vax.

[DrDawkinstein]

12 hours ago, BADOLBILZ said:

 

 

Nah, you could buy Andro powder(with yohimbe bark!) at the Summit Park Mall GNC back in the late 80's.   Anybody that walked in looking for a post-lifting protein powder was getting recommended this andro product and being told it was not a steroid.   So athletes from HS on up were already using it.    But I get your point......the rationale is pretty random.    

 

Yep, I was one of those High School athletes taking that, and Agent Orange (which was just powder-form Ephedrine), back in the day.

 

However, it didnt really hit or become big in the media until the late 90s when it was put into pill form, and the news cameras picked up a bottle of it in Mark McGuire's locker during his Home Run season.

[Einstein's Dog]

4 hours ago, Ethan in Portland said:

Every workplace is struggling with how to deal with vaccinated vs unvaccinated people. It’s your choice not to get vaccinated. But when did choices stop having consequences? 

The consequences for the choice to not get vaccinated were negotiated.  Beas is complaining about the terrible job (in Beas opinion) that the NFLPA did with that negotiation.  That is not an unreasonable position.

 

As for your every workplace comment, most workplaces have nowhere near the types of restrictions the NFL is placing on the unvaccinated. 

[dpberr]

Cole Beasley is right. I'm a fan that supports his opinion on this matter.  

 

The union did a crap job protecting players from the pro-vax mob and management. 

 

 

 

[Hapless Bills Fan]

18 hours ago, Billsflyer12 said:

We have a very large and strong union with my job.  Our union also reached an agreement on vaccines without our vote.  Not all things required member body vote to come to an agreement within a union.  We actually got a really good deal for getting vaccinated and had over 80% of 13,000 vaccinated within 2 weeks of agreement.  Those who remain unvaccinated, that’s their choice, but life will become very inconvenient for them.

 

This really doesn’t seem that hard, not sure why it is for some of them.

 

Exactly, This: Your union reps have a responsibility to keep you informed, and to convey concerns/input up the chain of command - but everything isn't a referendum and shouldn't be.  If you have a union committee studying the need for fall protection in a certain op with management, getting hip-deep in all the OSHA data and medical data on injuries from different height falls - Expertise matters.  The union guys who have a ringside seat to all the information and facts (and the mandate to dig up whatever other info they could find) should weigh in, it shouldn't become a "popularity contest" based on "my Girlfriend's sister's Parrot Walker said, side effects from wearing fall protection harnesses" or the perceived inconvenience from the young invulnerable studs on the floor and concerns about decreased p

 

Why it's hard for them is that there's all sorts of viral SM crap about vaccine out there, some of it incredibly detailed and plausible sounding (though hollow when tapped, like a Halloween pumpkin).  Add in a lot of these players have spent college and their NFL career with team physicians who may have prioritized game availability over medical best interests, and a healthy degree of skepticism seems warranted.   Some, of course, are conspiracy theorists whom no data or evidence can reach, because they distrust all data and evidence provided by "the establishment" on principle.

 

 

[Hapless Bills Fan]

32 minutes ago, dpberr said:

Cole Beasley is right. I'm a fan that supports his opinion on this matter.  

 

The union did a crap job protecting players from the pro-vax mob and management.

 

Serious question: why do you feel it's the union's job to protect players from some hypothetical "pro vax mob"? 

 

Isn't it their job to negotiate with management to preserve player rights while protecting players health, and didn't they do that?  Vaccination is a choice for players, it's not mandatory - and I'm quite sure the clubs would have liked it to be mandatory and pushed for that.  Players don't have to get vaccinated.  Players can't be cut for not being vaccinated.

 

But freedom of choice doesn't mean freedom from consequences.  Negotiations are a 2 way street.  The players who want to be protected from covid-19 by having high vax rates around them, the coaches who want players to be available,  and the clubs have to get something too.

[4_kidd_4]

Hopefully he’ll make some raps about it!!!

 

Fingers crossed!!

[DrDawkinstein]

4 minutes ago, 4_kidd_4 said:

Hopefully he’ll make some raps about it!!!

 

Fingers crossed!!

 

His response track to the NFLPA gonna be fire!

[Hapless Bills Fan]

2 hours ago, DrDawkinstein said:

If anyone is looking for some laughs, Beasley getting absolutely roasted in the thread on /r/NFL

 

 

My favorite:

 

"I'm a Genetic Freak!"

🤣🤣🤣

[jlgarsh]

1 hour ago, Einstein's Dog said:

The consequences for the choice to not get vaccinated were negotiated.  Beas is complaining about the terrible job (in Beas opinion) that the NFLPA did with that negotiation.  That is not an unreasonable position.

 

As for your every workplace comment, most workplaces have nowhere near the types of restrictions the NFL is placing on the unvaccinated. 

I wasn't allowed to come back to the office without proof uploaded. That's more strict than what the NFL is saying. It depends on the employer, but the NFL is within its rights to do the same

[Einstein's Dog]

18 minutes ago, jlgarsh said:

I wasn't allowed to come back to the office without proof uploaded. That's more strict than what the NFL is saying. It depends on the employer, but the NFL is within its rights to do the same

Yes, the NFL could try and make that policy.  But it certainly seems reasonable that the NFLPA could have prevented it.  And this seems to be the source of Beas' frustration.

 

The NFL network is saying that 50% of the players have been vaccinated.  And with the pressure on marginal players to do it, it seems the majority have been hesitant.  I believe Beas' comment about "who voted for this" is implying the majority of players did not want this.  From that perspective it looks like the NFLPA did a poor job on this issue.

[Hapless Bills Fan]

16 hours ago, SirAndrew said:

Forget about the subject matter, I don’t even want to discuss that part. My issue is the fact that Beasley feels such a need to be heard. It’s simply a case of self above team. If he has an issue with NFLPA, he should be free to address that in the proper forum. Instead he’s using his platform to share personal thoughts that stray from being solely a team related issue. There’s no need to convince the public of anything, he’s free to believe whatever he chooses, but take up the issue with the proper people. That’s a much better option than engaging in such non-process style attention seeking. 

 

I think he was possibly just frustrated and didn't have a clear idea how/where to focus his frustrations.  It's not unique to Cole, the reason there are people who make their living advocating for patients with health insurance issues or for consumers with problems is that it's not natural for everyone to know how to advocate for themselves effectively.

 

This just in:

 

"We" in the thread context is clearly Cole and NFLPA leadership, which seems like a positive and productive step.

25 minutes ago, Einstein's Dog said:

Yes, the NFL could try and make that policy.  But it certainly seems reasonable that the NFLPA could have prevented it.  And this seems to be the source of Beas' frustration.

 

The NFL network is saying that 50% of the players have been vaccinated.  And with the pressure on marginal players to do it, it seems the majority have been hesitant.  I believe Beas' comment about "who voted for this" is implying the majority of players did not want this.  From that perspective it looks like the NFLPA did a poor job on this issue.

 

What is "this" in your post?  Beasley doesn't seem to be complaining about pressure for vaccination, but rather about the details of the protocols for vaxx'ed and unvaxxed players.

 

I have questions about these specific protocols myself, which it's beyond the scope to discuss here.  If I were a player I would want to know what is the science and evidence behind them, because it is reasonable for an unvaccinated player to want to feel he can prevent catching covid and keep himself available to the team.

[SirAndrew]

1 minute ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

 

I think he was possibly just frustrated and didn't have a clear idea how/where to focus his frustrations.  It's not unique to Cole, the reason there are people who make their living advocating for patients with health insurance issues or for consumers with problems is that it's not natural for everyone to know how to advocate for themselves effectively.

 

This just in:

 

"We" in the thread context is clearly Cole and NFLPA leadership, which seems like a positive and productive step.

Fair enough, it just seems that addressing the issue behind closed doors would have been preferable. It’s not the fact that he voiced his disagreement with the union. I took issue when he went off on a social media tantrum. He has every right to file his grievances with his union, and voice his dissatisfaction. There’s just no need to voice uninformed personal beliefs while bickering with fans, after team leaders stated this topic won’t be discussed in public.

 

Cole has every right to advocate for himself, but he also needs to remember that a union represents 100% of the players. When workers are divided 50/50 on an issue, comprises and concessions are going to be made. The union doesn’t represent the unvaccinated at a greater level than the vaccinated, so they are in a tough spot. He’s free to voice his opinion, but should also be aware that nothing is going to fully satisfy both sides. The NFLPA has many interests they need to protect.
 

Cole works under a system with boundaries. He can go through the proper channels in an attempt to change things, but ultimately needs to be comfortable with his own decision and their consequences. Ranting about the flu on Twitter doesn’t seem like a man who’s willing to accept choices and consequences. 

 

 

[YoloinOhio]

Joe Mixon no likey nflpa 

 

 

[billsfan1959]

17 hours ago, SirAndrew said:

Forget about the subject matter, I don’t even want to discuss that part. My issue is the fact that Beasley feels such a need to be heard. It’s simply a case of self above team. If he has an issue with NFLPA, he should be free to address that in the proper forum. Instead he’s using his platform to share personal thoughts that stray from being solely a team related issue. There’s no need to convince the public of anything, he’s free to believe whatever he chooses, but take up the issue with the proper people. That’s a much better option than engaging in such non-process style attention seeking. 

 

There are all kinds of professional athletes and other celebrities who use the platform their status gives them to share their personal thoughts on all sorts of issues, including those that might be divisive in some way or that could be better addressed in a different forum/way. It seems to me that whether it is acceptable or not acceptable in the eyes of most of us rests soley on whether or not we agree with the stance. However, whether we agree or don't agree, he has the right to speak his mind.

[GoBills808]

I’m just glad Joe Mixon was able to weigh in

[Mike in Horseheads]

4 minutes ago, GoBills808 said:

I’m just glad Joe Mixon was able to weigh in

#thugsopinionsmatterto

[SirAndrew]

1 minute ago, billsfan1959 said:

 

There are all kinds of professional athletes and other celebrities who use the platform their status gives them to share their personal thoughts on all sorts of issues, including those that might be divisive in some way or that could be better addressed in a different forum/way. It seems to me that whether it is acceptable or not acceptable in the eyes of most of us rests soley on whether or not we agree with the stance. However, whether we agree or don't agree, he has the right to speak his mind.

Agree, but as many have mentioned, the issue is with team leaders previously saying this topic stays in house. This is different than the typical political stuff imo. It’s a divisive issue in many workplaces. Distractions are the last thing you want for your football team. Reasonable people can disagree about politics, while maintaining a friendship, although we’re told that’s impossible these days. This issue is about procedures that affect the daily routine of players. If you have too many guys dissatisfied about it, you have a negative work climate. I’m confident it will all work out just fine. The culture of this team has proven to win out every time. I just didn’t think it was the proper forum for Bease to rant, and there’s nothing political about that. 

[billsfan1959]

1 minute ago, SirAndrew said:

Agree, but as many have mentioned, the issue is with team leaders previously saying this topic stays in house. This is different than the typical political stuff imo. It’s a divisive issue in many workplaces. Distractions are the last thing you want for your football team. Reasonable people can disagree about politics, while maintaining a friendship, although we’re told that’s impossible these days. This issue is about procedures that affect the daily routine of players. If you have too many guys dissatisfied about it, you have a negative work climate. I’m confident it will all work out just fine. The culture of this team has proven to win out every time. I just didn’t think it was the proper forum for Bease to rant, and there’s nothing political about that. 

 

Fully understand and my response was not to suggest any political motivation on your part. It was just a general observation that people with accesss to the media, including athletes, use that platform all the time to express personal views - many of which are ill informed or could be better expressed in a different way - and that most of us are fine with it when we tend to agree (for whatever reason - not just political) and are not fine with it when we don't. If it is something that is truly something the team feels is disruptive in any way, I am confident McDermott and team leaders will appropriately address it with Beasley, as the should. But, in the end, he has the right to say it and those who disagree certainly have the right to express that as well.