Waiting for Goodell
Well, I’m glad to know that I’m not the only who’s been waiting for an answer from Commissioner Goodell. Most of the readers here on my blog are well aware of my communications with – or to – Commissioner Goodell over the past year.
We recently received a copy of a letter from Hall of Fame legend, Hugh McElhenny, and a followup letter from game great, Jon Arnett. The letters pretty much speak for themselves. But the lack of a response tells me that all the blogs and websites must be having an effect. The NFL and the NFLPA have been unable to figure out how to play in this new arena. The old way of playing the PR game is over. I’m just hoping that the Commissioner isn’t planning on having meetings in 30 cities and hoping to spread it out over his term just to run out the clock.
But first, an introduction from the Pro Football Hall of Fame website:
“Hugh McElhenny was to pro football in the 1950s and early 1960s what Elvis Presley was to rock and roll. Known as “The King” (McElhenny that is), he had it all. He was an artist whose electrifying moves left opponents and observers spellbound.”
Read the rest of Hugh McElhenny’s biography by clicking HERE.
This is a letter that McElhenny wrote to Commissioner Roger Goodell – note the date it was sent (and we can be probably be assured, it was a real letter and not an e-mail!):
September 25, 2007
Roger Goodell
Commissioner
National Football League
410 Park Avenue
New York,NY 10022
Commissioner Goodell,
My name is Hugh McElhenny. I played in the NFL for thirteen years and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1970.
You could, with one decision become a Commissioner who could stop all of the bad publicity with the retired players.
If you check to see the number of players that are still alive who played before 1959, you would see it is a very small number. These are the oldest players, most are over 70 years old and their average salary was less than $10,000 a year. Players such as Jim Brown, Johnny Unitas, Y. A. Tittle, Bart Starr, Joe Schmidt and others were responsible for the future success of the NFL.
Most people think all retired NFL players are rich. This is not the case with the pre-1959 players, many of whom are in bad health. Other Hall of Fame players like Willie Wood and Herb Adderly are getting very little pension benefits.
I understand you want to reopen the players collective bargaining agreement. If this happens, you could increase the pre-59′ers pensions to $700 a month and this would give players like Wood and Adderley $8,400 per year.
Two other things this would accomplish:
One: By receiving this money, there would be fewer players who would be in dire need of help.
Two: Most of the pre-1959 players are in their 70′s. 80′s and 90′s. Therefore, it is unlikely that the retirement payments would last for a lengthy time.
Putting six ex-players on the Disability Committee is a great idea and if you increase the monthly pensions for pre 1959 players, it would go a long way in helping the NFL image.
You would be a Commissioner whom the retired players would respect and trust and as someone who would represent everyone connected with the National Football League.
Respectfully,
Hugh McElhenny
I will anxiously be waiting for your reply.
Like the rest of us, Hugh McElhenny is still waiting for a response from the Commissioner.
And then we have a follow-up letter from another legend, Jon Arnett, among the strongest advocates of retired players rights:
Jan. 10, 2009
Carl and Pat,
If the Commissioner will not answer the Great Hugh McElhenney, who will he answer? No one unless it is one of the NFL/NFLPA sycophants on their payroll of some type. You will see who these people are at the January 14 meeting/PR function in Newport Beach.
I believe there is only one way to get their attention and that is through pressure from the US Congress in evaluation of their Anti-Trust Exemption. We need to start a movement to contact our individual Congressmen and Senators State by State. As of now, they have the right to act like the old “mob” such as “we’ll operate the way we want and you have no rights to see how that is” …lack of transparency status.
These meetings, such as the Wednesday meeting at the Newport Hall of Fame, are PR tactics to show how they care. Roger Goodell does not even respond to one of the Greatest! How much is he making because of what Hugh and his generation, accomplished? I’ll guarantee you that Roger and his staff never took the ball off tackle, but they are remunerated greatly by those that did and are now forgotten.
If you care to, I have written my historical recount of how we of the “older retirees” evolved into this situation. It’s rather long, but you might find it interesting…from my personal perspective.
Good luck to us all!
Jon Arnett
Sharon Hawkins for Wayne
January 20th, 2009 at 3:39 pm #
This whole situation is pathetic.
Let’s hire a brilliant labor attorney and sue their pants off!
NOW!!
Miles of emails, congressional hearings, letters, phone calls and NADA.
So…
Why not hire the attorney, Ron Katz, from Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, from Palo Alto, CA who won the recent case for us in San Francisco Federal Court?
Manatt, Phelps & Phillips have the information needed, it seems, to do a major, successful job for us… a win.
Sharon on behalf of Wayne Hawkins