I have no problem at all with anything that anyone has to say about me. I only hope that we will all continue to fight and do what we can for Retired Players. A few of us may not live to see the next round of lawsuits through but that’s no reason for us not to fight in every way that we can for those of us who do make it. You yourself know that you have to be willing to play a full four quarters, win or lose, and every game that’s scheduled to get to the playoffs. It’s almost unbelievable but that’s the way that we always went at it. I guess that, that’s why the Fans cheered for us. We were doing what the average person is never able to do.

This darn thing is about “Pride” as much as it is anything else fellas. It’s about “Right” more than anything else. We deserve better than we’ve gotten and we have every right to fight for what we’ve earned. All of it! We earned it! We earned it! And the most profitable Sport in the history of civilized man was built on our backs. We ABSOLUTELY deserve better consideration via pension, disability and the film that they still sell to advertisers showing our play. If you were a singer or an actor, you would still be getting paid a few dollars every time they show an old game. They legally don’t have to do it but they morally should.

I was against Gene Upshaw and his practices but I have never been against the Players and the Union, “As It Should Be Run.” The Union has our money, Boys, and I’m not going away until the active players give both us and themselves a “Vote For Life.” It is in their good interest to vote to do so because they don’t want to find themselves shut out in the future the way that we’ve been in the past. The Constitution of the United States Of America has been amended many times and the NFLPA’s can be as well.

If you don’t want to give the “New Man” a chance, that’s your business. If you want to hold him responsible for the things that Upshaw did and didn’t do, go right ahead. But I’m not going to help the Owners stop him and I’m not going to help them roll the advances back that we’ve made over the last 60 years. You know, the changes that you went on strike for and went to Court for.

I may be mad-as-heck old Colored Man but I can’t apologize for that. I’ve been that way since the 1960′s and I am going to keep on being an ACTIVIST for retired players for as long as my health holds up.

You will have to play the future games as you see best. It’s your right to do so because this is America. You know. George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, Andrew Jackson, FDR, General Patton, General McArthur, Martin Luther King, Justice Marshall and all of those “Boys.” None of them were afraid of a good fight and they neither asked for or gave quarter. Neither will I!

Bob Grant

“Our intent is to move forward with the league in lock-step.” Sounds like a real independent organization!

Ange Coniglio

NFL Alumni Restructure: “The Board will consider an appropriate transition role for Frank Krauser given his distinguished service to the NFL Alumni for many years.”

What?!!

Distinguished by definition is, “marked by excellence.”

Does that mean Frank is still on the payroll? What about his Super Bowl tickets? Expense account? Cigar allowance?

In its 2005 tax return, the NFL Alumni had $3.7 million in revenue and gave out only $800 to one former player in “verified dire need.”

Would you call this behavior “distinguished”?

Regards,
Dave Pear

When does this school girl mentality come to a stop? I was at The Summit and thought I participated in an open meeting with MEN who had but one goal and that was to further the benefits of players from the earlier years and take better care of our players and their spouses with serious health or mental health issues.

What is with all this politicking and grand standing. I never received any letter. It’s time for all of you who are trying to follow our new administration and become a czar to give it up. If you were a team player, you should remember the saying that “together every one accomplishes more.”

Thanks for the time and forum.

Larry Kaminski
Denver broncos
1966-1973

Jim Jensen
Miami Dolphins
1981 – 1992

As most of you know, we’ve been trying our best to moderate the discussions and comments going back-and-forth. Certainly the fact that your comments are getting posted here on Dave’s blog should be clear evidence of that. But I do have some good advice: Don’t quit your day job as a great disability attorney – sarcasm isn’t your strong suit.

That said, if you’re referring to your earlier questions about an “organization” to send checks etc., perhaps it might be better to NOT have a large, well-funded organization with fancy offices and well-paid officers, if it means things get so out of hand and disorganized that you can’t even keep the names straight on the business plans and documents you send out to the very people you’re trying to recruit.

Many of us have been trying our best to give everyone the benefit of the doubt when stupid things happen once. But when it happens over and over again, you have to wonder if it’s just incompetence and poor management or if it’s how we can expect business and communications to be handled in the future. Unfortunately, neither option bodes well if this is how you plan on starting off.

IMHO A real apology would have gone a long way…

As legal advisor to, and board member of Fourth & Goal, let me apologize to you for any inconvenience or embarrassment you may have suffered for anyone thinking that you had endorsed us, or that you were going to join the new NFL Alumni Association.

Please don’t take this as a personal attack – as it is not – but now that we have cleared the air, could you return to topic and answer the questions I posed last week?

John Hogan
Disability Attorney