That's not a bad idea but pretty soon the way things are going they'll have to let any kid out of high school play in the nfl as long as a team want them.
Ozzy rules!!
Ozzy rules!!
Clarett & Williams could be out!
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Jimmy James
You sit on a throne of lies!
What is so wrong with that?
MNFINFAN
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the age rule is where they need to go, the NBA is looking into a cap, but they are basing it on age and think they have a good chance after seeing the ruling that came out against the NFL. David Stern was talking about it in the last couple days. Age restrictions are normal in the US, ie Drinking, voting, Presidency, social security and they think it would be easier to pass that way.
MNFINFAN
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IMO it waters down the talent pool and the quality goes down with it. At least after a few years in college or CFL, we have a good idea of the quality of the player and I think that is one reason why the NFL is the superior major professional sports league in the US.
LarryFinFan
Left So Fla, never the Fins...
The real problem with letting the younger guys try to make it in the NFL, is that if they don't, they cannot go back to NCAA on a scholarship, which means that 85% of these kids will end up not being able to go to school. I think the NFL has the best interest of the kids in mind with this rule. I agree that an "adult" should be able to make a living the way he wants, but at 18-20 yrs old, very few know how to make the talent they have work for them. I think this rule helps the kids out more than they think. Yes, there is going to be a "LaBron" out there that has his head on straight, knows how to harness that talent, etc but if I'm a GM, because of FA now, I have to make my draft count...therefore taking a chance on kid that has not fully developed or has not had the chance to show what he can do is not going to be an option for me.
Jimmy James
You sit on a throne of lies!
This quality argument is a red herring, especially for a league with rosters the size of the NFL. It is based on the NBA where the rosters, player pool, and potential player pool are tiny. Round 2 and beyond in the NBA draft is basically irrelevent, so it makes sense to teams that they drag a guy for a couple of years if he can actually become a Kobe or a Tracy McGrady. That's not the NFL at all...
Jimmy James
You sit on a throne of lies!
It's not like most of the guys we're talking about get anything out of college football other than practice for the pros. I'm not weeping about it at all. Let them get their practice in the CFL or AFL.
I do not embrace this sort of paternalism any more than I embrace the idea of fathers locking up their daughters so they don't become strippers or webcam models. There is one level of adulthood. If a man can go die for his country, choose our leader, and die for murdering another, he can make the NCAA/NFL Draft choice.
You just hit on exactly why this shouldn't be an issue. Unless a guy is overwhelmingly ready, he isn't going to find an agent the NFL certifies, and he's not going to throw his eligiblity away. If the kid is driven enough to do this, he should have the chance.
Would only be a court challenge away from being overturned.
The examples you have given are not business decisions but laws that have been passed. This would not be a law.
I think it would be a anti-trust violation and the NFL is lucky Clarett did not seek out that route also.
Then the kids had better make the right decision.
The NFL has a free minor league system in mind. Kids be damned.
They do not have to develop their own talent. Its free labor for colleges also.
Funny no one had a problem with James and Suggs coming into the NFL and they were YOUNGER than Clarett is now.
Terrell Suggs (Born 10/11/82) was just 20 years old when the NFL season started last Sept. Where was the out against him?
James (08/01/78) was just 20 when he drafted and had just turned 21 when he played his first game back in '99.
Where was the out cry against him?
Why was the NFL not saying these two were not physically mature to play?
Clarett was born on 10/19/82. That means he will turn 22 a month after the start of the season. James turned 21 a month before the season.
That means Clarett will be 10 months older than James was. Yet his body is not mature.
As for Suggs he is just 8 days older than Clarett and his body was matured for the NFL season last year and he won defensive rookie of the year. Yet his body was matured last year and Claretts is not now.
Do you not see the hypocrisy all over this?
What does his school age have to do with anything?
If you were coming out of HS and did not want to go to college and wanted to get a job at the local factory instead. You do not think you have the right to do so?
How would you like it if they said. We decided that you have the tools to work here, but we think you should be 20 before you can work here and you have to go to college or sit around and do nothing for 2 years before applying again.
But I'm sure you will see that as being different.
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LarryFinFan
Left So Fla, never the Fins...
Jimmy...
Not to good on putting quotes in this quick reply so bear with me...'
My first point was on the education they have the chance to receive or don't receive, not the football training, although, the football training is just as important if a man is going to be successful in the NFL. I wouldn't cry over a man losing a scholarship if he pi$$ed it away. But if he didn't have the chance of a scholarship because he was not mature enough to make good decisions, or had a money-hungry relative leading him around, then that is a sad reflection on all of us.
The NFL and NFLPA has no responsiblity to it's players and potential players ?? I can see it now, some 40 yr old wanna-be-athlete who entered the NFL early and didn't make it, suing the NFL and NFLPA because it "should have known I wasn't ready" (ala the people who have smoked for 30 yrs suing the tobacco company). It's not paternalism, it's business. I don't think you are wrong. As a society, we are to quick to blame everyone but ourselves when things go wrong, but this allows these guys a much better chance.
And lastly, the 18 yr is a law. It is not reality for most kids. I was in Laos for my 19th birthday, so I know what you are saying in regards to our laws. It's not my place or the NFLs place or the governments place to make an 18 yr old mature enough to make the right choices but with a few more years in college, that same kid might make a better choice. That is the best that can be hoped for. Very few kids are physically ready for the NFL coming out of high school and the NCAA gives them that opportunity. Perhaps the CFL or AFL would too, but why not get an education at the same time ??
Not to good on putting quotes in this quick reply so bear with me...'
My first point was on the education they have the chance to receive or don't receive, not the football training, although, the football training is just as important if a man is going to be successful in the NFL. I wouldn't cry over a man losing a scholarship if he pi$$ed it away. But if he didn't have the chance of a scholarship because he was not mature enough to make good decisions, or had a money-hungry relative leading him around, then that is a sad reflection on all of us.
The NFL and NFLPA has no responsiblity to it's players and potential players ?? I can see it now, some 40 yr old wanna-be-athlete who entered the NFL early and didn't make it, suing the NFL and NFLPA because it "should have known I wasn't ready" (ala the people who have smoked for 30 yrs suing the tobacco company). It's not paternalism, it's business. I don't think you are wrong. As a society, we are to quick to blame everyone but ourselves when things go wrong, but this allows these guys a much better chance.
And lastly, the 18 yr is a law. It is not reality for most kids. I was in Laos for my 19th birthday, so I know what you are saying in regards to our laws. It's not my place or the NFLs place or the governments place to make an 18 yr old mature enough to make the right choices but with a few more years in college, that same kid might make a better choice. That is the best that can be hoped for. Very few kids are physically ready for the NFL coming out of high school and the NCAA gives them that opportunity. Perhaps the CFL or AFL would too, but why not get an education at the same time ??
So if he is not mature enough to make the right decision on whether he should go to the NFL or not, then how can he be mature enough to know what college he should attend. Maybe they have money-hungry relatives that think they should go to one because his chances of being noticed go up. While the other school offers a better education.
We can play this type game all day.
At some point people need to be responsible for their decisions.
No, the NFL and the NFLPA do not have a responibilty to its future players, just as the local factory does not have a responibity to an 18 year old wanting to work there.
The NFL is a job, just as the one in the factory. The only difference is people want to see the NFL players work
If you have the ability to play in the NFL then you have the ability. The only thing the NFL should do is like they do with college kids. Tell them where they might be drafted. Its the kids choice after that and if they screw up then they screw up.
All this could be voided if the NCAA (You know the organization that will tell you its for the kids) would allow them to simply come back and attend college.
So if you force a kid to go to college and play if he wants to make it too the NFL and gets his knee blown out, then can no longer play the college can not renew his 4 1 year scholarship and drop him. Then where is the kid? No money and no education.
Colleges no longer give 4 year scholarship. Its 4 1 year. So they can take it away at anytime. (There is that we are for the kids organization again)
As for getting an education during college. Most kids that are able to play or would consider jumping to the NFL from HS are not interested in getting an education. They will major in general studies and then drop out the first chance they get to get ready for the NFL.
Why take up a spot in college for someone who is not interested in an education when there is a kid out there who wants an education and will be pushed aside for the other kid?
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Let me first start by saying this comment is assanine. The NFL does not have a responsibility to its workers??? ANY and ALL businesses have the responsibility to ensure its employees are both skilled and mature enough physically and mentally to work there. They are for the most part, also legally responsible for all injuries that may take place in the workplace.
Remember, NFL players are still employees of a private entity and if these players do something which is actionable by a lawsuit, the NFL is also liable for employing them. Legally the NFL might be wrong for not allowing kids straight out of high school jump into the pros but ethically, they are right. They are the anti-MLB in this situation and should be applauded. They aren't playing blind to the harm it can do to their employees (or future employees) just for the extra revenues. They are trying to look out for these kids, not only physically, but for their financial stability in the long term as well.
Are you saying that that same factory should then employ an 8 year old if he applies? The kid already knows that he wants to work in a factory all his life. Why then should he waste his time in school? Should we then hold this eight year old accountable if he ruins his own life in the process?
You have to remember that other sports policies in regards to allowing players to go pro should not apply here. Then someone will say "Hey, in baseball, some players get signed at 14. Why shouldn't they be able to do the same in football"?
Sooner or later, it'll come down to just that. Someone will ask "Why should he be forced to go to high school, if all he wants to do is play football"? Then where do you draw the line?
The NFL does not tell anyone where they will be drafted. If some scumbag agent who sees dollar signs in another potential client at the local high school wants to tell the kid that he is first round material (which could be furthest from the truth) and the kid believes him, merely by signing with the scumbag..er agent, the kid has now lost his chance to receive a free education to prepare him after his football days are over.
In most cases, scholarships cannot be repealed in the event of injury, regardless if they are 1 year or 4 year scholarships, as was the case with McGahee a couple of years ago. Even if this was the case, no institution would go through the PR hell of taking away a kids scholarship after a career injury like that. At the very least, even in this situation, the boy would have at least had some secondary training in something, maybe even enough credits for an associates degree. To counter that situation, let's say this same 18 year old wants to enter the draft, but blows both his knees in the combine. What is he left with then? Absolutely no secondary education and no money. Or worse, what if he dies on the field in spring practice or during a game? Who would then be seen as liable? The NFL, who didn't want players that young playing in the first place.
Jimmy James
You sit on a throne of lies!
If this is the NFL's interest, they need to do what Judge Scheindlin suggested in her opinion -- create an objective test for players. If the players pass, they can join the potential workforce. It won't matter if they're 18 or 23. I mean, shouldn't we be equally worried about the 23 year old who just isn't ready? Why should we give him a pass because of his age or even more ridiculously the number of years since his HS graduation?
I would like you to expand on this. How is forcing a person who is qualified to enter the workforce into a situation where he has little choice but to enter the corrupt world of college football the ethically right thing to do?
You have it totally backwards. College baseball looks like a college sport should because there is the option to opt out of the "educational" system and go straight into professional sports. This is the ethical system that results in giving these impressionable young people real choices.
You can't seriously be trying to draw this parallel, can you? Employing an 8 year old is a violation of child labor laws. Employing an 18 year old is not. That goes for some extremely hazardous lines of work. Why should the NFL be different?
The market draws the line. If there is a real prodigy of the Freddy Adu class that somebody wants to sign, it should happen, at least subject to the larger statuatory scheme that governs the ability of minors to enter into contracts. We let this happen in every other walk of entertainment (music, acting, other sports). The NFL is not special.
You know how an agent gets paid, right? Tell me why any agent, no matter how scummy, would want to make a contract to spend his time representing somebody who can only be described as a lost cause for nothing.
As to the loss of this chance, other kids lose the chance to receive an education using loans they have to pay back just because they have a drug conviction. Stupidity has consequences, and that's the natural order of things.
I'm under a time crunch and do not have time to address everything. I will later tonight.
However the NFL does give college player an idea as to where they might go when they are considering coming into the league early.
They have set up a committee that looks into this and then informs the player.
There is one thing you are already wrong on.
Next time you call someone comments asinine then at least have your fact straight first.
Again I will address the rest of your post late tonight when I have more time to spell out yet more errors in it.