NFLPA releases team-by-team report cards
INDIANAPOLIS – For the second consecutive year, the NFL Players Association has announced its results team-by-team report cardswhich assess players’ working conditions and environments throughout their seasons and off-seasons.
The Miami Dolphins, Minnesota Vikings, Green Bay Packers, Philadelphia Eagles and Jacksonville Jaguars rounded out the top five in overall grades.
Meanwhile, the Washington Commanders received the lowest marks in the league for the second straight season, while the repeating Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs finished 31st overall. The Los Angeles Chargers (30th), New England Patriots (29th) and Pittsburgh Steelers (28th) round out the bottom five.
Team classes include their training room, training staff, weight room, strength coaches, team travel, head coach and ownership. Owners were rated based on players’ beliefs that their ownership groups operate with a willingness to invest in team facilities.
The survey data was collected from August to November of the 2023 season. A total of 1,750 players (compared to approximately 1,300 participants in 2022) participated in the survey. NFLPA leaders said they were encouraged by the increase in participation this year. About 77 percent of all NFL players participated in the survey. Players were instructed to rate their teams and from there the numbers were added up and ranked.
The player team report cards are back. Last year’s report cards helped players feel more informed about their workplace and this year several new categories have been added, including Head Coach, Owner + Dietitian/Nutritionist.
Take a look here: https://t.co/RV0ZNDNb2h. pic.twitter.com/vfEv6A7d2s— NFLPA (@NFLPA) February 28, 2024
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers received an F for team travel, largely because players with four seasons or less and non-starters must have roommates on road trips and pay $1,750 per player if they want their own room.
The Chiefs received low marks due to player frustrations after the owner promised to upgrade the outdated locker room.
However, for the second straight year, Clark Hunt and Kansas City made no upgrades to the locker room other than replacing the stools players were given to sit on in front of their lockers with back-on seats. Chiefs players were told there was no time to adequately upgrade the team’s facilities as their season was extended into February due to their 2022 Super Bowl run.
Kansas City tied for first with the Detroit Lions and Vikings in head coaching rankings. Andy Reid, Dan Campbell and Kevin O’Connell each received an A-plus grade. The coach who received the lowest grade was Josh McDaniels, whom the Las Vegas Raiders fired during the season.
“I would say things have improved and we’re happy with that,” said NFL Players Association president J.C. Tretter, a retired offensive lineman. “Our whole purpose for this … (involves) highlighting the good teams, highlighting the team that can improve and a drive for change to make things better for players, both immediately and in the long term.”
NFLPA leaders hope the report cards serve as a tool to ensure accountability and push team owners and leadership teams to provide their players with improved facilities, adequate nutrition, medical care, family accommodations and more.
Lloyd Howell, the new executive director of the NFLPA, spent much of last season traveling to meet with the owners of all 32 teams and discuss working conditions. Some of those conversations focused on the findings from last year’s results. Howell said many owners are open to better conditions.
“This is not an exercise in shame,” Howell said. “This is really an opportunity to recognize those teams and environments that are doing it right – that are doing the right things. These are players talking about their working conditions and what they like and what they would like to see improved.”
The findings of the study, which was conducted by a third-party survey service, are fascinating, but interestingly the union found no correlation between winning and losing and the quality of grades the teams received.
This year, the union added several categories, including ownership, head coach, nutritionists and dietitians.
Dolphins owner Stephen Ross received the highest ownership rating, while Hunt received the lowest.
A year after being among the worst teams in the league, the Jaguars opened a new team headquarters. The rat plague that caused complaints and low figures in 2023 is no longer an issue. The Cincinnati Bengals were among the worst in cafeteria numbers in 2023, as no meals were provided all day. A year later, the team began offering three meals a day on Wednesdays, but there is still a long way to go before players feel adequately cared for.
The Commanders were among the worst overall last season under Daniel Snyder and now have a new owner in Josh Harris. Ownership rates rose, but facilities rates improved only slightly, which is understandable considering Harris, who bought the team in late July, has had limited time to make upgrades.
Meanwhile, the Dallas Cowboys fell from fifth to 12th, with frustrations over limited resources and understaffed training staff causing a decline in player satisfaction.
One of the biggest concerns for players is adequate resources and staff in training rooms. Many teams are understaffed in this department, and the NFLPA has been in discussions with the NFL about the need for a threshold for the number of coaches employed by a team to ensure an adequate coach-to-player ratio that ensures that players receive adequate care in the event of injuries.
The NFL released a statement saying the league and teams “encourage and solicit player feedback to help improve all facets of their NFL experience. We look forward to the opportunity to review the union’s questionnaire and the data supporting it.”
The league added that it had invited the union to join it “in a rigorous third-party scientific investigation, as we have done before.”
Required reading
(Photo: Michael Reaves/Getty Images)