The schism between the National Football League and the players has grown since talks broke off in April on a new CBA (Collective Bargaining Agreement). Fans continue to scrutinize the actions of the owners and the players alike trying to understand what would bring an end to the lockout. Of course fans will never know of the sordid details of the hard line bargaining and name calling that goes on between the player reps and the NFL owners. Who will have the stamina to stick to their demands, the owners or the players? It is common for the fans to stigmatize the owners because of their power and wealth and not believing they care about the players or the fans but about profit. On the other hand fans stereotype the players as wealthy and privileged and not really understanding what it is like to work for a living because they have always had the best of everything because they excelled in a sport.
Fans can take solace in the fact that eventually this lockout will be settled or everyone will lose in the end especially the fans. Everyone has to realize that even though most of the owners are old they certainly are not senile. They are very sharp businessmen. They are trying to stipulate certain conditions and agreements and the players are trying to stipulate their own conditions and what they want from the owners. The strategy each side has used so far has not worked in solving anything. It is now in the hands of the court to decide whether the owners can continue the lockout. This problem has been under surveillance from the judicial system since the players filed a law suit against the lockout The court has ask them to meet with mediators present to ease the strident actions between the players and the owners. There is a syndrome showing here, showing the rich and powerful controlling the fate of a secular pastime. They and the players are the problem. There is no scapegoat to make them look good to the fans.