Reality check for Miami's Stephen Ross

[MikeO]

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/columns/story?columnist=wojciechowski_gene&page=wojciechowski/110527&sportCat=nfl

Mr. Ross...OPEN MOUTH, INSERT FOOT!

Some people are too dumb just to shut up! Our owner is a clown and a first rate jackass. This ESPN piece is actually being too kind to him. The man flat out doesn't get it.

[CF DolFan]

I deleted all the arguing and attacking about whether or not the thread should be moved. Just because it paints Mr. Ross in a negative light does not make it Anti - Fin in my opinion. Please do not continue that argument here.

Back on topic. I agree and think Ross's comments paint him as a real arse.  I think he is so far out of touch with the real world that he actually thinks he's being smart. It always amazes me at how dumb people with money can be.  Seems like they would be smart enough to hire someone to say shut up once in a while.

On another note I had no idea they were docking employees over this. While I can relate with my job it just seems odd to me that the owners would do this.  Is there anyone that is backing the owners?

[Sunstroke]

As I mentioned before it was so rudely erased... Perhaps a thread about the owner looking like a fool would be better located in the anti-fins section. Agreeing with the sentiment that the owner looks like an ass is all wonderful, CF...but it doesn't change the fact that the anti-fins section was specifically created for this sort of negative ranting. You can still agree with it there, CF...it won't make you a bad person or anything.

[MikeO]

I deleted all the arguing and attacking about whether or not the thread should be moved. Just because it paints Mr. Ross in a negative light does not make it Anti - Fin in my opinion. Please do not continue that argument here.

Back on topic. I agree and think Ross's comments paint him as a real arse.  I think he is so far out of touch with the real world that he actually thinks he's being smart. It always amazes me at how dumb people with money can be.  Seems like they would be smart enough to hire someone to say shut up once in a while.

On another note I had no idea they were docking employees over this. While I can relate with my job it just seems odd to me that the owners would do this.  Is there anyone that is backing the owners?

THANK YOU CF Dolfan! And we are on the same page with this issue, Mr. Ross is clueless when it comes to this matter. He isn't the only owner to dock his people pay, about 6 or 7 others have done the same, so he has company on the stupid-mobile. But fact is Mr.Ross is the only guy running his mouth and making himself look like a total jerk by the idiotic things he is saying just makes him look like a total moron. I mean once this entire thing is settled, what quality coach will want to work for this man? If/when Sparano is let go, no head coach worth anything will want to work for Mr. Ross. We are gonna be stuck with 2nd and 3rd tier types who just want to get their foot in the NFL head coaching door. That isn't good!!  There are bad owners in this league but Mr. Ross is skyrockting to the top of the list in record time with his actions and words. 

[Landshark]

On another note I had no idea they were docking employees over this. While I can relate with my job it just seems odd to me that the owners would do this.  Is there anyone that is backing the owners?

Several different teams have cut their employees pay.  One team even decided to put their employees on a two week unpaid leave of absence.

[fyo]

I agree with pretty much everything Ross actually said -- or at least understand it. The article was a pathetic hatchet job, IMHO.

[Cathal]

That article sucked. What's the problem with what Ross said?

[Pappy13]

On another note I had no idea they were docking employees over this. While I can relate with my job it just seems odd to me that the owners would do this.  Is there anyone that is backing the owners?

Yeah. I am. Players are every bit as greedy and stubborn as the owners. Owners told the players over a year prior to the end of the CBA that they would not renew it for another year.  The players didn't listen and continued on like nothing had changed.  Well something had changed despite what MikeO says. I've been a contractor for years and when management tells you that your current contract will not be renewed, you renogotiate a new one. That's how business works. You may not like it or agree with it, but that's how the real world works. Sorry. They were coming to the end of their contract and they did nothing to try to get a new one and they still haven't.

You can blame the owners all you want, the facts are crystal clear. The owners told the players they had a year to reach a new agreement and they didn't want to. They decided to let the CBA run out and take their chances in court which is where we are now. The owners have been trying for over a year to reach a new deal and the players simply haven't even tried. They liked the deal they had and had no intention of signing a new one, instead they decided to take it up with the courts. The owners did exactly what they told the players they would do over a year ago, they didn't renew the CBA. In the absence of a CBA and with no real negotiations going on for a new one, they had little choice but to lock the players out until a new CBA could be reached. The owners can not start the year without a contract in place.

Let's not forget that the owners didn't take it to the courts, the players did. They made that choice a year ago, not when they were locked out. They were told they would be locked out and they decided to go to court instead of negotiate a new contract.

[masterfins]

I'm on the side of the owners.  The econmy is, and has been, in the dumper for a couple years.  The players don't want to make any meaningful concessions, that's why they are in court.  People across the country are out of jobs, have taken pay cuts, and have taken reduced benefits; the players need to wake up.

[Landshark]

   
Mr. Ross MikeO looks like a fool....again

 

[StL FinFan]

I agree with everything Pappy13 said.  I don't know why the media is making the owners out to be the bad guys.  They have been trying to negotiate and the players are the ones who are unwilling to do so.  Everyone is greedy so let's take that part out the equation.  Everyone wants to make a deal that works out in their favor.

[Phishfan]

I find it sad that anyone is taking any sides. I'm upset with all of them and none of them get a bit of support from me, until the Dolphins step on the field again (although that is different support). Neither side really has you in the front of their mind, so neither side is in the front of mine.

[CF DolFan]

That is my stance as well Phish. I ahven't seen anything that says they really care to help out the blue collar fan. Everything is about how they can have more of the pie so how do you choose a side in that war?

It's my opinion that Ross should learn to control what comes out of his mouth. I think he looses publicity IQ points everytime he speaks but that's me. Sometimes it's better to say nothing at all.

[Doc-phin]

Horrible article.  The owners are imposing a lockout to avoid collapse of the entire league.  If they allow the players to come back without a union agreement, it will be a huge free for all.  If that happens, only the rich will win and the competition will become so poor that nobody will watch.  Of course, when that happens franchises will start to close one by one or in bunches.

The whole thing is ridiculous.  The players are idiots and their agents have no financial incentive to compromise financially.  The owners are smart but they are trying to make up for previous deals that overcompsated players (as a whole).  The commissioner thinks more games is the solution, but the players are already maxed out physically.

This is the time to get this thing right.  Unfortunately, the owners will probably cave because they don't want to lose the season but it would be a mistake.  If they do, the cost will continue to be passed on to the consumer (US!!!).

Keep in mind everyone that football is an expensive product to produce.  There are only 16 games (plus post season) to really earn money, compare that to any other major sport.  The stadiums are expensive.  The practice facilities are expensive.  The team travel is expensive.  The players and their injuries are expensive.  The huge staffs needed to run things are expensive.  Even the uniforms are expensive by comparison.  The consumer has been willing to pay extra for a great product over the years which has allowed things to go this far, but any business owner knows that their is a limit to demand and it isn't a stretch to say that we are approaching that limit.

I am not counting on football this year and it is a damn shame.  I will blame both parties, but I will probably blame the players the most.  The owners see the breaking point coming and are trying to avoid a potential future meltdown.  Sure, cost control will help with their profits but it also insures affordability for their customers.  The players say they want more security, but it is fairly clear it is just a mask for their greed.  The deal the players want offers no insurance if demand goes down, they just want their money and want it now.

[Doc-phin]

The only thing I care about is having football in the fall. 

Even if it is at the sacrifice of quality football in the future?  Look at the big picture.  Don't take sides or anything, but this deal is important if you really want football.

Everyone has their interests.  The owners have interests.  The players have interests.  The commissioner has interests.  But it is the consumer who is the only one with the ability to see things clearly because our only interest is a good product that we can rely on.  Unfortunately, most of us are uninformed morons and don't know how to convey our clarity to the league effectively.  We think our only tool is to boycott, but it isn't. 

Boards like this get picked up by media.  Media probes deeper to see if we have merit.  If we have merit, it gets published.  The more legit the published product, the harder it pressures those involved.  In this case, I would hope that the commissioner is listening because his b.s. 18 games shortcut solution is a sorry excuse for listening.

Goodell needs to cut to the core of this thing and get some facts out there so that the players can realize that they aren't getting more money.  They can get more structure and more security as it pertains to safety and long term health, but they have already gotten more money than they should have.