With Super Bowl LX long in the rearview mirror, the NFL is gearing up for the official start of the new season and the flurry of financial and personnel activity in tow. We are getting some initial tip-offs to the madness, from the purges in Miami to the restructuring of Patrick Mahomes’ massive contract. Yet we are in a bit of a NFL lull. Until the tampering period and the start of the new year starts, there is not much to say about this sport.
That is not the case for other sports. Currently the NBA
is starting the stretch run towards the playoffs. Baseball’s Spring Training is underway. Soccer leagues continue their race to a dramatic conclusion. You also have the spectacle of the Winter Olympics and the promise of the World Cup coming. Even the burgeoning promise of Spring Football with the UFL is on the horizon, as its kickoff is slated within the next month or so,
Yet, amid the on-field headlines, there are some off-field concerns. Look at baseball. Even with the promise of a new season, many a headline looks towards the end of the season, when the current collective bargaining agreement (CBA) is set to expire. If there is a sport that know the potential damage that labor issues can bring, it is baseball. Some of those concerns came to the forefront in baseball’s recent offseason, when teams like the LA Dodgers, coming off back-to-back World Series, addressed their two biggest shortcomings (bullpen, outfield), by signing the two best options to major paydays. This is on top of the Dodgers’ rather large payroll, which gives them a marked advantage when it comes to talent acquisition. Consider that the money the Dodgers signed Edwin Diaz and Kyle Tucker to alone is greater than the combined payrolls of some other teams, and the issues of labor, pay and business can easily dominate a sporting narrative. The owners for MLB seem all but certain to press for a salary cap, and it is very likely that they will lock out the players when the CBA ends on December 1. The players have already indicated that a salary cap is a no-go red line, but their situation is hurt by massive leadership turmoil, when the MLB Players’ Association leader Tony Clark suddenly resigned last week as revelations of an inappropriate relationship surfaced. While the season offers excitement, expect the subplot of the pending labor situation to haunt the 2026 season (hopefully the wild card of a strike does not happen, but labor battles can bring about devastating consequences).
Additionally, recent sports headlines about labor aren’t confined to the “Big 4”. The WNBA season is approaching fast. Or it would be, except that the WNBA players and leadership have been in a lockout status since the end of the most recent season. With the league experiencing exponential growth in media coverage and updated TV contracts, issues about player salaries and revenue distribution are an inevitable side effect. For the WNBA players, the chance to increase salaries is a major plus with all of the renewed attention, but what the players want vs. what the powers that be feel comfortable providing financially is a major sticking point. At present, the WNBA owners/leadership and players remain divided on a new CBA. Will it get resolved in time for the start of a new season? Some stars aren’t so sure. Breanna Stewart has already signed with a European Squad for the 2026 season, and even with Unrivaled supplementing the incomes of some stars, it may not be a shock if other players do the same thing. A work stoppage or loss of games (which is a reality if the CBA is not approved by March 10) would be a massive disappointment for a league seeing its best stretch of headlines in years.
As of now, the NFL is not in any labor danger per se. The current CBA, last negotiated in 2020, runs until 2030. There is no opt-out on the horizon and no inclination for any sort of labor action from the players or owners. That is not to say that there aren’t some concerns that could impact labor relations between players and owners. The push for an 18-game regular season remains a stated goal for the league, and while it is not the red-line of a salary cap for baseball players, NFL players are holding firm on voting against such a policy. Additionally, issues about turf vs. grass fields at stadiums could be future sticking points. While the league is awash in money, as evidenced by the rising salary cap numbers, there will always be concerns about revenue sharing. Likely NFL players would push for greater salary percentages and more guaranteed contracts ala MLB and the other sports. Also, the NFL Players Association is in flux, trying to find its way after some shakeups in their leadership. Yet their shakeups are not happening in the shadow of ominous CBA negotiations. Provided leadership problems don’t follow the NFLPA into 2030, it should not be that big a factor.
On the Texans’ side, few, if any concerns are coming from the players or owners about these matters. Cal McNair is more apt to make headlines for trying to get a high-five from his players than anything related to pay and labor. The players seem generally content with their situation, although the meat of contract season is not yet upon us, and cap maneuverings are just on the horizon. The financial hurt feelings should start soon enough. Still, there is a distinct difference between regular business and issues with the larger business model.
Things are not perfect for the Texans or the NFL. Yet the specter of labor issues is one thing that will not disrupt the NFL this offseason, at least to the degree seen with other sports. The NFL hasn’t seen any significant labor stoppages since the 1980s. If it wants to remain the king of American sports/pop culture, it would do well to keep that streak alive.
