National Football League Players Association The National Football League Players Association , or NFLPA , is the trade association of players in football ' s National Football League , and was the players ' labor union before decertifying . It was founded in 1956 , but only achieved recognition and a collective bargaining agreement in 1968 . After a lost strike in 1987 , the union was formally decertified , converting into a professional association in order to pursue antitrust litigation designed to win free agency for its members . When that tactic worked it reformed as a union and resumed collective bargaining with the league in 1993 . On July 25th , 2011 the NFL and NFLPA came to an agreement on a new 10 year CBA thus rendering the recertification of the union . Formation and recognition . The union formed in 1956 when football players on the Green Bay Packers and Cleveland Browns formed a union to demand that the clubs provide players with a minimum league - wide salary and " per diem " pay , uniforms and equipment paid for and maintained at the clubs ' expense and continued payment of their salaries while they were injured and unable to play . Don Shula of the Baltimore Colts , John Gordy of the Detroit Lions , Frank Gifford and Sam Huff of the New York Giants , and Norm Van Brocklin of the Los Angeles Rams led the organizing drive . Creighton Miller , a former Notre Dame football player turned lawyer , represented the union . Unable to win their attention by organizing , the association threatened to bring an antitrust lawsuit against the league . That threat became much more credible when the United States Supreme Court ruled in " Radovich v . National Football League " , , that the NFL did not enjoy the same antitrust immunity that Major League Baseball did . Rather than face another lawsuit , the owners granted most of the players ' demands ( including minimal insurance and pension plans and a basic salary for stars and rank - and - file players alike ) , but did not enter into a collective bargaining agreement with the association or formally recognize it as their exclusive bargaining representative . The NFLPA was divided over whether it should act as a professional association or a union . Against the wishes of NFLPA presidents Pete Retzlaff and later Bernie Parrish , Miller refused to engage in collective bargaining ( which would have permitted the association to challenge the college draft and the option clause ) , and instead ran the union as a grievance committee . The players continued to use the threat of antitrust litigation over the next few years as a lever to win better benefits , including a pension and health insurance plan , and payment for exhibition games . The NFLPA sought to affiliate with the AFL - CIO , but was rejected . In January 1968 , Parrish proposed forming a players ' union with the assistance of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters . Although Parrish ' s proposal was defeated , Miller left the union as executive director ( although it is unclear whether he was forced out or quit ) . On January 14 , 1964 , players in the American Football League formed the AFL Players Association , and elected Tom Addison of the Boston Patriots president . In the International Brotherhood of Teamsters ( led by St . Louis Teamster leader Harold Gibbons and Hoffa top aide Charles " Chuckie " O ' Brien ) pushed the NFLPA into joining the trucking union . In early November 1967 , Parrish , backed by former Cleveland Browns player Jim Brown , began distributing union cards to form a Teamsters affiliate known as the American Federation of Pro Athletes . The NFLPA rejected the overture at its meeting in Hollywood , Florida , the first week of January 1968 and declared itself an unaffiliated union . Just six months later , the NFLPA won recognition from the owners and its first collective bargaining contract . On July 3 , 1968 , after talks with the owners stalled , the NFLPA voted to strike , and the owners countered by declaring a lockout . But on July 14 , the owners relented and the brief strike was over . Although the players could celebrate winning a collective bargaining agreement from the owners , the concessions they received were small . The owners compromised by agreeing to contribute about $ 1 . 5 million to the pension fund but maintained minimum salaries of $ 9 , 000 for rookies , $ 10 , 000 for veterans and $ 50 per exhibition game , and no independent arbitration . In 1970 the NFL and AFL Players Associations merged . The 1970 contract was a weak one , largely due to the fact that the union representing members of the former American Football League , which had just merged with the NFL but was still operating separately during the contract talks , had accepted the lesser terms offered by the owners . Merger and progress . The NFLPA had chilly relations , at best , with its counterpart that represented AFL players . The NFLPA had attempted to block the merger of the two leagues in 1966 , believing that the existence of a rival league gave individual players more bargaining power . After the two leagues merged , the two unions remained separate until 1970 , when the AFL players , led by Jack Kemp of the Buffalo Bills , agreed to merge under the leadership of John Mackey of the Baltimore Colts . The employers continued , however , to treat the union lightly in negotiations , prompting the NFLPA to formally ( and successfully ) petition the National Labor Relations Board for union certification . The newly merged union found itself in just as weak a position as it had been in before . After a brief strike during training camp in July 1970 , the union won the right for players to bargain through their own agents with the clubs , improvements in basic salaries and pensions , dental care , and impartial arbitration for injury grievances . But it was unable to make much progress on its economic demands , and many union representatives were fired from teams . The Association therefore returned to the tactic that it had used in the past : an antitrust lawsuit challenging the league ' s compensation clause , popularly known as " the Rozelle Rule . " This rule allowed any team that lost a free agent to another team to receive something of equal value to his former team . The account of the NFLPA was discontinued years later . This rule severely limited player movement , as few teams were willing to risk signing a high - profile free agent only to risk having their rosters gutted . For instance , a team that signed a blue - chip free agent could be forced to give up its next two first - round draft picks , or worse . While that litigation ( " Mackey v . NFL , " 543 F . 2d 606 ( 8th Cir . 1976 ) , cert . denied , 434 U . S . 801 ) proved successful , the union found that making progress in bargaining was harder to achieve . It eliminated the Rozelle Rule in bargaining in 1977 and obtained improved benefits and grievance procedures , but had not achieved true free agency or reached its goal of winning 55 percent of league revenues for players . 1982 strike . The 1982 NFL strike began on September 21 , 1982 , and lasted 57 days until November 16 , 1982 . During this time , no NFL games were played . The essential cause of the strike was over a dispute over the percentage of gross revenue s that the league gave to its players . The NFLPA wanted the percentage increased to 55 percent . NFLPA All - Star Games . During this time , the NFLPA promoted two " all - star games . " One was held at RFK Stadium in Washington , D . C . , on October 17 , 1982 , between two teams billed as " National East " and " American East . " National East won 23 - 22 . On the following day , October 18 , another game was played at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum between players from the " American West " and the " National West . " American West won 31 - 27 . Both teams wore generic uniforms , with the home teams wearing red and the visiting teams wearing white . The NFLPA had hoped that the league ' s biggest stars would show up for the game , but few of them did , possibly because the players on strike had no health insurance and therefore were totally responsible for any injuries suffered on the field . ( One of the few stars who did play , future Hall of Famer John Riggins , said " I guess I ' ll do just about anything for money . " ) Even the game officials , mostly local high school and college refs , preferred to remain anonymous . Neither game drew well : only 8 , 760 fans in Washington , D . C . , and just 5 , 331 in the cavernous L . A . Coliseum , despite a local TV blackout and ticket prices starting at six dollars . The games were televised by Ted Turner , who bought the rights and syndicated them to local stations around the country ; however , ratings were poor . Although more all - star games had been scheduled by the NFLPA ( including one the following week at Varsity Stadium in Toronto ) , none were played . Replacement programming . TV networks scrambled to make adjustments to their schedules . NBC added more Major League Baseball games and some Canadian Football League contests were also telecast . ( Some of the CFL games featured the Edmonton Eskimos and their eventual Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback , Warren Moon . ) CBS aired a rebroadcast of Super Bowl XVI the week after the strike began , then added editions of the " CBS Sports Spectacular " . On one Sunday afternoon , CBS aired regional coverage of two Division III college football games : one between Baldwin - Wallace College and Wittenberg University , and the other between the University of San Diego and Occidental College . ABC replaced " Monday Night Football " with movies . As a result of the strike , the season schedule was reduced from 16 games to nine and the playoffs expanded to 16 teams ( eight from each conference ) for a " Super Bowl tournament . " CBS and NBC aired regional telecasts on both days ( Saturday and Sunday , January 8 and 9 ) of first round games . The Washington Redskins won the tournament by capturing Super Bowl XVII . 1987 strike and decertification . The NFLPA struck for a month in 1987 . On this occasion , however , they only succeeded in canceling one week of the season . For the next three weeks , the NFL staged games with hastily assembled replacement teams . They were made up of several players cut during training camp , as well as a few veterans who crossed the picket lines . The television networks showcased these games as if they featured players of the same quality as the veterans who were out on strike . Many of the league ' s owners had anticipated a strike and had put replacements on standby for $ 1 , 000 per game . However , the NFLPA failed to set up a strike fund to cover lost salaries . Fearing that the owners would cut off their annuities , 89 players crossed the picket line . Among the most prominent players to immediately cross the line were New York Jets defensive end Mark Gastineau and Dallas Cowboys defensive tackle Randy White . San Francisco 49ers quarterback Joe Montana and Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Steve Largent later joined the replacement players and other strikebreakers . Faced with cracks in union support , the willingness of the networks to broadcast the replacement games , and hostile public sentiment , the union voted to go back to work on October 15 , 1987 , without a collective bargaining agreement . They had to wait another week to get back on the field , however , since they hadn ' t come back by the owners ' deadline . The union filed a new antitrust suit that same day . The Court of Appeals ultimately rejected that suit on the ground that the labor exemption from antitrust liability protected the employers , even though the union was no longer party to a collective bargaining agreement that would have permitted the practices that the union was challenging . In response , the union formally disclaimed any interest in representing NFL players in collective bargaining and reformed itself as a professional organization in 1989 . Having done that , the following year union members , led by Freeman McNeil of the New York Jets , brought a new antitrust action against the NFL challenging its free agency rules as an unlawful restraint of trade . The players ultimately prevailed , after a jury trial on their claims , in that action . That verdict , the pendency of other antitrust cases and the threat of a class action filed by Reggie White , then with the Philadelphia Eagles , on behalf of all NFL players brought the parties back to the negotiating table . They finally agreed on a formula that permitted free agency . In return , the owners demanded and received a salary cap , albeit one tied to a formula based on players ' share of total league revenues . The agreement also established a salary floor - minimum payrolls all teams were obliged to pay . The Redskins — who won the Super Bowl after football resumed in 1982 — did so again in Super Bowl XXII . The Redskins had none of their regular players cross the picket lines during the period of replacement games . ( " The Replacements " , a 2000 movie starring Keanu Reeves , is loosely based on the experiences of the Washington Redskins " scabs , " which went 3 - 0 in the regulars ' absence . ) Replacement player Sean Payton , who was a quarterback for the Chicago Bears " Spare Bears , " eventually worked his way to coaching in the NFL with the New Orleans Saints , winning Super Bowl XLIV as a head coach . Another replacement player , linebacker Eugene Seale impressed Jerry Glanville so much with the Houston Oilers that , after the strike ended , he earned a roster spot and started a successful seven - year career , mostly as a special teams player . Returning to collective bargaining . The settlement was presented to and approved by the judge who had heard the McNeil antitrust case in 1993 . Once the agreement was approved the NFLPA reconstituted itself as a labor union and entered into a new collective bargaining agreement with the league . The NFLPA and the league have extended their 1993 agreement five times , most recently in March 2006 when it was extended through the 2011 season after the NFL owners voted 30 - 2 to accept the NFLPA ' s final proposal . However , in May 2008 the owners decided to opt out of this agreement and play the 2010 without a bargaining agreement in place . This means the 2010 season was played without a salary cap ( or floor ) , and there is the looming possibility of no play at all in 2011 if an agreement cannot be reached . A point of contention between the owners and the NFLPA is removing two pre - season games and making them regular - season games , bringing the total number of regular season games to eighteen . Another major topic is former - player insurance after any player has retired . 2011 Decertification . On March 11 , 2011 , the NFLPA decertified when negotiations with the NFL over a new collective bargaining agreement failed to resolve the labor dispute . The NFLPA is expected to file an anti - trust suit against the league in U . S . district court . Tom Brady , Drew Brees and Peyton Manning are among the players to participate in the filing . Current leadership . The executive director position remained vacant following the death of Gene Upshaw , until March 2009 , when DeMaurice Smith was elected . The president is currently Kevin Mawae , a former NFL center . The executive committee for the NFLPA includes newly elected members : Domonique Foxworth of the Baltimore Ravens , Drew Brees of the New Orleans Saints , and Mike Vrabel of the Kansas City Chiefs as new members of the executive committee . Re - elected members were : Brian Dawkins of the Denver Broncos , Jeff Saturday of the Indianapolis Colts , Tony Richardson of the New York Jets , free agent Kevin Carter , and retired players Keenan McCardell , Mark Bruener , and Donovin Darius . Leaders . Presidents . NFLPA ( pre - merger ) AFLPA NFLPA ( post - merger )