The three-person panel presiding over the NFL Players Association’s appeal of the collusion grievance filed against the NFL upheld the arbitrator’s finding that there was insufficient evidence that some or all teams agreed to collude against players.
The NFLPA filed its grievance in 2022, alleging that league officials had encouraged teams to resist free-agent demands, especially from top quarterbacks, for fully guaranteed contracts. When arbitrator Christopher F. Droney ruled in 2025 that there was not enough proof teams had colluded, the union appealed.
In the panel’s eight-page briefing, the judges agreed there was evidence NFL leaders had encouraged teams to limit fully guaranteed contracts, calling the effort improper. But they also agreed there was not enough proof that clubs followed that urging in a coordinated way.
The panel wrote that it could not fathom that such sophisticated businesspeople failed to understand they were being encouraged to limit or reduce guaranteed contracts, while still finding that the record did not establish that the clubs acted together in violation of the collective bargaining agreement.
New NFLPA executive director J.C. Tretter said the ruling was disappointing, but stressed that it reaffirmed the finding that the NFL had encouraged and invited clubs to reduce salary guarantees and bonuses during a March owners’ meeting.
The decision means players were not awarded financial damages, but the ruling leaves behind significant findings about the league’s conduct that could influence future free-agent negotiations and the next round of labor talks.
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