[SLIDESHOW] There is no success without sacrifice. Great leaders sacrifice themselves for those they serve. They don’t walk blindly but knowingly give of themselves with the belief that someone now, or in the future, will benefit from their sacrifices.
This past week we mourned the passing of one such great leader, John Mackey, and are reminded of the sacrifices of today’s NLF player leaders. In tribute to Mackey, some of the current leaders of the NFLPA and NFL players (George Atallah, Charlie Batch, Domonique Foxworth, Kevin Mawae, Sean Morey, Jeff Saturday and DeMaurice Smith) shared their thoughts on Mackey, leadership and the lockout with ProPlayerInsiders Radio host Dave Zirin. We previously spoke with Drew Brees, Von Miller and John Stinchcomb on leadership.
“Anytime you step up in a leadership role you also step out and become a little bit of a target, so De Smith and Drew Brees have been out leading the charge and have taken some shots along the way but among our ranks you appreciate that. When you have your leaders taking some bullets for you then you know that they have your best interests at heart,” — John Stinchcomb, New Orleans Saints
In remembering Mackey, sports columnist Dave Zirin wrote, “In this 2011 season forever defined by the longest work stoppage in NFL history, the timing of Mackey’s death is in some ways his last selfless act toward the players he so dearly loved. John Mackey’s legacy lies less on the field, than in both his historic tenure as the head of the NFL Players Association from 1969-1973 and in the way he suffered from front temporal dementia over the last years of his life.” Read Dave Zirin’s entire column.
“How many people can say that they revolutionized their position as a player and created a template for what it is like to lead this organization,” asked NFLPA spokesperson George Atallah. “The merger [between the AFL and the NFL] put a lot of things in focus as it related to owner control and owner decisions and really forced the issue on players to step up. It was a critical moment. Either you’re going to step up and stand up for what is fair and what is right or you’re going to get bulldozed over by this group of very powerful people. [Mackey] stood up and he forced the issue.”
Current president of the NFLPA Kevin Mawae has been guided by Mackey’s leadership. “As we try to negotiate [an agreement with the NFL] today, it is an honor and a privilege to follow in his footsteps. I am reminded of all the things that Mackey did for the players that came after him, for all the players of this game. He set the precedent for what presidents of this organization should be like. We truly believe that he put his career on the line for this organization.”
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Following his activism, Mackey was traded from the Baltimore Colts to the San Diego Chargers and then forced into retirement
Zirin believes, like many others, that Mawae himself didn’t get re-signed last year as a result of his activity with the union and asked Mawae if Mackey came to his mind when that happened.
“If you look back during the history of this game when there was a work stoppage, the guys that did not re-sign, or didn’t sign immediately, were the guys that led the charge. So John Mackey was certainly in the forefront of my mind but I am not complaining. I just ask people to look at the history of the organization and look at what the managers and owners have done to the guys who have led the charge in times of labor uncertainty,” responded Mawae.
Baltimore Ravens and NFLPA executive committee member Domonique Foxworth said there is long history of players who “have sacrificed not only their bodies but their careers” to help secure benefits for other players including those like “Dick Gordon, Bob Hayes and Marlin Briscoe who were all cut or traded. The sacrifices of our forefathers, and their families, is something that motivates us everyday.”
“I understand the sacrifices that the guys made before me and all that they worked for to give us the opportunities that we have and to grow this game to what it is now,” said New Orleans Saint QB Drew Brees in a conversation with PPI about his leadership. Brees agreed to be a leader in the NFLPA and the antitrust litigation against the NFL. “I’m just happy to be a part of it because I feel like there are many that came before me that made significant sacrifices for me to be here and I feel like I owe it to them as well as the guys that will come after me. It’s our responsibility to leave this game better than when we found it.”
Mackey went to court and won an antitrust lawsuit that ended what was known as the “Rozelle Rule.” The “Rozelle Rule” dictated that any team that lost a free agent was entitled to receive “equal compensation” from the player’s new organization.
“I give him so much credit for that and all the men that followed him as it took a great deal of courage to do what he did at that time,” said Colts’ Jeff Saturday. “I think every man in this room owes him and gives him a great deal of gratitude.”
“I’m in this for the guys who have come before me,” said rookie Von Miller who is a named plaintiff in the current antitrust litigation. “I’m a team guy, and I’m ready to help the team.” Miller’s wisdom was criticized when he put his name to the lawsuit prior to being drafted by the Denver Broncos. He wasn’t clueless, he just decided being a part of the Brady vs. NFL lawsuit was worth that risk. “I just wanted to do my part to make sure football continues to get played.”
“Courage, loyalty, sacrifice and leadership are the ways in which we have always made changes for the better,” said Executive Director of the NFLPA DeMaurice Smith. “Our job is to make sure that we make the game and the business of football better for the players of today, tomorrow and from the past.”
Mackey’s death is a reminder to remember the sacrifices of those that have come before and the responsibility of those that come after.
