A group of Pro Football Hall of Famers is threatening to boycott the next Hall of Fame induction ceremony if their demands for health insurance coverage and an annual salary from the NFL are not met by the league.
Led by Hall of Fame running back Eric Dickerson, the group sent a letter to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, NFLPA Executive Director DeMaurice Smith, and Hall of Fame President David Baker in which the players said that they were “integral to the creation of the modern NFL” and posited that their demands would cost the league virtually nothing when compared to the massive revenues it took in annually.
Dickerson Leads Hall of Fame Board
A total of 22 names were signed to the letter, including Dickerson, who is identified as the chairman of a group known as the Hall of Fame Board. Dickerson later clarified that only 13 of those signees were actually in the organization.
“People know us from our highlight reels. They see us honored and mythologized before games and at halftime, and it would be reasonable if they thought life was good for us. But on balance, it’s not,” the letter reads. “As a group, we are struggling with severe health and financial problems. To build this game, we sacrificed our bodies. In many cases, and despite the fact that we were led to believe otherwise, we sacrificed our minds.”
The letter criticizes previous efforts by the league for retired players, such as the Legacy Fund, as “little more than cynical public relations ploys.” It also suggested that it would cost little, relatively speaking, for the NFL to take care of its Hall of Famers.
“The total cost for every Hall of Famer to have health insurance is less than $4 million – less than that of a 30-second Super Bowl ad, or about 3 cents for every $100 the league generates in revenue,” the letter reads. “Paying Hall of Famers an annual salary works out to about 40 cents for every $100 in annual revenue, a figure that will increase dramatically in the near future with legalized gambling.”
The letter also included a critique of how the NFL spends its money, including the $40 annual salary earned by Goodell, and the $1 billion Hall of Fame Village development project.
“It’s not right to invest in such a project without first acknowledging the league’s debt to its great players,” the letter reads. “We are the reason people visit the Hall of Fame in the first place.”
Rice, Warner Distance Themselves from Letter
The letter was the subject of some controversy, as at least two supposed signees said that while they supported improved benefits for players, they had never planned to boycott the Hall of Fame induction ceremonies.
That included Hall of Fame wide receiver Jerry Rice, who said he was not a member of the Hall of Fame Board, and quarterback Kurt Warner, who said he was not made aware of the letter.
“I understand what ALL retired NFL players have given to advance our league and I believe it is extremely important to fight for lifetime benefits for each and every one of them,” Warner wrote in a statement. “However, I do not believe boycotting is the means to the end in this instance.”
