NFL Players In Contract Talks Likely To Take Smarter Approach Over Holding Out And Jordan Love Doing It

The optimism that typically colors the start of training camp for NFL teams is missing for a half-dozen or so players, unhappy with their contract situations this year.  

And, if this was the NFL of yesteryear, the way those players could force their team share in the unhappiness is to hold out of training camp.

Share the pain by not showing up to practice.

Not helping make the team better.

ATLANTA, GEORGIA - OCTOBER 16: Brandon Aiyuk #11 of the San Francisco 49ers reacts after scoring a touchdown during the second quarter against the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on October 16, 2022 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images)

Brandon Aiyuk Has Weighed A Hold Out

Perhaps forcing the team to recognize that a back-burner contract negotiation is now a front-burner problem. 

It's the old fashioned contract hold out.

Practically no one does that from the start of training camp to the finish of a contract negotiation anymore. At least not if they have capable and smart representation.

So, with a possible odd exception, do not expect the players seeking but not yet receiving new deals to hold out starting this week.

The players unhappy with their current deals – including 49ers receiver Brandon Aiyuk, Browns receiver Amari Cooper, Cowboys receiver CeeDee Lamb, Dolphins receiver Tyreek Hill, Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, Packers quarterback Jordan Love, Jets edge rusher Haason Reddick, and Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott – are generally not expected to hold out.

Reddick, Lamb and Cooper remain as the possible exceptions. Aiyuk, who has requested a trade, was said to be weighing the option as late as last week, per an NFL source.

Dec 24, 2023; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill (10) takes his position on the field during the first half against the Dallas Cowboys at Hard Rock Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

Contract Hold Outs Costly In NFL

All are signed for the 2024 season but all want extensions or, in Hill's case, a salary adjustment. All have been talking to their teams about the issue, so far without resolution.

So why not hold out?

The latest NFL collective bargaining agreement instituted fines that are irrevocable and must be paid, even once a new deal is struck. In the past, players could hold out and once an agreement was reached, the fines were generally rescinded.

No more. 

Players on veteran contracts, like Hill, and Cooper are subject to a $50,000 fine for each day of training camp missed. 

And there's more: 

The CBA mandates a different fine for first-round picks holding out when playing under a fifth-year option. It's a fine up to $40,000 per day and the loss of a weekly salary for every preseason game missed. 

ARLINGTON, TX - DECEMBER 10: CeeDee Lamb #88 of the Dallas Cowboys runs the ball during an NFL football game against the Philadelphia Eagles at AT&T Stadium on December 10, 2023 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Cooper Neill/Getty Images)

The Penalties For Lamb, Tagovailoa

This applies directly to Tagovailoa and Lamb. 

Since Lamb's fifth-year option is a fully guaranteed at $17.991 million, one week's salary is $999,500. He would be docked that amount for every preseason game missed.

Tagovailoa's fifth-year option is a fully guaranteed $23.171 million, so one week's salary is $1,287,727. And he would be docked that for every preseason game missed if he's not in camp.

That's a hefty price to pay for a player to state the obvious, which is he's not happy about the pace of contract talks.

So, there's a smarter solution to holding out: Holding in.

Nothing in the collective bargaining agreement prevents a player from reporting for work and then, effectively, not working.

Yes, going to meetings. Having lunch. Being in the locker room with teammates.

But practice? Exposing his body to an injury that might change the course of contract talks? No, thank you.

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - NOVEMBER 06: Tua Tagovailoa #1 of the Miami Dolphins celebrates a touchdown during the first half in the game against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on November 06, 2022 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)

Jordan Love Is Holding In

Love and his representatives, working on a new deal, informed the Packers the quarterback would not be practicing. 

"This is part of it," Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst told reporters on Monday. "Certainly we want him out there, but he's been very open and forthright this was a possibility."

This tactic isn't new. 

T.J. Watt is perhaps the biggest-name player who employed the strategy en route to a four-year, $112 million contract in 2021.

And why does this work?

Because training camp is a time in which teams feel urgency to improve and fully prepare for the season. Coaches want no distractions, just hard work.

But a hold-in does not provide hard work while absolutely becoming a potential distraction, as reporters ask questions of the coach, the player involved, and even other players, about the contract situation.

And this happens every day, as if on a loop, because we've got to have updates! 

It can be messy.

A hold in also doesn't help the cause of improving a team, especially since the player involved is usually a franchise cornerstone – a franchise cornerstone watching from the sideline, in this case.

Can you imagine the Dolphins starting training camp without their starting quarterback at practice?

Yes, that is an extreme case. One that isn't likely.

But if Tagovailoa really, really wanted to make a very loud, eye-popping statement about his worth – which he believes is north of the $53 million per season Jared Goff got from the Detrioit Lions – simply sitting out practices would do that as if with a bullhorn.

And he'd be doing it while not getting fined.

The hold-in is the thing to watch for in the coming days as a majority of players wanting new contracts report to training camp.