April 19, 2021 at 6:46 PM CST by Sam Robinson
although Broncos were the first team to participate in the NFLPA’s proposed boycott of the off-season volunteer training program, several of their players were present Monday for the first day of training. Drew Lock was among the 20 plus Broncos present in phase I of the team’s off-season program, notes Mike Klis from 9News. Lock has a $ 75,000 training bonus in his contract, joining colleagues in the second round of 2019 Dalton Risner in this regard. Risner said on Saturday he would participate regardless of the bonus; The other Denver guard, Graham Glasgow, said he would attend as well. While many Bronco veterans are watching the boycott, Klis notes that this only applies to on-the-spot training. All were present at Monday’s virtual meetings. Lock should definitely attend, given its uncertain status. Broncos is expected to add a defender; it is simply not known whether he will be a veteran competitor or a substitute in the first round. Agents encouraged other young players to participate in training, Klis tweets.
With the off-season programs of the teams starting on Monday, here are the latest news from the front:
- While a small number of 4,500 NFL players receive training bonuses (230), many of them packers do. The Green Bay players did not join the NFLPA boycott, but the Packers offered an interesting compromise to the workforce. The Packers have proposed an agreement that will allow players to meet their training bonuses without coming to the facilities to train for phase I, notes Mike Florio from Pro Football Talk. Although the statements of the different teams mention the concerns of COVID-19, Florio adds that the boycott effort is more about the fact that the players learned last year that they do not have to spend much time training at the team’s facilities out of season. Many veterans would prefer to train on their own before field work begins on May 17, and Florio notes that they are prepared to take the risk of external injury. The Packers’ proposal would not protect the players if they suffered injuries outside the team’s facility.
- The NFL and NFLPA remain at a standstill in the offseason. Part of the reason for this: a small group of owners believe that the quality of the game suffered last season – especially along the offensive lines – and are maintained for off-season training, notes Albert Breer of SI .com. Most coaches, as expected, are in favor of on-site training remaining in the spring.
- Despite Raiders being one of the teams that joined the boycott, some of their players reported to their headquarters on Monday, according to The Associated Press. Some members of Cowboys, panthers and Patriots he did just as well. Pats also indicated that many of their players will not participate. Cowboys Executive Vice President Stephen Jones said “a lot” of players were present on Monday.
- eagle and Vikings are the last to announce that they will not participate in training out of season. The Vikings’ statement indicates that many of their players will not participate (Twitter Links); such language has been included in the statements of several teams.