Carolina Panthers coach Ron Rivera asking players to leave training to keep on the right side of new CBA
With the signing of the new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) between the players union, National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) and the NFL practice sessions with players have become more limited to give time to players to recuperate from
their workouts.
Franchises now are only allowed to work with players for six hours during the teams voluntary Organised Training Activities (OTAs) and those franchises that do not comply could face massive fines from the NFL.
Keeping the new rules in mind and making sure that players only study their plays or train for six hours has now become part of the daily routine for Carolina Panthers head coach, Ron Rivera.
According to the Charlotte Observer who interviewed the head coach on Tuesday, Rivera has had to ask players to go home after completing their six hours at the training facility according to the new rules.
Speaking to the newspaper, Rivera said that he found some players in the team meeting room studying training drills and some of them had completed their six hours at the facility.
"I went downstairs and said, 'OK, everybody who’s been here since 7, you’ve got to go,'" Rivera said. "So those guys got up and left."
Fines for breaking the rules of the new CBA are extremely harsh with both the franchise and the head coach becoming liable to make sure the players do not overstay beyond the allowed time.
For a first violation the team will be fined $ 250,000 while the coach will have to pay a $ 100,000 fine. This would increase further in the second violation to $ 500,000 for the franchise and $ 250,000 for the head coach and the NFL will then also have
the option to take away future OTAs from the franchise as well as one fourth-round draft pick.
The head coach though has found a positive aspect to the new restrictions as then has more time to meet with his coaching staff and discuss the results of the day’s practice while also brainstorming on things to try the next day.
“If we didn’t (take a break) and we stayed with the guys,” Rivera said, “we would never get a chance to watch practice tape to prepare for the next day.”
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