Former New York Giants coach Tom Coughlin has made the transition from the sidelines to Vice President of Football Operations with the Jacksonville Jaguars (with whom he was also once the head coach), and he already seems to be coming under fire from the NFL Players Association for how he’s handling things in his new position.
As reported by Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, a pair of confrontations between the NFLPA and the Jaguars have taken place. The offenses? Coughlin required Jaguars players to report for physicals and attempted to launch an offseason program earlier than allowed by the league based on the premise that the team has hired a new head coach and should be allowed to begin practicing earlier. The NFLPA has not been too happy about either move by Coughlin.
Mandating that players return to Jacksonville for physicals is an alleged violation of the league’s labor deal. As for the early start to offseason workouts, the Jaguars are standing firm on the belief they should be allowed to hold organized team activities earlier than the league calendar says.
Statement from the @Jaguars on the club's April 17 report date for player offseason workouts.
League had previously granted April 10 start. pic.twitter.com/z18iST3PiV
— Tad Dickman (@TDickman89) March 29, 2017
That proposed starting date for the earlier offseason workouts was challenged by the NFLPA, and the union won. The Jaguars will be prevented from holding their offseason drills until the regulated April 17 starting date.
Coughlin and the NFLPA have had their battles in the past too, so it was only a matter of time before the former coach found ways to rile up the union in defense of their players on the roster. We can only believe this will not be the last time the NFLPA and Coughlin square off over some trivial decisions and rules.
