NFLPA calls Reid's allegations of CBA language change 'completely false'
The NFL Players Association is strongly denying allegations made by free-agent safety Eric Reid that language in the league's new collective bargaining agreement was changed following its approval.
Reid wants an investigation and a new vote on the CBA after claiming Monday that the new version reduces benefits for disabled players more significantly than the edition that was voted upon.
The NFLPA called the allegations by Reid and his lawyers "completely false" and stated that the minor changes constitute a reference to text that was mistakenly left out of an earlier version of the agreement.
"It is correct that the final version of the 456-page CBA includes an additional subparagraph with a cross-reference to a section of the disability plan that the parties had inadvertently omitted in an earlier version," the union wrote in a letter to its members obtained by Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio.
"The final CBA corrected the omission, as the bargaining parties were required to do based on their agreement that 'if any typographical errors or incorrect cross-references are found in the 2020-2030 agreement, the parties will act in good faith to correct them' (just as the parties had similarly agreed when finalizing the 2011 CBA). ... This correction did not, however, change what had been agreed to with the NFL, what information had been provided to players, or what players had voted upon."
The union also wrote that the cross-reference "reflects no substantive difference whatsoever from what players were told about the proposed CBA and what the players voted to approve."
The CBA passed March 15 on a 1,019-959 player vote.
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