Steelers' Cam Heyward Calls Controversial NFLPA Situation "Dicey" Amid Fallout From Roger Goodell NFL Collusion Scandal

The Pittsburgh Steelers were found to not be involved in the wild NFL collusion scandal that’s been gaining national attention. Investigative sports journalist Pablo Torre uncovered the story, which centers on accusations that the NFL and its team owners secretly worked together to suppress player salaries by avoiding fully guaranteed contracts. In other leagues like the NBA and MLB, guaranteed deals are common, but in the NFL, they are much less frequent, despite the sport's physical toll on players.

The controversy started after the Cleveland Browns gave quarterback Deshaun Watson a massive five-year, $230 million fully guaranteed contract in March 2022. That deal reportedly alarmed many NFL owners. If the market shifted toward fully guaranteed contracts, it could cost teams a fortune. According to a leaked arbitration ruling, top NFL executives, including Commissioner Roger Goodell, were found to have encouraged team owners to avoid offering similar contracts.

Steelers defensive star and captain Cam Heyward, a respected voice in the locker room and a member of the NFLPA’s executive committee, was contacted by ESPN for comment. While he declined to go into detail, he described the situation as “dicey.” Like many other players, Heyward appears to have been left out of the loop, raising concerns about how much transparency the union is providing to its own members.

"Four executive committee members, Oren Burks, Thomas Morstead, Ted Karras and Cameron Heyward, declined to comment to ESPN. Heyward declined to talk because the situation at the union was 'dicey,' he said."

Of course, many Steelers fans would have loved to hear Heyward’s thoughts on the scandal. It’s a hot-button issue in the NFL right now, and it’s pretty wild to think about. If the league was actually working behind the scenes to make sure players were paid less, that’s a serious problem. It would not only hurt the players financially, but it could also cause long-term damage to the league’s image and trust with its athletes.

Both the NFL and the players’ union kept the truth from the players, which only makes the situation worse. Things took an unexpected turn when it was revealed that a major arbitration ruling had been kept hidden for over five months. The decision only became public after Torre and Mike Florio exposed it. While it’s understandable that the league wouldn’t want the ruling to go public, the silence from the union raised even more concern. 

Former Steelers QB Russell Wilson Mocked By NFLPA President

Some believe it came down to internal issues. Reports claim former NFLPA President J.C. Tretter sent texts mocking Russell Wilson for not securing a fully guaranteed contract, and the union may have wanted to avoid that embarrassment. There is also speculation that the new union leader, Lloyd Howell, did not want to create controversy so early in his time in charge.

In the end, players like Heyward were left out of the loop, even though he sits on the union’s executive committee. That’s what makes this situation so frustrating. The people trusted to protect the players’ best interests failed to communicate what was really going on. If this union wants to rebuild trust and truly stand up for its members, it needs to be more transparent and stop keeping secrets that hurt the very players it represents. 

Ultimately, it was found that the NFL did encourage teams to limit guaranteed contracts. This was proven by emails, presentation slides, and other evidence from the March 2022 meeting. However, there was not enough proof overall, and the NFLPA lost the case. That's why Heyward didn't feel comfortable giving a long statement on the controversial issue.

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