There is stability, however, along the offensive line.

There should be one word on the minds of every NFL player and the union that represents them.Guaranteed.It’s way past time for those who play America’s most popular — and physically demanding — sport to be paid what they’re worth. The most obvious starting point would be to ensure their contracts work like pretty much every other professional league on the planet.The NFL’s standard practice of only guaranteeing part of a contract Womens Jerome Bettis Jersey , even for the biggest stars, seems grossly inadequate when one considers that players have a shorter shelf life than any other sport and often face a lifetime of debilitating health problems because of the sheer brutality they put their bodies through.A first-of-its-kind analysis from The Associated Press only strengthens the argument that players are getting a raw deal. Since 2005, the AP found, the average amount of playing experience for athletes on the NFL’s opening-day rosters has shrunk from 4.6 to 4.3 years.Essentially, a 53-man roster is comprised of a few star millionaires — most notably, the quarterback — and a bevy of young players earning close to the minimum salary. Older players, especially those at positions considered more easily replaced, are being forced out of the game or left with take-it-or-leave-it contracts that are great for teams but do little to ensure an athlete’s long-term financial health.Just look what happened to Seattle Seahawks safety Earl Thomas.Heading into the final year of his contract, Thomas held out through the preseason in hopes of landing a new long-term contract, one with plenty of up-front money that he could put in the bank before he stepped on the field again. Essentially, he wanted an insurance policy in case of serious injury. Holding out was the only way to get it under the league’s current structure.The Seahawks refused to budge for the ninth-year player, insisting that Thomas — a six-time Pro Bowler, Super Bowl champion and last remaining member of the “Legion of Boom” that will go down as one of the greatest defenses in NFL history — fulfill his expiring deal. And what happened? In the fourth game of the season, Thomas went down with a broken leg.As he was carted off their field, Thomas flashed an obscene gesture toward his own bench. He might as well have made it to the entire league and the union that represents him.In all likelihood, Thomas’ last chance to earn another big payday has gone up in smoke.Thomas could have stuck to his demands, like Pittsburgh Steelers running back Le’Veon Bell. Problem is Jerome Bettis Jersey , that would have meant sitting out the entire season — a huge sacrifice in a sport that already is a short-term career for most.Coming off two straight 1,200-yard rushing seasons, Bell had every right to demand a long-term deal that would ease the financial pain of a serious injury. Considering what happened to Thomas, the sixth-year running back probably made the right move by sitting out when the Steelers wouldn’t meet his demands. But he’s now lost a year in the prime of his career, and it’s likely that he’ll have to take less money on the open market after a season on the sideline.Amazingly enough, NFL Players Association President Eric Winston says guaranteed contracts aren’t a panacea when it comes to ensuring players getting a bigger piece of the league’s windfall.“We can’t forget the cause and effect to all this,” he said. “The more guaranteed money you get, maybe the shorter your contract should be. We live in this world where we think, ‘If we had guaranteed contracts, I’d get six years and $120 million guaranteed.’ No. It would probably be three and 60. It’s just one of those things where I think there’s a give and a take.”The problem is, the NFL owners have been taking for far too long — and the players, through a union that is almost certainly the weakest of all the major sports, has been more than willing to give.The NFLPA has often appeared to be little more than a subsidiary of the league, repeating many of the league’s talking points and not bothering to put up much of a fight whenever it was time to hammer out a new collective bargaining agreement.Over a two-decade period beginning in 1968, there were five strikes or lockouts as the players tried to flex their collective muscle. But the last of those, in 1987, was a devastating defeat for the union. Some players refused to take part in the strike or quickly broke ranks. The owners assembled teams of replacement players to keep the games going for three weeks. The walkout lasted a mere 24 days.Since then James Conner Jersey , there’s been only one NFL lockout, which occurred largely during the 2011 offseason. The dispute was settled without any regular-season games being missed.While no one wants to see games lost, it’s rather amazing that the owners have been able to largely maintain labor peace for more than three decades, all while bolstering their own wealth enormously through new stadium deals and continually rising franchise values — and still getting the players to work for non-guaranteed contracts and burying for years the enormous health problems caused by head injuries.The players must stand up for themselves when the current labor agreement expires after the 2020 season. That means putting aside a nice little nest egg each month to prepare for the very real likelihood that the owners won’t be very amenable to their demands. They’ll likely have to go on strike, perhaps for a very long time, but they shouldn’t budge on two key issues: guaranteed contracts and a bigger piece of the pie.There are other issues worth talking about, of course. Player safety. Long-term health care. Some additional tweaking to the contract structure (perhaps something more in line with the NBA, which puts restrictions on what the top players can make but creates more opportunities for players in the middle of the pack). Limits on Commissioner Roger Goodell’s broad disciplinary powers. The right to peacefully protest (and some sort of settlement and compensation for the blatant blackballing of Colin Kaepernick).Winston said creating a quicker route to free agency is best way to improve the players’ lot.“What’s the union’s role in that?” he asked. “How do we help players overcome certain barriers to get to free agency as quickly as possible? We want it coming out of college. Owners want it never. Where does that bargain begin?”Indeed, it’s going to be a tough road. But the players need to make one thing clear: If the owners won’t agree to some very reasonable demands, they won’t have anyone to play the games.Guaranteed. PITTSBURGH (AP) — The Pittsburgh Steelers have reiterated repeatedly during an eventful offseason that quarterback Ben Roethlisberger remains the team’s unquestioned leader. They have handed him a new deal to prove it.The Steelers and the two-time Super Bowl winner agreed to terms on a contract extension Wednesday that will keep Roethlisberger in Pittsburgh through the 2021 season. Roethlisberger had been set to enter the final year of a contract he signed in 2015. Financial terms were not disclosed, but Roethlisberger figures to get a significant pay bump over the $12 million he was due (with a $23 million cap hit) in 2019.“It has always been a goal to play my entire career in Pittsburgh,” Roethlisberger said in a statement. “This is home for me and my family, and we love this city. I am as excited to be a Steeler in Year 16 as I was when they drafted me. They will get my absolute best.”The deal gives Pittsburgh some stability going forward after the high-profile departures of wide receiver Antonio Brown and running back Le’Veon Bell. Brown pouted his way into a trade with the Oakland Raiders in March while Bell signed with the New York Jets as a free agent after sitting out all of 2018 when he opted not to sign his franchise tender.Roethlisberger, who turned 37 last month, is coming off the finest statistical season of his 15-year career. His 5,129 yards passing led the NFL and his 34 touchdown passes broke his own franchise mark. Yet his once-solid relationship with Brown appeared to deteriorate during a late slide that culminated in a 9-6-1 finish, a swoon that caused the Steelers to miss the playoffs for the first time since 2013.Brown sat out a crucial Week 17 game against Cincinnati and in the aftermath lashed out on social media https://www.thesteelerslockerroom.com/authentic-terrell-edmunds-jersey , blaming Roethlisberger for having an “owner mentality .”Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert went out of his way to defend the quarterback, saying that in a way, Roethlisberger was dealing with “52 kids” on the roster , a challenge for some of Roethlisberger’s teammates to take on a greater role in the locker room. Not that Roethlisberger minds the responsibility. He has been unapologetic in his approach and unafraid to call out himself and others when the team fails to play to the standard it has set for itself during his largely successful tenure.Roethlisberger flirted with retirement after the 2016 season but has found a renewed sense of energy in his mid-30s. Having an offensive line that has kept him upright has certainly helped. Roethlisberger has been sacked an average of 20½ times over the last four years — compared with an average of 42 times per season between 2006-13 — due in part to stellar play in front of him and an approach predicated on getting the ball out faster while shying away from the “Ben being Ben” stuff that led to a mix of big plays and big mistakes earlier in his career.The announcement of the extension came on the 15th anniversary of the Steelers making Roethlisberger the seventh overall pick in the 2004 draft. After taking over the starting job in Week 2 of the 2004 season following an injury to veteran Tommy Maddox, Roethlisberger has led the Steelers to three Super Bowls, along with seven AFC North titles and 10 total playoff berths.“Ben is one of the most productive quarterbacks in NFL history, and he continued to climb the lists among the all-time passing leaders in the league last season,” team president Art Rooney II said. “But I know Ben’s focus is on only one goal — to bring another Lombardi trophy back to Pittsburgh.”Roethlisberger will lead an offense in the midst of a generational shift at other skill positions. JuJu Smith-Schuster replaces Brown as Pittsburgh’s top receiver and the running back combination of James Conner and Jaylen Samuels combined to put up numbers in 2018 similar to Bell’s at his peak. Four of five starters return and there are plenty of potential in-house replacements for right tackle Marcus Gilbert, who was traded to Arizona in March.Pittsburgh has toyed with finding Roethlisberger’s eventual successor, drafting Josh Dobbs in the fourth round in 2017 and Mason Rudolph in the third round last year. Dobbs won the backup job last summer over Rudolph and veteran Landry Jones, who was cut on the eve of the 2018 season. Having them in place means the Steelers are likely to avoid drafting a quarterback with one of their 10 selections in the draft that starts Thursday.Inside linebacker, cornerback and wide receiver figure to be Pittsburgh’s biggest needs early.Quarterback, for the 15th straight year, will not. Not with Roethlisberger still very much in charge early into the next decade.