LA times: Commissioner Goodell, players union chief Upshaw meet with retirees

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.latimes.com/sports/football/nfl/la-sp-nflcharity25jul25,1,1161574.story?coll=la-headlines-sports-nfl

Commissioner Goodell, players union chief Upshaw meet with retirees
A new assistance program is set up to help former NFL players with critical health and financial issues.
By Greg Johnson, Times Staff Writer
July 25, 2007

WASHINGTON — NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and players union chief Gene Upshaw sat side by side Tuesday and detailed a planned coalition that will try to ease suffering among former athletes who have fallen on hard times.

Their joint appearance at the NFL Players Assn. headquarters here was an attempt to calm what has been an escalating battle of words.

"The most important thing about what is taking place today is this group of retired players and the players' union understands the plight of retired players and we want to work as a single voice, a single group, to improve the plight of retired players," Upshaw said. "We care about them."

His comments followed a three-hour closed-door meeting that brought together pro football's leadership, representatives from the league's four main charities and 11 former players, including Jack Kemp, Jerry Kramer, Merlin Olsen, Steve Largent and Frank Gifford.

As part of the plan announced Tuesday, a new assistance program will be created that will address several critical health and financial issues, including — in the longer term — some sort of assisted living help. The program will draw an unspecified amount of funding from the league, the union and charities affiliated with professional football.

All of this comes amid a growing wave of protest from former football stars who allege that the pension and disability programs for older NFL retirees are broken and that the league and the players union are not doing enough.


FULL story at link.