Lloyd Howell steps down as NFLPA executive director
A week after rumors reached a fever pitch that Lloyd Howell would be replaced as the executive director of the NFL Players Association, Howell has stepped down.“Two years ago, I accepted the role of Executive Director of the NFLPA because I believe deeply in the mission of this union and the power of collective action to drive positive change for the players of America’s most popular sport,” Howell said in a statement issued Thursday night by the NFLPA. “Our members deserve a union that will fight relentlessly for their health, safety, financial futures, and long-term well-being. My priority has been to lead that fight by serving this union with focus and dedication.“It’s clear that my leadership has become a distraction to the important work the NFLPA advances every day. For this reason, I have informed the NFLPA Executive Committee that I am stepping down as Executive Director of the NFLPA and Chairman of the Board of NFL Players effective immediately. I hope this will allow the NFLPA to maintain its focus on its player members ahead of the upcoming season.“I am proud of what we have been able to accomplish at the NFLPA over the past two years. I will be rooting for the players from the sidelines as loud as ever, and I know the NFLPA will continue to ensure that players remain firmly at the center of football’s future.”It remains to be seen whether Howell walked the plank, or whether he was shoved. It had been one controversy after another in recent weeks, from the OneTeam Partners probe to the hidden collusion ruling to the cartoonish conflict of interest with his part-time work for The Carlyle Group to the hidden JC Tretter fake-injury grievance to the most recent issue, reported by ESPN on Thursday, that some members of the board of player representatives claim they weren’t aware that Howell had been sued in 2011 for gender discrimination and retaliation, while he worked at Booz Allen Hamilton.As of last Thursday night, there was rampant chatter that Howell would be gone — and that Don Davis would become the interim executive director. While that died down by Friday afternoon, it has now happened. It remains to be seen who’ll have the interim gig and, more importantly, who will be hired to replace Howell.Hopefully, the process this time around will entail more (or any) transparency.
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