NFL owners are reportedly pushing to stop annual the ‘report cards’ that see players grade their teams on life within the organization.
The survey, which is run by the NFL Players Association, asks stars to rank teams – from A to F – on issues such as locker rooms, training staff, treatment of families, head coach and ownership.
Jets owner Woody Johnson received an F from his players in 2025 – finishing 32nd out of 32 owners when it came to his ‘perceived willingness to invest in facilities’ and his ‘contribution to a positive team culture.’
Earlier this year, the Jets owner – whose net worth is reportedly $10.9billion – branded the survey ‘totally bogus’. Now, according to ESPN, the NFL has asked the NFLPA to stop the report cards.
It’s argued the polls violate the league’s collective bargaining agreement by broadcasting public criticism of franchises.
ESPN reports that NFL chiefs wrote to the players’ union back in August, citing a clause in the CBA that says both owners and the NFLPA must ‘use reasonable efforts to curtail public comments by club personnel or players which express criticism of any club, its coach, or its operation and policy.’
NFL owners are pushing to stop annual the ‘report cards’ that see players grade their teams
The survey, run by the NFL Players Association, asks players to grade teams from A to F
Despite months of talks, ESPN reports that the NFLPA last week told players it is ‘moving ahead with this year’s survey.’
They said in an email: ‘We have responded to the grievance with our intention to fight against this action and continue what’s clearly become an effective tool for comparing workplace standards across the league and equipping you to make informed career decisions.’
According to ESPN, however, the league has not given up on the fight. It’s claimed the NFL is pushing to put the issue in front of an arbitrator next month. The topic also came up at a recent owners meeting.
Nearly 1,700 players responded to the survey in 2025, with the Vikings and Dolphins scoring some of the highest grades.
But Johnson said in March that he had concerns over ‘how they collected the information [and] who they collected it from.
‘[It] was supposed to be according to the agreement we have with the league. It’s supposed to be a process [where] we have representatives and they have representatives, so we know that it’s an honest survey.
‘And that was violated, in my opinion. I’m going to leave it at that, but I think there are a lot of owners that looked at that survey and said this is not fair, it’s not balanced, it’s not every player, it’s not even representative of the players.’
The Daily Mail has contacted Johnson’s representatives for comment.
