Standing up to the 800-pound gorilla in your living room is an admirable thing to do. It shows chutzpah and a willingness to fight for what's yours.
So indeed, it's nice to hear the CFL and its commissioner have told the NFL it's not wild about the Buffalo Bills playing eight games in Toronto over the next five years, nor is it willing to sign just any old working agreement between the two leagues.
But here's the trick: What's Plan B? What if the NFL says, "Fine, why do we need an agreement anyway? We're coming and you can't stop us."
At that point, the CFL will have lost any chance at getting something from the gorilla before it settles on the couch and grabs the remote. That's why the CFL needs to be talking and not walking from meetings with the NFL, just as it needs to push all options, even those that once seemed as implausible as a Canadian starting at quarterback.
One of those options was to ask the NFL to pony up with the CFL, take a slice of ownership in a league that has served as worthy blocker from U.S. antitrust attacks.
CFL commissioner Mark Cohon acknowledged the NFL-in-Canada threat at last November's Grey Cup address. His words underlined a belief it is better to have the NFL onboard as an equity holder as opposed to a home invader.
The NFL wasn't going to consider that without getting something in return. (These guys aren't business bumpkins, after all.) Within CFL circles, there was talk of taking on a developmental role with the NFL, which, to clarify, is different than being a developmental league.
What was suggested, according to sources, was that the NFL's 32 teams be aligned among the CFL's eight teams, that way the B.C. Lions could work with, say, the Seattle Seahawks, San Francisco 49ers, Oakland Raiders and San Diego Chargers. There wouldn't be midseason call-ups with the Lions losing players in the heart of a playoff run, but there would be an affiliation with those four NFL teams, perhaps for player allocation and business or marketing ventures.
Realistically, the CFL already has a developmental tie to the NFL. The CFL's collective agreement with its players includes the "window clause," which allows players in their option year to sign with an NFL team and get nothing in return (except the rights to that player if he doesn't make it in the United States). That arrangement has been in place even though the last working agreement between the two leagues expired in 2006.
The CFL was quick last week to argue "the concept of becoming an NFL developmental league" was never considered, and Cohon said he did not support such a concept. What wasn't denied was the CFL's willingness to play the equity card to co-exist with the hairiest of pro sports leagues. And surely, if the NFL was going to become part owner of the CFL, some sort of development role would have to be included.
After breaking off talks, the CFL fired a public salvo stateside saying it "was not moving forward with discussion about a co-operative agreement."
Again, it's all well and good to wag a finger in defiance but the bigger problem remains: The threat of the NFL coming to Toronto is real, so what's Plan B? It had better not be relying on the federal government to step in as grand protectionists.
With free trade on the books, there isn't much that can be done. Besides, it would look awfully bizarre, even by government standards, for the feds to stop a U.S-based NFL team from entering Canada while entertaining arguments they should be pushing to have a U.S.-based NHL team relocated to Hamilton.
What the CFL needs to consider is a scenario with the NFL completely ensconced in Toronto and how to make that workable. The only way to do so is by discussing whatever is necessary to stay alive and vibrant.
For those who say that because the CFL is alive and vibrant it should tell the NFL to take a hike, consider these possibilities: What happens to the Toronto Argonauts once the Bills take root? What if the Argos' owners tire of the fight and look to get out? How strong is the CFL if even one of its franchises falls on tough times?
The CFL may not like having a gorilla in its living room, but the darn thing is there, and you at least want to share the couch. Certainly the remote.
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