The NFLPA’s annual team record dropped Wednesday, giving the football world much to discuss.
The 1,706-player survey, which grades all 32 NFL teams on various criteria, is a good look for some teams but a bad look for others. It’s a lot of information to process, and some of it is quite surprising.
What Is the NFLPA Report Card?
Launched last offseason, the survey is intended to provide valuable feedback in an attempt to “improve the overall working conditions” for players, according to the NFLPA. The Players Association hopes the report card can help raise standards around the NFL while helping players make well-informed career decisions.
Teams are graded in the following categories:
- Treatment of families
- Food/cafeteria
- Nutritionist/dietician
- Locker room
- Training room
- Training staff
- Weight room
- Strength coaches
- Team travel
- Head Coach
- Ownership
The head coach and ownership categories were new additions to the 2024 report card. The food service and nutritionist categories were split into separate sections after being combined into one last year.
“The addition of new categories and detailed questions provided wider and deeper data, resulting in some variance in the scores from last year to this year.,” NFLPA president Jim Tretter said in a statement.
Last year’s survey saw slightly more than 1,300 responses, representing a roughly 60% participating rate. This year’s uptick to 1,706 responses equates to just over a 77% participation rate.
5 Most Surprising Grades in the Survey
There are numerous ways we could’ve gone with this, as there are many head-scratching grades in the survey. Nevertheless, we narrowed it down.
Here are the five most surprising grades in the 2024 NFL report card.
The Chiefs Having a Worse Overall Grade Than Last Year
A year after finishing 29th, the two-time defending Super Bowl champions somehow slipped to 31st. How does that happen?
Kansas City received worse grades in four categories, better grades in three, and the same grade in one. The Chiefs also received an “F” or worse in two of the three new categories: nutritionist and ownership. Clark Hunt received the worst grade among all owners.
MORE: 49ers Grade as League’s Sixth-Best Franchise By NFLPA
The one positive: Andy Reid received an A+, which shouldn’t be a surprise.
“The responses identify major issues in two areas: quality of care and out-of-date facilities,” the NFLPA wrote. “The number one complaint when it comes to the facilities is the locker room. Though the players received actual chairs with backs to sit in at their lockers in response to last year’s feedback, it did not change the fact that the locker room is overdue for a renovation.
“What adds to the frustration is that management told the players that renovations would come after the 2022 season.”
Every Team With “F” or Worse in Treatment of Families
Receiving a poor grade in any category is a bad look, but poor marks for the treatment of families should be an especially tough pill to swallow. Not only could it turn off prospective free agents, but it also could be a public-relations issue.
So, you’d think teams that graded poorly in the category last season would’ve made proper changes over the last year. But a handful of franchises apparently missed the memo.
Here are teams that received an F or worse for the treatment of families, with last year’s grades in parenthesis:
- Cincinnati Bengals: F- (F)
- New England Patriots: F- (C-)
- Pittsburgh Steelers: F- (D-)
- Washington Commanders: F- (F)
- Los Angeles Chargers: F (D-)
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers: F (D+)
So, all of those teams somehow treated families worse in 2023 than they did in 2022. Not great.
But hey, props to the Arizona Cardinals and Jacksonville Jaguars for finishing with an F last year but improving to D+ and D-, respectively. Progress, right?
The Patriots Receiving “D+” for Ownership
Say what you want about Robert Kraft, who has his share of critics. After all, Spygate happened under his watch, and there were those troubling allegations that emerged from his visit to a Florida day spa in 2019.
However, few would look at Kraft and think, “Sixth-worst owner in the NFL.” But that’s exactly where his D+ grade ranked in the NFL report card.
“Club owner Robert Kraft receives a rating of 6.9/10 from Patriot players when considering his willingness to invest in the facilities (27th overall),” the NFLPA wrote.
The good news for Kraft is the Patriots are in the final stages of a $250 million stadium renovation, which includes the overhauling of their poorly graded training facilities. Perhaps he’ll see a better grade next year.
(Note: We thought about including Bill Belichick’s B-, which ranked 27th in the league, but the grade isn’t that surprising when you consider his infamously military-esque methods of running a franchise.)
Tampa Bay’s Woeful Travel Grade
The Bucs received an F last year, ranking tied for 28th. They received the same grade this year, putting them in a tie with three other teams for worst in the NFL.
It’s surprising enough that Tampa didn’t find a way to improve in the one category that earned it an F last year. But the worst part is this blurb from the NFLPA:
“Younger players have roommates, unless they pay the team approximately $1,750 for their own room each season.”
There are 53 players on an NFL active roster. For the sake of argument, let’s say 26 of them are classified as “younger” players. That would equal a $45,000 travel bill that the Glazer Family — with its estimated net worth of $4.7 billion — is unwilling to pay.
The Locker Rooms at SoFi Stadium
The home of the Los Angeles Chargers and Los Angeles Rams opened in 2020. It is the newest stadium in the NFL, and it cost $5.5 billion to build.
How, then, did the Rams and Chargers receive a D+ and an F for their locker rooms? How are those not the best locker rooms in the NFL?
KEEP READING: 2024 NFL Trade Predictions
Space seemingly is the biggest issue. Just 74% of Rams players said their locker room is big enough, with 57% of Chargers players giving the same answer. Those numbers ranked 25th and 29th, respectively.
Both franchises receiving low grades for their training facilities wasn’t a surprise, as both clubs currently use temporary spaces while their new facilities are being built. But it was a surprise to see anything at the actual stadium receive a poor grade.
Miss football? The 2024 NFL Draft is almost here, boss. Pro Football Network has you covered with everything from team draft needs to the Top 100 prospects available. Plus, fire up PFN’s Mock Draft Simulator to put yourself in the general manager’s seat and make all the calls!