Don Davis

NFL Players Association Facing Potential Federal Probe Into Finances

July 25th, 2025 at 9:49pm CST by Ely Allen

The dust had barely begun to settle in the wake of Lloyd Howell and J.C. Tretter‘s resignations from the NFL Players Association. New leadership has not even been appointed. Still, controversy continues to toil in the players’ union as ESPN’s Don Van Natta Jr. and Kalyn Kahler report the existence of a federal criminal investigation into the NFLPA’s “potential misuse of funds and self-enrichment by union officials.”

The news comes off of ESPN’s acquisition of a confidential document “marked ‘privileged’ and emblazoned with the union logo on each page.” The document was provided to several other sources and players and contains a memo drafted by a senior union attorney, titled “Crisis Management,” that outlines the scope of the investigation. The memo was provided to the NFLPA’s executive committee and player representatives earlier this week.

“Immediate threats” identified by the memo indicate how “potential action by the National Labor Relations Board over ‘unfair labor practices’ and a ‘lapse of fiduciary duty oversight practices during (the) Howell tenure'” could result in the union paying “direct or foreseeable pecuniary harms.” The document doesn’t identify which specific individuals are under criminal investigation, but Tretter denied being under investigation, while Howell did not respond to attempts by ESPN to reach him.

The document’s main point is summarized in this quote:

(The) government is watching (the NFLPA’s) response (and) could quickly ramp up and expand (the) scope of (the) existing (Department of Justice) criminal investigation. (The NFLPA’s) Board (and) Officers need to show (the) government (and) fellow union members that they are acting immediately to find out (the) depth of problems at (the) union (and) related entities.

Essentially, the document claims that eyes will be closely watching how the NFLPA settles on Howell’s successor. Howell’s appointment in the first place was the result of a 16-month process in determining DeMaurice Smith‘s successor, just for the former to resign disgraced by becoming “a distraction” because of his strip club charges to the union for over $3K and rumors of conflicts of interest and a culture of secrecy best represented by Howell’s confidential agreement with the NFL to keep the details of the arbitrator’s collusion ruling from the NFLPA’s executive committee and player representatives.

Howell has since resigned from his consulting role with the Carlyle Group, per Van Natta, and OneTeam Partners, a $2BB group-licensing firm co-founded by the NFL and MLB’s Players Associations on which Howell held a board seat, is under FBI investigation for its financial dealings.

NFLPA president Jalen Reeves-Maybin released a statement announcing the Association’s intention to hold a vote for an interim executive director earlier this week. Tretter was considered a frontrunner, along with NFLPA chief player officer Don Davis, before Tretter’s sudden resignation. Since then, several other names have been rumored as candidates.

Mike Florio of NBC Sports reported rumors of NFL Players, Inc. president Matt Curtin and NFLPA associate general counsel Chris Fawal being options. The document names Davis, NFLPA senior director of player affairs Lester Archambeau, NFLPA chief operating officer Teri Smith, former NFLPA president Dominique Foxworth, and Foxworth’s successor, former NFLPA president Eric Winston, as candidates, as well, in what it calls the union’s “triage plan.” Foxworth was also considered for the job during the 16-month process that led to Howell. ESPN even adds that multiple sources have identified Smith as the potential interim successor of his successor.

It’s believed that the 32 teams’ player representatives could choose an interim executive director as soon as this weekend. The document asserts that the interim director will serve as the “Triage Manager” and shouldn’t be required to abstain from running for the permanent job whenever that election occurs.

The document ultimately makes several other opinionated claims like the possibility that players may sue the union for the January collusion decision situation or that there should be improved oversight of an investment advisor for the NFLPA’s discretionary funds. In the end, it maintains its main assertion that the NFLPA must take “prudent and definitive actions” to fill the “leadership vacuum” in order to avoid federally ordered, court-supervised oversight of the union as a result of a federal criminal investigation.

J.C. Tretter, Don Davis Are Frontrunners For Interim NFLPA Exec. Director

July 20th, 2025 at 8:08am CST by Nikhil Mehta

July 20: Many training camps around the league open on Tuesday, and the NFLPA is expected to vote on an interim executive director by then, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

July 19: The NFLPA is continuing to navigate the fallout of a series of revelations about executive director Lloyd Howell and his subsequent resignation.

The union’s 32 player representatives met on Friday night to discuss the next steps regarding Howell’s now-vacant position. Two current NFLPA leaders emerged as frontrunners, according to The Athletic’s Diana Russini: Chief Strategy Officer J.C. Tretter and Chief Player Officer Don Davis. Also gaining some support among players is retiring NFLPA general counsel Tom DePaso, per Mark Maske of The Washington Post.

Tretter and Davis are both former players, which will help them gain credibility among the union’s active membership. Tretter lined up at center for the Packers and the Browns across eight NFL seasons, while Davis played linebacker for four teams across 11 years and earned two back-to-back Super Bowl rings with the Patriots in 2003 and 2004.

Tretter also has experience leading the union after serving as NFLPA president for two terms. He was elected in March 2020 and helped close out collective bargaining negotiations with the league. One month later, the NFL was facing an uncertain future due to the coronavirus pandemic. Tretter became the co-chair of the NFLPA’s COVID committee and helped the union navigate the 2020 season. It was widely considered a success with a full 256-game schedule and minimal, contained outbreaks. Tretter then won re-election in 2022, but his second term could be a vulnerability due to his involvement with several major issues facing the union. Two of those issues – hiring Howell in 2023 and suppressing two arbitration rulings – were part of Tretter’s effort to ascend to the top of the union’s leadership structure, according to Pablo Torre of Pablo Finds Out.

The 34-year-old currently has a “majority of support,” per Russini, but there is a growing movement among players to move on from Tretter’s leadership along with Howell. Some are even exploring legal action against the NFLPA and Tretter specifically, “citing potential violations around inclusion, labor rights, and misuse of union funds,” according to Russini. A text criticizing Tretter’s leadership circulated between players during last night’s meeting, per Ben Volin of the Boston Globe.

Davis, who has overseen player affairs at the NFLPA for more than a decade, is Tretter’s main competition for the interim executive director role. He is considered the “No. 1 internal candidate,” per CBS Sports Jonathan Jones, and is already receiving support from players, according to both Russini and Maske. (Colts wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. has already expressed his support for Davis on social media.)

After he retired from playing in 2006, Davis joined the Patriots’ strength and conditioning staff and later became the team chaplain. He joined the NFLPA as director of player affairs in 2010, according to his LinkedIn, and was promoted to senior director in 2015 and Chief Player Officer this past April. Davis could also be a candidate for the permanent executive director job, per Jones.

DePaso, the union’s retiring general counsel who briefly played for the Bengals, is another name that has been mentioned by players as a candidate. There is also precedent for the union’s general counsel to serve as interim executive director. The last time the NFLPA needed an interim executive director was 2008, when Gene Upshaw died in office. Then-general counsel Richard Berthelsen served as Upshaw’s interim replacement until DeMaurice Smith was hired, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk.

Howell was just hired in 2023 and past executive directors have typically served more than a decade, so the union was not prepared to start another search process right away. Finalists in the last process are unlikely to re-emerge, according to Jones, as players will be seeking a leader they can trust. The union will be looking for experience, either within the NFL as a player or with labor management more generally. The NFLPA currently has no timetable for selecting a permanent executive director, per Russini, and whoever is tapped as the interim is not expected to be promoted to the full-time role.

It’s also worth noting that many players are not fully up to date on the multitude of issues now facing the NFLPA. Much of last night’s meeting was about answering questions and clarifying information, according to Russini. Awareness will continue to spread around the league, especially as teams reunite for training camp. The union’s next priority will be selecting an interim leader before kicking off what will likely be a revamped, more thorough search process for a permanent executive director.

NFL Staff Notes: McDonough, NFLPA, Chiefs, Packers, Gruden, Philbin

May 27th, 2023 at 4:53pm CST by Ely Allen

It’s been nearly two months since former Cardinals executive Terry McDonough first filed an arbitration claim against team owner Michael Bidwill accusing Bidwill of cheating and gross misconduct. The claim specifically levied accusations of breach of contract, retaliation after engaging in protected activity, intentional infliction of emotional distress, defamation, and civil conspiracy. The Cardinals’ public relations consultant, Jim McCarthy, released a statement in return containing several personal attacks on McDonough.

The original complaint stemmed from a situation in which McDonough claims Bidwill had devised a plan for McDonough and then-head coach Steve Wilks to communicate with then-suspended general manager Steve Keim through burner phones. McDonough asserts that after voicing his concerns about the plan, he was written up for insubordination and, eventually, demoted.

McDonough has reportedly added more accusations in an amended arbitration complaint this week, accusing Bidwill and the Cardinals of defamation and invasion of privacy in response to McCarthy’s statement, according to ESPN’s Tisha Thompson. He called the statement “untrue and reprehensible,” and his wife, Lynette, called the statement “the most bizarre and dishonest thing that I have ever heard.” The new complaint also states that McDonough will prepare to pursue a civil complaint against McCarthy and his group, CounterPoint Strategies, for “grossly defamatory statements.”

The NFL recently selected Jeffrey Mishkin to arbitrate the employment dispute, according to another report from Thompson. Mishkin is the former chief legal officer for the NBA, leading the Association’s in-house legal department for seven years. He will determine the schedule of events, which are expected to last for several months.

Here are a few other rumors concerning staff positions in the NFL:

Earlier this month, Mike Florio of NBC Sports reported that the league’s Players Association was moving closer to selecting a new executive director. The final candidates are not yet known, but we’re not completely in the dark. Previously this year, The Athletic’s Daniel Kaplan identified candidates Matt Schaub, the former quarterback, Kellen Winslow Sr., the former tight end, Teri Patterson Smith, the NFLPA chief operating officer, Don Davis, the NFLPA senior director of player affairs, George Atallah, the NFLPA assistant director of external affairs, and Dominique Foxworth, the former NFLPA president. A couple weeks ago, Jim Trotter, also of The Athletic, reported that no internal candidates made the cut, eliminating Smith, Davis, and Atallah. Foxworth is also expected to no longer be in consideration. Former wide receiver and former member of Congress Anthony Gonzalez has been mentioned but not confirmed as a candidate. The NFLPA is proceeding with the process with the utmost confidentiality and plan to bring it to a close sooner rather than later.
After previously participating in the Chiefs‘ Norma Hunt Training Camp Fellowship Program last year, Madison Aponte was hired on as a player personnel assistant. According to Neil Stratton of SucceedinFootball.com, while Aponte’s title hasn’t changed, she will continue acting as the team’s college scouting coordinator, a role she’s held since the start of the 2022 season.
Stratton reports another addition, this time by the Packers. According to Stratton, Green Bay has hired Joey Laine in the role of salary cap analyst. Laine was a longtime presence in the Saints’ building after working with the team for more than ten years. He eventually left, following Ryan Pace to Chicago and working as the Bears’ director of football administration for eight seasons.
Finally, two former NFL head coaches have taken minor roles with new teams this season. According to Jeff Duncan of nola.com, the Saints have brought in former Raiders head coach Jon Gruden to assist in the integration of new quarterback Derek Carr in the Saints’ offense. Carr played his best statistical seasons under Gruden during their time together and Saints offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael welcomed Gruden’s assistance with open arms. The second former head coach is former Dolphins’ skipper Joe Philbin who, according to Pete Thamel of ESPN, has been hired as an offensive analyst at Ohio State.

Matt Schaub On NFLPA Executive Director Aspirations

October 16th, 2022 at 1:50pm CST by Adam La Rose

With NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith set to transition away from his position as early as March 2023, the union’s search for his replacement is underway. The most prominent name to emerge as his potential successor is Matt Schaub.

The longtime Falcons and Texans quarterback is in his second year of retirement, and has been public about his intention of leading the player’s union. He expounded on his candidacy and top priorities in the event he lands the job in an interview with Pro Football Network.

“After playing for 17 years and being a part of the union for 19 years and seeing the impact the union has on players’ lives, both while in the game and once they retire, the physical toll, the mental toll, the emotional toll and how the financial side of the game impacts everyone from the top of the rosters to the bottom,” he said, “it has opened my eyes to want to advocate and help and lead the union to a place that all players need to be in, especially physically as they move beyond the game.”

To no surprise given those remarks, the 41-year-old doubled down on long-term health care as his chief concern, naming lifelong coverage as a target. He also referenced the compensation levels for end-of-the-roster players, along with the split of league revenues between the league and players (central issues in the last round of CBA negotiations) as focal points in upcoming agreements.

In addition to Schaub, other contenders for the position could include NFLPA president J.C. Tretter and senior director of player affairs Don Davis. They, too, have a background as NFL players, something which Smith does not. In Tretter’s case, his status in the union was widely seen as a key factor in his release from the Browns this offseason, and the lack of free agent interest which led to his retirement. Davis, meanwhile, spent more than a decade in the league and has played a leading role in a number of union events under his current title.