NFLPA head Lloyd Howell — a Penn grad — under scrutiny amid NFL collusion case fallout

Over two weeks ago, Pablo Torre on his podcast Pablo Torre Finds Out in an hour-long episode entitled “Collusion-Gate” revealed a document detailing an arbitrator’s decision on a collusion grievance on NFL quarterback salaries.

Since his reporting, more reports have surfaced on the NFL Players Association led by executive director Lloyd Howell, a Penn graduate. Here’s everything you need to know.

Torre obtained and published a 61-page legal filing from an arbitration hearing following a grievance claiming that the “club owners colluded to deny certain players guaranteed compensation” after the Cleveland Browns signed Deshaun Watson in 2022 to a $230 million fully guaranteed contract. The pages included witness testimonies from NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, players, owners, NFLPA leaders, agents, and executives.

On Jan. 14, arbitrator Christopher Droney came to the conclusion that “the clubs did not join in such a collusive agreement,” ultimately dismissing the case and ruling in favor of the NFL.

But Droney also concluded that the NFLPA showed “a clear preponderance of the evidence” that Goodell and Jeff Pash, then the league’s general counsel, pushed owners to restrict guaranteed money in player contracts. However, the union didn’t share the ruling with the players due to a confidentiality agreement, ESPN reported Wednesday.

Sources told ESPN that the NFL and leaders of the NFLPA made a confidentiality agreement, hiding the details of the arbitration decision from players, including the finding that the league pushed owners to reduce guaranteed player compensation.

This was something that came as a surprise to attorney Peter Ginsberg, who has represented NFL players for a decade. “As the head of the union, Lloyd has an obligation to protect the best interests of the players,” Ginsberg told ESPN. “By agreeing to a confidentiality agreement, the union purposefully blocked the players from receiving crucial information about the operations of the NFL.”

In another report from author Jason Cole, several agents have said collusion information from the arbitration case could have helped secure more guaranteed money for free agents. To them, withholding the information could mean the NFLPA breached fiduciary responsibility — and could lead to a lawsuit.

Howell is the executive director of the NFLPA. He also happens to be a graduate and former trustee of the University of Pennsylvania. Torre reported Thursday there is currently a petition calling for the resignation of Howell as the NFLPA executive director.

“Since taking office in July 2023, Lloyd Howell has demonstrated a pattern of poor judgment, financial mismanagement, and conflicts of interest that have cost the NFLPA millions of dollars and compromised the union’s ability to effectively represent NFL players,” the petition said. “His track record of failures, both at the NFLPA and in his previous role at Booz Allen Hamilton makes clear that he is unfit to lead the players’ union.”

Now, almost six months after Droney’s decision, ESPN reported that Howell and the NFLPA have finally decided to seek an appeal of the ruling, which would be heard by a panel of three arbitrators. The news comes at a time Howell’s leadership is being questioned.

“The appeal is a reflection of our obligation to enforce the CBA and our commitment to protecting our players’ interests,” the source told ESPN. “We’ll do what’s best for players, and we’ll exhaust our options in doing so.”

A claim of “conflict of interest” was in the petition calling for Howell’s resignation. Howell also works as a paid, part-time consultant for The Carlyle Group, a league-approved private equity firm seeking minority ownership in NFL franchises, ESPN reported Thursday.

Howell joined the firm as a consultant in March 2023, three months before the NFLPA hired him as the players’ chief representative in relations with the league. The Carlyle Group as of August 2024 became one of only three private equity firms that can invest in minority franchise stakes.

The Athletic reported later Thursday, citing NFLPA sources, that Howell consulted with NFLPA and The Carlyle Group legal teams, which determined his work in the aerospace and defense sector was far enough removed from the NFL business that he wasn’t at risk of a conflict of interest.

“Lloyd had no access to information about the NFL and Carlyle process beyond public news reports due to strict Carlyle information barriers in place,” read a statement from the firm.