New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees and NFL Players Association president Kevin Mawae were critical of the NFL owners in the wake of a lockout and the players’ union decertifying.
During a conference call, Mawae said the NFL has disseminated "complete falsehoods and complete lies."
"If we’re going to talk about ‘trust,’ maybe you should ask the owners if they trust each other to see each others’ books," Mawae said. "I think that’s a greater issue than the players trusting the owners."
And Brees, who’s a plaintfif in the antitrust lawsuit filed against the league, also ripped the league.
"I think it was all a show, with no real intent to get a deal done, other than just to say they made a proposal, that was no different than anything else that they proposed over the last couple years, couple months, couple weeks," Brees said.
Meanwhile, NFLPA assistant executive director for external affairs George Atallah said there was never a point where a deal was imminent.
"The perception is that we were really, really close," Atallah said. "The reality is we really, really weren’t."
Atallah added that there are no talks scheduled as of this point before an April 6 hearing on an injunction motion filed by the players to halt the lockout.
Atallah said that if the players return to talks it’s up to the legal staff.
