Back to the New England Patriots Newsfeed

Just how important are those voluntary offseason workouts anyway?

Just like its predecessors, the Collective Bargaining Agreement signed by the NFL’s clubs and players last year also differentiates between two levels of workouts. There are those that are mandatory for players to attend such as minicamp and training camp, and there are others structured on a voluntary basis.

Those voluntary sessions are now at the center of a labor dispute. With the NFLPA recommending their members stay away unless all offseason work is moved to a virtual forum, five teams’ players have already decided to do just that. The New England Patriots’ are among them, even though not all of their players did announce that they will boycott those voluntary sessions in a statement released on Wednesday.