The NFL believed the grievance ruling would prevent public release. But now that ESPN has leaked the explosive result, the league is responding aggressively. They have sent a firm letter to all 32 franchises, urging them not to share their opinions in public. With that, tensions between the players’ union and the league may take a dramatic turn.

“The NFL has sent this memo to clubs following the leaked NFLPA report cards, saying teams should refrain from ‘commenting or engaging publicly on the alleged survey and report card results,’” CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones tweeted on X.

The memo was part of the league’s tight response to the NFLPA’s annual survey that went public. The controversy began after ESPN’s Kalyn Kahler published the NFLPA’s annual survey on Thursday. Conducted between November 2 and December 11 last year, it gathered feedback from 1,759 players. Any player on the roster during the period was eligible to respond.

They graded their current teams from A-plus to F-minus in multiple areas, including travel conditions, coaching, and overall workplace environment. The leak was a scenario the league had fought to prevent, and it tried to downplay the credibility of these report cards. In the memo sent to all teams, the NFL noted that the media picked up findings from the survey. Still, it highlighted the factors that allowed them to get the union banned from publishing its reports.

“The admissions made by the union and its counsel during the grievance hearing—including that: (i): the Report Cards are ‘union speech’; (ii) the union cherry-picks which topics and responses to include and exclude; (iii) players have no role in drafting the Report Cards commentary; (iv) the union chooses which anonymous player quotations to include and which ones to leave out; and (v) the union determines how much weight to allocate to each topic before assigning the ‘grades.’”

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The NFL used these points to argue that the survey was scientifically invalid. Describing the survey as an “agenda-driven exercise,” the league urged organizations to rely on direct responses from their players. They warned that publicly discussing the leaked grades would only give more attention and credibility to the union’s campaign. However, the arbitrator’s ruling did not say that the survey itself was invalid.

It only limited the NFLPA from releasing the report cards publicly. The union has continued to maintain its stance that the process was fair and balanced, even though it disagrees with the restriction on making the results public. The leaked findings highlight frustration among players from many franchises, such as the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Kansas City Chiefs. Patrick Mahomes and his teammates took issue with the team’s locker room, which they think needs a revamp.

They gave the locker room an F grade, highlighting its small size and the individual lockers with insufficient storage. Moreover, they deemed the team’s hotel during home games as the “worst.” Describing it as outdated, the players claimed the beds are not comfortable, and the floors are “dirty and sticky.” It gets worse with the Pittsburgh Steelers, who ranked dead last overall.

According to Kahler, the Steelers received low ratings in several important areas, such as ownership, locker room, and home game field. The players slammed owner Art Rooney II for his “willingness to invest in facilities.” Players described Acrisure Stadium as one of the worst playing surfaces in the NFL. They pointed out the damage caused by high school and college games played at the venue. Plus, the team’s locker room received an F, with players mentioning that it has only five bathroom stalls for the entire roster.

Meanwhile, the NFL’s move is bound to spark tensions between the two sides, given how the NFLPA reacted to its ban two weeks ago.

NFL Players Association pushes back after grievance loss

The NFL won a significant victory over the NFL Players Association earlier this month. After winning the legal battle, they sent a similar memo that originally cited the same issues as before. It said the ruling reiterated its belief that publishing those grades violates the collective bargaining agreement. NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy welcomed the arbitrator’s decision.

In his view, the move protects the organizations and their individuals from backlash based on insufficient data shared by the union. He also revealed that the NFL is open to collaborating with the NFLPA to build a more transparent and scientifically sound system for gathering honest player feedback. Conversely, the union didn’t react to the proposal, hitting back with a firm response. They clarified that the ruling does not stop the survey itself. 

“The ruling upholds our right to survey players and share the results with players and clubs,” a part of the statement said. “While we strongly disagree with the restriction on making those results public, that limitation does not stop the program or its impact. Players will continue to receive the results, and teams will continue to hear directly from their locker rooms.”

The union also noted that the arbitrator discarded the league’s claim that the process was unfair. It stated that the arbitrator found it to be fair, balanced, and improved over time.

“We will continue working to ensure players’ experiences are heard, respected, and acted on – by their teams, by their union, and wherever else possible.”

The NFLPA has been conducting confidential player surveys since 2023. They collected responses during the 2025 season for the next report and planned to release it in Spring 2026. The subsequent ban was an unexpected blow to the NFLPA’s plans. As details from the report continue to circulate, the fundamental conflict over player feedback and league transparency is set to intensify, leaving the next move in this high-stakes battle between the NFL and its players uncertain.