NFL Lockout in 2011? Really?

The NFL owners and players are talking about a possible lockout in the NFL season.  Why?  Players want more money and owners want to pay less money.  Maybe the owners  just don't want to pay more money than they already are.  Regardless, the owners' main reason is so they will make more money.

I am not one of those that complains because players make millions of dollars, and I don't care that owners can make billions of dollars.  I hate that it's so expensive to go to a game, with tickets, parking, and concessions, but I get a choice there and that choice is to watch it on a large HD TV in my living room instead.  Anyways, even if players didn't make that kind of money, owners are still going to charge as much as fans are willing to pay, and stadiums are sold out, so that's that.

My problem is about the fact that NFL owners and players can't just all get happy and the negative public image that causes about the greatest sport in this country - football.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average American earned $43,460 in 2009.  I didn't do the math, but my guess is that the average cost of living to go with that was probably more than half of that.  So, who thinks the average American wants to hear about an NFL lockout due to salaries and other financial complaints?  Let's see. . .

In 2009, the average base salary for an NFL player was $990,000.  The minimum NFL salary was $310,000.  Of course, that means that out of the 53 players on each team's roster, the 53rd player made at least $310,000.  That's a lot of money.  Maybe the NFL owners have a legitimate complaint.  Well, according to the USA Today, in September 2009, the average NFL team value was over $1 Billion.  Value takes into account things like players' salaries.  That means that AFTER owners pay their players, their teams are still worth over $1 Billion.

Hey,  if all these guys want to fight about money, I'm not mad.  I just think they should get behind a closed door and get a deal done. People who make $43,000 per year just don't want to hear about it.