[Stingray51]

It's the individual owners who are the real culprits here, and even they don't have a lot of options to deal with this other than benching the malcontents on their rosters.

The owners have absolute control over who is on their rosters and who is on the field. That is all the authority they need. Most of these players are not political kamikazes - if they see another player get cut over a stunt like this, they'll fall in line. But give the players no guidance and it is like the power going out in a big city on a hot night. Most NFL contracts are not guaranteed and even if those that are do not prevent the player from being cut or benched.

[Alberta's Child]

True. But if a player gets cut in the middle of the season then the owner loses out two ways — he has to pay the player anyway, then he has to pay someone else to replace the player.