NFLPA Stresses Player Health, Pushes Back on 18th Game, and Calls for Consistency in Global Games
SAN FRANCISCO - As Super Bowl week ramps up, the NFL Players Association used its annual media session to reinforce what it sees as its core mission: protecting the health and safety of its players. And this year, that message came with some pointed concerns - from viral theories about electromagnetic fields to the league’s ever-expanding calendar and international ambitions.
Monitoring the EMF Controversy Near Levi’s Stadium
The NFLPA confirmed it’s keeping a close eye on a growing conversation surrounding the power substation located just outside Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara. The theory - which went viral online - links electromagnetic frequencies (EMFs) from the Silicon Valley Power facility to a rise in injuries among 49ers players.
While medical experts have widely dismissed the claim, and the NFL’s chief medical officer Dr. Alan Sills has pushed back on the idea that San Francisco has experienced an unusual number of soft-tissue or tendon injuries, the NFLPA isn’t brushing it off.
“We’re monitoring it,” said interim executive director David White. “We’ve been in contact with the league. We’ve been in contact with our players.”
The substation has been there since 1986, two years before the 49ers began practicing at their current facility. It did undergo expansion when Levi’s Stadium opened in 2014.
Despite the lack of scientific backing, the 49ers are taking the concerns seriously. General manager John Lynch said the organization plans to “look into everything” when it comes to player health - including any potential effects from EMF exposure.
That approach has the support of the NFLPA. Union president Jalen Reeves-Maybin, a linebacker for the Chicago Bears, said the players are looking for data before jumping to conclusions.
“We don’t have a true stance on it,” Reeves-Maybin said. “Everyone wants more data and more feedback.
To make a stance would just be guessing something. No one knows.”
White added that the union views this as a potential workplace safety issue - not just for players, but for all team employees who spend significant time at the facility. While a few players had raised the issue in the past, it gained momentum after a wellness influencer’s post last month reached over 22 million people online.
“Experts have pretty universally said there’s nothing to be concerned about,” White acknowledged. “But what has been stated is very important to us, and we’re following it.”
No Appetite for an 18th Regular Season Game
The NFL’s push to expand the regular season to 18 games continues to face stiff resistance from the players. According to White, there’s no sugarcoating it - the players want no part of it.
“It’s punishing,” White said. “We saw it this year - Week 16, Wild Card weekend - critical contributors going down. That 18th game would only increase the risk.”
He pointed out that with the average NFL career lasting just three to four years, adding another game isn’t just a scheduling tweak - it’s a potential threat to a player’s livelihood and long-term health.
“This isn’t casual for us,” White said. “It’s a very serious issue. As it stands right now, players have been very clear: They don’t have any appetite for it.”
The financial argument - that more games mean more revenue - isn’t swaying the union either. White emphasized that the league and its players are already thriving. The most recent NFL season was the second-most watched in history, and the NFLPA’s marketing arm, Players Inc., is on pace for record-setting revenue.
He also pointed to a recent win for players: $247 million in guaranteed money now allocated to second-round draft picks, exceeding expectations by over $20 million.
International Games: A Global Stage, But Not a Level One
While the NFL continues to grow its international footprint - with games on deck in Australia, Madrid, Paris, and Mexico City - the NFLPA is calling out inconsistencies in how teams handle the logistics of playing abroad.
“Our members appreciate the global stage. They understand the excitement these games generate,” White said. “But the experience hasn’t been consistent.”
The union is hearing a wave of feedback from players who say the international trips have felt arbitrary in terms of preparation and recovery. Some teams fly out several days early.
Others wait until the last minute. Some players stay near practice sites, while others deal with long commutes and jet lag with little time to recover before kickoff.
“It doesn’t matter if they’re playing in Chicago or Sao Paolo,” White said. “The game requires a certain amount of rest, preparation, and restoration. All of that needs to be accounted for.”
The message from the NFLPA is clear: if the league wants to keep expanding its global brand, it needs to ensure that player safety and performance don’t get lost in translation.
From EMF concerns in Santa Clara to the grind of an 18-game season and the jet-lagged journey of international matchups, the NFLPA is drawing a line in the turf. The union isn’t just reacting - it’s pushing for a league where player health isn’t an afterthought, but the foundation of every decision.