National Football League

Reaction to the NFL's new 10-year CBA

Published Aug. 5, 2011 3:40 a.m. ET

foxsports

Reaction to NFL players ratifying a new, 10-year collective bargaining agreement Thursday, putting the NFL officially back in business after a 41/2-month lockout:

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"We can get back to football, can't we? It's awesome. This is a tremendous journey the NFL and the NFL Players Association has gone through. There were tough times. Both sides wanted to get our issues across the board to each other. I think that both sides worked together great, and it was a joint venture to get this thing done and get football back to the fans." - San Francisco 49ers offensive lineman Tony Wragge

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"We have to see if we agree with the (HGH) test. If we agree with the test, then it's legit. If not, they have to come up with another one." - Jaguars cornerback Rashean Mathis

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"I'm a proponent that they can test all they want. I hate the cheating. I don't like guys that feel like they need to cheat to get an advantage. I want it to be something that's reasonable and a reliable test, something that we know is efficient. As long as they do that, I'm all for it." - Cincinnati Bengals player rep Andrew Whitworth

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"I felt like a reject, like I was one of the replacements or something. It was a crazy feeling." - Washington Redskins running back Tim Hightower on having to sit out until the CBA was ratified.

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"I think that both sides had to make compromises. There were things we would have liked to have gotten and we didn't. It's the same thing with the players. That's the way it is. There's give and take in these things." - Pittsburgh Steelers president Art Rooney

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"I signed off because the union and the owners came to an agreement, and that's what the lawsuit was about - fighting for a fair CBA, and that's what we got." - New England Patriots guard Logan Mankins, one of 10 players who sued the league

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"We felt like it was getting shoved down our throats. Our players reps wasn't comfortable with it. We're a strong locker room. We've been through too much. We're not going to just file it away the way other teams do. We do what we want, we make our own rules and we said no." - Pittsburgh Steelers offensive tackle Willie Colon

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"I think all the teams in the league are experiencing the same things in regards to not having any installation in OTAs or in minicamps. Things that you may have introduced back in May or June that you're doing for the very for the very first time now. We're all in the same boat, and that's a part of it. There are going to be some ramifications to that and you have to change the way you approach things, you have to change the way you teach them. But that's just the way it is for every team in our league." - Minnesota Vikings coach Leslie Frazier

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"It's a fair deal. I think if I was happy, then that means the owners would be unhappy. I'm happy we have football. I'm happy we all get an opportunity to play." - Pittsburgh Steelers safety Ryan Clark

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"A lot of guys have hammered Roger (Goodell) about (disciplinary process), and some of the stuff last year was arbitrary and I think he acknowledged that in what he's doing and I think that's been corrected. I think he understands the problem with what was going on last year, and I think it'll get changed this year. I think it'll be more effective and more reasonable." - Tennessee Titans right guard Jake Scott on fines being based on a percentage of a player's weekly salary