NFL Players Working Conditions Survey Shows Winning Has Nothing To Do With Being Comfortable

INDIANAPOLIS – If you believe in something as inarguable as on-field success, the Kansas City Chiefs are the shining example of what an NFL franchise should aspire to, with consecutive Super Bowl championships and three titles in five seasons.

But if you believe the NFL Players Association and a survey of 1,706 players who answered questions about their teams' working conditions, the Chiefs are an actual mess.

The Chiefs rated 31st of 32 teams, according to the survey of their players, in such categories as ownership, training staff, locker room and training room facilities, travel amenities and the club's treatment of player families.

Oh noes, and here we thought Taylor Swift and Jackson Mahomes were happy.

A viral video TikTok video claims Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are faking their relationship. Watch the video. (Credit: Getty Images)

Chiefs Love Reid, Hate Hunt

Chiefs players gave coach Andy Reid an A. But the same players saddled Chiefs owner Clark Hunt with an F grade. 

And the survey blares the fact the Chiefs are getting worse because their No. 31 ranking (among 32 teams) this year is worse than the No. 29 ranking the club got last year.

So this is interesting. 

Because – unlike most media suggesting the Chiefs have a huge problem – this survey actually suggests working conditions have little actual bearing on whether an NFL team plays well on the field.

Comfort and amenities during the week don't mean squat on game days.

Consider:

The team that did best in the survey is the Miami Dolphins. They got A-grades from their players across the board.

The Dolphins ranked first in cafeteria/food provided, locker room, training room, strength coaches, weight room, team travel, treatment of families, everything.

Stephen Ross is just like all of us: he loves Florida! (Photo by Eric Espada/Getty Images)

Dolphins Owner Stephen Ross Beloved

Dolphins players love their organization and the treatment they receive. That's good, Well done by owner Stephen Ross, who built a new facility that came online three years ago.

But the well-treated Dolphins lost to the ill-treated Chiefs once in the regular season. And then again in the playoffs. 

The Dolphins also lost to the Ravens at the end of the regular-season and were swept by the Bills. The Ravens ranked middle of the road on their player working conditions and the Bills were not in the top 10.

The Dolphins, you'll recall, are the only modern NFL franchise to ever author an undefeated season. The 1972-73 squad was 17-0 and some surviving members of that team annually celebrate when the last undefeated team loses with a champagne toast.

Well, did you know the 1972 Dolphins that did something no other team ever has trained in a facility players considered to be something of a dump? The weight room was basically a glorified closet. It was so small players put weight sets outside.

The locker room was dark. And cramped. And, while Chiefs players complained last year they didn't have chairs with backs for support before getting some this year, those '72 Dolphins had stools.

Wooden stools. 

That's it.

So how did those long-ago Dolphins teams and today's Chiefs overcome working conditions that were an assault on the senses and still, well, kick everybody's butt?

The fact is teams that are often uncomfortable generally play as well as teams that are most comfortable at work.

Teams Low In Survey Made Playoffs

The Browns ranked 23rd in this survey. They made the playoffs.

The Buccaneers ranked 24th. They made the playoffs.

The Steelers ranked 28th. They made the playoffs.

The Ravens, again, a middle of the road team in this survey, had the NFL's best record in the regular season.

And to be fair, teams with good working conditions per the survey, also played well. The Dolphins did make the postseason, as did the Eagles and 49ers.

But did they do that because of their comfort level? Their working conditions?

Or did they make it because, let's see, Tyreek Hill is dynamic, the tush push is unstoppable, and the Niners have perhaps the most talented roster in the league?

The NFLPA survey is a big deal around the NFL today. That makes sense.

There are no games being played today.