Chris Thompson   Chris Thompson on the internet

It occurred to me today, as I sat there watching The Replacements, that the film has never been as fitting as it was on this day. From some of the characters, to the story itself, it is almost a tale of real life.

It is a film about professional American football, and there is a disagreement between the players and owners, causing the players to go on strike. The Washington Sentinels, a fictional team, recruit prisoners, bouncers and fishermen to form a team of replacement players, and hilarity ensues.

But it’s a tale of real life because, at present, the NFL is currently in a similar sort of shadow. There is a disagreement between the owners and the Players Association in real life, too. And while it is accepted now that an uncapped year is probably going to happen next year, the prospect of football after next season is filled with worry.

Things will get a bit crazy unless the owners and players come to an extension agreement. There will be no salary cap on player contracts, and after that, if an agreement is still not reached down the line, there could be strikes, or there could even be a lockout: no NFL season whatsoever.

The owners have somehow injected a rule in the current contract that they will get paid, even if there is a lockout. Which seems slightly unfair. And the players don’t want to take a 20% pay cut.

To me, it’s all a little bit ludicrous. When you’re earning tens of millions of dollars – and in some cases, hundreds of millions – what difference does 20% make? You’re still being paid to play the game you love for a living. And even the very worst salaries are the stuff of dreams to us mere mortals.

But then, I suppose, like one character says in The Replaements: do you know how much insurance costs on a Ferrari?