NFLPA lawyer who helped trigger FBI probe now on leave over workplace complaints

The NFL Players Association has placed associate general counsel Heather McPhee, whose internal memos helped prompt an FBI investigation into the union’s $2 billion licensing company, on paid administrative leave following multiple workplace complaints, sources told ESPN

McPhee, with the NFLPA since 2009, faces allegations of ignoring supervisors’ directions, bullying colleagues, and disrupting operations, according to five sources with knowledge of the matter. Among those who complained is Matt Curtin, head of NFL Players Inc. and a OneTeam Partners board member.

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The decision, dated Aug. 12 and signed by interim executive director David White, comes as the union weathers simultaneous internal and federal investigations into its finances, governance, and leadership.

From investigator to investigated

Earlier this year, McPhee urged the NFLPA to examine whether OneTeam board members improperly allocated equity shares to themselves. She also accused then-executive director Lloyd Howell Jr. of shutting down an internal audit led by attorney Richard Smith.

Her warnings, along with separate complaints from a former MLBPA official, helped trigger an FBI probe into the NFLPA, MLBPA, and OneTeam Partners, which is 44.5 per cent owned by the NFLPA.

Now, the union has hired outside law firm Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe to investigate McPhee’s own workplace conduct. McPhee and her attorney did not respond to requests for comment.

Union leadership in flux

The NFLPA’s leadership has been under scrutiny for months. Howell resigned July 17 after reports of union funds being spent at strip clubs and his consulting work for a company investing in NFL teams. A special players’ committee hired WilmerHale attorney Ron Machen to review Howell’s tenure.

At the MLBPA, executive director Tony Clark faces an unrelated National Labor Relations Board complaint alleging misuse of funds and nepotism, accusations he denies.

Federal inquiry still active

McPhee has not been granted federal whistleblower status in the FBI investigation and does not have legal protections under that designation. The scope of the criminal probe is unclear, but multiple NFL and MLB players have been contacted by investigators.

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White, a former leader of SAG-AFTRA’s production workers’ division, became interim executive director on Aug. 4 and is managing both internal discipline and cooperation with the federal investigation.