As a former player, it’s not surprising that former New York Jet Marty Lyons is siding with the players as the NFL lockout continues to linger on.

“The owners have billions of dollars. Can they afford to lose a few million? Without a doubt. I think every NFL owner this is more or less a hobby to them,” Lyons said after being announced as a future member of the College Football Hall of Fame Tuesday. “Then you got the 50 percent of the NFL which is pretty much all quarterbacks or highly paid NFL players making millions and they probably have millions in the bank. Can they afford to lose a few millions in work stoppage? They might.

“But the bottom part of the NFL and some of the players that live pay check to pay check, they are going to struggle. The people that work at all the stadiums every single Sunday, they’re going to struggle. They need to subsidize their incomes by working on Sunday.”

Lyons played 11 seasons for the Jets after being drafted by the team in the first round of the 1979 draft. He played in 147 games for Gang Green, was selected to two Pro Bowls and was a part of the famous New York Sack Exchange. He currently is an analyst for Jets games on ESPN New York 1050.

He said he’s talked to some players during the work stoppage, telling them to stay strong and he said during the season he told players to put their money away because of uncertainty of how long the lockout would last. Lyons said it’s a reminder that football won’t last forever for the players.

“When it’s all said and done, these players and these owners, everybody has to realize that you can always make more money, but what you can’t make is more time,” Lyons said. “For a lot of the players, playing in the NFL, the longer they sit, this could be their last year. There are no guarantees. So let’s get it settled and make sure everybody benefits from it and bring the NFL game back to where it’s supposed to be.”