Howell reportedly was asked by a union lawyer to consider resigning for conflict-of-interest reasons, but he remains a consultant to the Carlyle Group.

Howell's resignation came after an outside investigator received documents this week showing that Howell charged the NFL Players Association for a pair of visits to strip clubs.

"To find this out after we elected Lloyd is concerning; it feels like it was quashed," a different player rep told a confidant, who shared the comments with ESPN.