Thursday's votes could end 4 month lockout

[SCMom]

As NFL owners gathered for their meeting in Atlanta, their lead negotiator, Jeff Pash, said he expected the league and its players to continue working toward separate Thursday votes on a new collective bargaining agreement that would end the four-month-old lockout.

"It's obviously a complicated agreement, but I think both sides are at the point where they can close, they should close, and we should be in a position to take votes," Pash said Wednesday.

The 32 player representatives did vote Wednesday at the NFL Players Association's headquarters in Washington, but it wasn't the type of vote that was expected. Instead of simply approving the draft that lawyers and staff had been working on for the last month, the reps conditionally passed it to the Brady plaintiffs, sources told NFL Network reporter Albert Breer.

In other words, the proposal will go to the 10 plaintiffs involved in the Brady antitrust case only if the league meets certain conditions in settling that piece of litigation, and also the TV rights fees case, in which players accused owners of setting up a $4 billion lockout-insurance fund.

"We still have a lot of work to do," Atlanta Falcons offensive lineman Tyson Clabo told The Associated Press as he left the nearly 10-hour meeting.

The players also empowered NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith, their legal counsel and the 13-man executive committee to work out the remaining issues, according to sources. One is the players' pursuit of $320 million in benefits lost as part of the 2010 uncapped-year rules, which were negotiated in the 2006 labor deal.

The good news is, outside of a few minor issues, the players were amenable to terms that would serve as a new labor deal, should the NFLPA re-certify as a union. The Brady plantiffs -- which include quarterbacks Tom Brady, Peyton Manning and Drew Brees -- also would have to sign off for any settlement to be reached.


More here...http://www.nfl.com/news/story/09000d...headline_stack


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Keeping my fingers crossed. I want football for my birthday!

[pete74]

i really hope its over tonite. im sick of hearing about it and just want things back to normal. hopefully the Brady vs The NFL dosnt hold shit up or im really going to hate all those guys

[steeltheone]

I'll be very happy to see the rookie cap...

[SCMom]

Well...to no surprise, the owners have OK'd the new labor deal in a 31-0 vote (Oakland abstaining).

Key aspects of the proposal include:

» An agreement that covers the 2011 through 2020 seasons, including the 2021 draft.

» Reducing the offseason program by five weeks and reducing organized team activities from 14 to 10; limiting full-contact practices in the preseason and regular season, and increasing number of days off for players.

» Rookie wage scale to include four-year contracts for all drafted players (option for five years on first-rounders), three-year contracts for undrafted free agents, and strong anti-holdout rules.

» Creation of a new fund to redistribute, beginning in 2012, savings from new rookie pay system to current and retired player benefits and a veteran player performance pool.

» Unrestricted free agency for players after four accrued seasons; restricted free agency for players with three accrued seasons.

» Over the next 10 years, additional funding for retiree benefits between $900 million and $1 billion. The largest single amount, $620 million, will be used for a new "Legacy Fund," which will be devoted to increasing pensions for pre-1993 retirees.

» Salary cap plus benefits of $142.4 million per club in 2011 and at least that amount in 2012 and 2013.


There has already been a game lost...the Aug. 7th Hall of Fame game (day after my birthday...guess I don't get my wish) between the Bears and Rams because the timing would be too tight.

If the players sign off on it, they can return to team facilities on Saturday.

DeMaurice Smith just doesn't make it sound promising though. He still has the tone of doom and gloom about him. Here's the e-mail he sent the players.

"As you know the Owners have ratified their proposal to settle our differences. It is my understanding that they are forwarding it to us. As you may have heard, they apparently approved a supplemental revenue sharing proposal. Obviously, we have not been a part of those discussions. As you know from yesterday, issues that need to be collectively bargained remain open, other issues such as workers compensation, economic issues and end of deal terms remain unresolved. There is no agreement between the NFL and the Players at this time. I look forward to our call tonight."

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/09000d..._breaking_news


Just sign the damn paper already. Seriously.

[Farrior_roirraW]

Originally Posted by SCMom

Just sign the damn paper already. Seriously.

This.

F.UCKING COME ON.

[Atlanta Dan]

Peter King's story this evening indicates someone is off message

In less than two hours Thursday, euphoria over the 38-month labor dispute between NFL players and owners being over began turning sour....

That was apparent with the sending of an email from the union's veteran general counsel, Richard Berthelsen, to the board of player representatives late Thursday night. The tone in the email, obtained by SI.com and other media outlets, was harsh enough to suggest an agreement to end the labor war could be far away. He said the deal "would in my view violate federal labor laws ... [prohibiting] employers from coercing their employees into forming a union. Those laws prohibit employers from coercing their employees into forming a union, and could result in any Agreement reached through the procedure being declared null and void."

Berthesen went on to write the proposal gives the three days (next Wednesday through Friday) "to bargain any changes to the old CBA, with the new CBA becoming final on Saturday, July 30.

"If the NFL does not agree to the players' proposed changes," wrote Berthelsen, "the old CBA terms on benefits, discipline, safety, etc. will remain unchanged for another 10 years."...

A weekend of mayhem appears certain. That's the only certainty on the immediate horizon for the NFL

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/201...&sct=hp_t11_a1

[Kingmagyar]

Does anyone else think that the 32 player reps seem very Egotistical with comments like...

"We have no time line"
"We will sign when we get the best deal for the players"
"We won't be intimidated to reform our union."

I don't hear them mentioning fair deal ever. Just the best deal. And As far as no time line they better wake up and realize the moment the owners start losing more pre-season games this proposal that seems more then fair will be off the table.

If some minor things like mentioned above still need to be negotiated then get it done on Friday and lose the damn arrogance. The owners are treating the players like business partners and the players are still treating the owners like enemies.

If the Steelers weren't so close to competing for another Super Bowl I would want the owners to lock them out the entire year and then see where their Egos go next year at this time. The NHL missed an entire season and the following year the owners got everything, I mean everything they wanted in the new CBA. The players bent over and kissed their butts so they wouldn't lose another year of lost income.

This thing could be resolved by Monday but I feel like venting about the Arrogance and combative nature the Player's association has had all through this thing. And yes I know they were the ones locked out, but the CBA had the opt out clause in it if the owners weren't happy. And current and retired players are already getting more in this deal then ever before in the history of the league. It's a great deal. Take it! ...or Leave it...

[BIGNASTY91]

I have been giving both sides the "benefit of doubt" these past couple weeks, and last night i thought it would be over. I am to the point now (like almost everyone else) that i am pissed and ready for some football!!!! Sign the damn paper's and lets play. You are getting pretty much everything you wanted already. It's called bargaining you dont get everything you want, you have to take the good with the bad!!

[SCMom]

What a giant clusterfu.ck this has become.

The players are acting like they're being held at gunpoint to sign this deal because the league released a tentative schedule. TENTATIVE! That was all based on if the players signed off on the same deal the owners did. The owners are giving them until Tuesday though to read through it all, have themselves a vote and decide if they want to recertify and sign off on it.

And now there's talk of the NFLPA suing the NFL for coercing them into forming a union? Are you freaking kidding me?

http://twitter.com/#!/SalSports

Think about this for a second. A trade organization is suing an employer because said employer wants the organization to UNIONIZE!

Just all this greed...makes me sick. At least I still have a hockey season to look forward to in September.

[TRH]

Originally Posted by Kingmagyar

Does anyone else think that the 32 player reps seem very Egotistical with comments like...

"We have no time line"
"We will sign when we get the best deal for the players"
"We won't be intimidated to reform our union."

I don't hear them mentioning fair deal ever. Just the best deal. And As far as no time line they better wake up and realize the moment the owners start losing more pre-season games this proposal that seems more then fair will be off the table.

If some minor things like mentioned above still need to be negotiated then get it done on Friday and lose the damn arrogance. The owners are treating the players like business partners and the players are still treating the owners like enemies.

If the Steelers weren't so close to competing for another Super Bowl I would want the owners to lock them out the entire year and then see where their Egos go next year at this time. The NHL missed an entire season and the following year the owners got everything, I mean everything they wanted in the new CBA. The players bent over and kissed their butts so they wouldn't lose another year of lost income.

This thing could be resolved by Monday but I feel like venting about the Arrogance and combative nature the Player's association has had all through this thing. And yes I know they were the ones locked out, but the CBA had the opt out clause in it if the owners weren't happy. And current and retired players are already getting more in this deal then ever before in the history of the league. It's a great deal. Take it! ...or Leave it...

this is making me SICK. Its become the apparent that the players don't even want to negotiate or budge. I thought both sides would start conceding a bit, but apparently not. The owners own the *&*^( teams and i don't have a problem with them seeing the majority of the money.
Plus some of the changes being thrown about will no doubt....without question...hurt, if not ruin, the game. At this point, the owners need to stand firm and not sign any deal less than what they put on the table. Period.
Unions = have ruined modern day america, end of story.
I never thought it would come to this or that i would say this, but i'm VERY QUICKLY losing interest in this and the NFL as a hole. I'm starting to look to life/interests without football being one of my interests.