There will be no full NFL season this fall. For real.
The NFL Owners and NFL players association couldn’t agree on a new collective bargaining agreement today, so that will result in a lockout and possibly halting NFL play for the first time since 1987.
To Continue...
"We met with the owners until about 4 o'clock today," NFLPA head DeMaurice Smith said. "We discussed a proposal they had presented. At this time, significant differences continue to remain. We informed the owners that ... if there was going to be a request for an extension, that we asked for 10 years of audited financial information to accompany that extension."
The Owners attempted a last ditch effort to complete a new CBA, but in the end, was all in vain.
Here are some details of that last ditch effort…
— Creating a rookie wage scale in which money saved would be paid to veterans and retired players.
— Maintaining the 16 regular-season games and four preseason games for at least two years, with any changes negotiable.
— Creating new full time health and safety rules.
— Establishing a fund for retired players, with $82 million contributed by the owners over the next two years.
— Financial information of individual teams such as profitability was not disclosed to the players, but would be if this proposal was accepted.
Players such as Peyton Manning and Dree Brees just filed an anti-trust law against the NFL, which will most likely result in a length court fight that could (and probably will) impact the 2011 season.
"No one is happy where we are now," NFL lead negotiator Jeff Pash said. "I think we know where the commitment was. It was a commitment to litigate all along."
Well Jeff, me and the rest of America aren’t very happy either.
Reach Nathan Parsons at nathanparsons98@yahoo.com
