With a resolution to the NFL lockout seemingly at hand, negotiators for the league and players met Friday in New York to work on final details of an agreement that would put professional football back in business soon.
Most of the heavy lifting in negotiations already had been done, with an accord Thursday on a rookie pay system putting the major economic components of the deal essentially in place. But a list of issues remained to be worked out entering Friday’s meeting, including benefits for retirees and some free agency rules.
An agreement in principle to end the lockout was possible by the end of Friday’s meeting, but might not come for a few days, according to people not involved in the negotiations but familiar with them.
The official end of the four-month lockout will not come even with such a handshake deal, however. Any accord must be approved by owners and players in separate votes. The owners are scheduled to meet Thursday in Atlanta and could take their ratification vote then. At least 24 of the 32 owners must vote in favor to approve the deal.
The players’ vote could be conducted via conference call.
The players’ antitrust lawsuit against the owners also must be resolved. It’s not clear whether formal court approval of the agreement would be required or whether the players could simply withdraw their lawsuit. They sued the owners in federal court in St. Paul, Minn., on March 11, a day before the lockout began. The players, after dissolving their union in March, might have to re-form the labor organization as part of an agreement.
The deal also would be likely to resolve a legal case involving the sport’s television contracts that players won in federal court. They are seeking punitive and compensatory damages of about $2.5 billion.
The two sides are scheduled to meet Tuesday in Minneapolis with their court-appointed mediator, Chief Magistrate Judge Arthur J. Boylan. They could present a deal to Boylan then if the agreement is completed.
Teams are scheduled to report to training camps beginning July 22, and that could proceed unaffected. The St. Louis Rams and Chicago Bears, who play each other in the Hall of Fame game Aug. 7 in Canton, Ohio, are the first two teams scheduled to open camp. The league would have to decide whether to play that game as scheduled.
But the rest of the preseason schedule likely would not be affected. The first round of preseason games for other teams is scheduled for Aug. 11-15. The regular season opener is scheduled for Sept. 8 in Green Bay with the Packers hosting the New Orleans Saints.
NFL officials have said they don’t intend to allow free agency to begin until there is a signed and formally completed collective bargaining agreement. In recent weeks, attorneys for the league and the players have begun drafting contract language and putting the deal into writing.
Teams will have to scramble to sign free agents because there won’t be enough time for a signing period before the Bears and Rams open their camps. Hundreds of players with expired contracts will be eligible for unrestricted free agency. Player signings and trades were put on hold during the lockout.
No comments:
Post a Comment