Upshaw Offers Different Opinion From Tagliabue’s “Dead End”

Upshaw Does Not Agree With Tagliabue’s Assessment Of Talks

NFLPA Exec Dir Gene Upshaw Wednesday “offered a far more optimistic view” of CBA negotiations between the NFL and NFLPA than NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue’s indication that the league was “at a ‘dead end’ in talks with” the union, according to Leonard Shapiro of the WASHINGTON POST. Upshaw: “I think we have an opportunity to get a deal done. ... The problem they’re having is what they consider the revenues that should be shared between themselves.” Upshaw added, “We’d like for something to happen soon. All we have to do is agree on a term sheet, we don’t have to do all the detail work. ... We have time for that.” Shapiro writes Tagliabue “backed off a bit Wednesday from his ‘dead end’ comment.” Tagliabue: “There are different ways of finding some additional revenue sharing and arriving at target levels to assure that all clubs can operate successfully under the strict demands of the salary cap. ... The priority is to resume the discussion and get a common understanding of the economics and move forward” (WASHINGTON POST, 3/24). The AP’s Barry Wilner notes Tagliabue scheduled a “special session” for April 19 in Atlanta “to try to keep the progress” of current CBA talks going. Tagliabue: “I think there is a consensus there’s a need for some new readiness within the league to address the issue of cost sharing and revenue sharing” (AP, 3/24).

Not Enough Progress Being Made For Richardson

MAKING PROGRESS? Panthers Owner Jerry Richardson said, “I’d like to say we’ve made a lot of progress this week, but I don’t see that we have” (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 3/24). Texans Owner Bob McNair: “If we can determine what our plan of action is internally then we can go to the union and say, ‘Look, this is where we’re going and this is what we want you to do.’ This is something that needs to be dealt with now. If we wait too long we might have missed an opportunity” (WASHINGTON TIMES, 3/24).

SHOW ME SOMETHING: In L.A., Billy Witz writes “many of the league’s owners seem rather blasé about the prospect” of the NFL announcing a site for a new L.A. stadium in two months. One team exec said, “I don’t sense any enthusiasm for any of these sites.” Steelers Owner Dan Rooney said of enthusiasm for an L.A. franchise, “I’d like to see it from everybody, really the public. Do you want a team? Or is it a few guys (who) want a team and they’re trying to buy it” (L.A. DAILY NEWS, 3/24).

PROGRAMMING: Tagliabue said that the NFL splitting the Sunday night package, which is currently on ESPN, between Fox and CBS is “among the scenarios we’re talking about” (ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER, 3/24). The AP noted the league’s “desire to have some flexibility in moving games from the afternoon to prime time,” and added that such changes “work far better when they are Sunday afternoon to evening rather than Sunday to Monday night.” Tagliabue also indicated that he “would like to see NFL Network involved as a carrier of live regular-season games,” noting that the net could be an option for the Thursday night/Saturday night package (AP, 3/23).