Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones said his meeting Wednesday in
Washington with five other owners and NFL Commissioner Paul
Tagliabue "did not resolve anything." Jones made these comments
to USA TODAY editors and reporters yesterday, and went on to say
"acute areas" of difference remain between himself and the league
on the issue of outside marketing deals (Larry Weisman, USA
TODAY, 9/29).
NO WAY OUT? SI's Peter King outlines Patriots Owner Robert
Kraft's attempted compromise between NFL Properties and Jones.
Kraft's plan would permit each team to market its own logo "while
keeping 50% of the proceeds and depositing the other half in a
league pool. Each team would be assigned a merchandising quota,
based on market size, that would have to be reached before a club
would then dip into the league pool for its one-thirtieth share
of the proceeds." Kraft believes that the pie at the end "would
be far greater than the $90 million that the 30 clubs will divvy
up this year." King writes that Kraft pushed his idea last week,
but he didn't get far with fellow owners. King: "And that's a
shame. Last week they were calling Jones irresponsible and
reckless, but to not consider the Kraft plan would be the same"
(SI, 10/2 issue). Jones' "war" with NFLP is not "the beginning
of the end of the NFL as we know it," writes Bob Glauber in THE
SPORTING NEWS. Once the issue is settled, owners "can thank
Jones for putting more money in their pockets while not
threatening the long-term future of the sport" (THE SPORTING
NEWS, 10/2 issue).
