The NFL and NFLPA "met into the night Thursday" in N.Y., and there "still were potential obstacles that could derail negotiations even as the two sides closed in on an agreement on a system to split the NFL’s burgeoning revenues," according to sources cited by Mark Maske of the WASHINGTON POST. Negotiations ended for the day shortly before 11:00pm ET, and the "focus of Thursday’s meeting was the core financial issues beginning with how the league and players will divide the sport’s annual revenues, currently about $9.3 billion and expected to rise sharply in coming seasons." The 10 players who are "named plaintiffs in an antitrust lawsuit against the NFL’s franchise owners were briefed on the talks in a conference call late Thursday with negotiators for the players’ side." The CBA negotiations were "scheduled to continue at least through Friday, with tentative plans to go through the weekend if needed." U.S. Magistrate Judge Arthur Boylan is "scheduled to leave Saturday on vacation, but the talks could continue without him" (WASHINGTON POST, 7/8). On Long Island, Greg Logan reports the two sides "hope to have the framework of a deal in place by Friday night even though details of the revenue split are being negotiated." NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell was joined at Thursday's meeting by Giants President & CEO John Mara Jr., Patriots Owner Robert Kraft, Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones and Chiefs Chair Clark Hunt, while NFLPA Exec Dir DeMaurice Smith's team included NFLPA President Kevin Mawae and "several players" (NEWSDAY, 7/8). However, the impact that the 8th Circuit Court of Appeal's ruling that the lockout is legal on the ongoing talks has yet to be seen (THE DAILY).
PUNCH IT IN THE END ZONE: A league source said that while all the details of a new CBA have not been worked out, Thursday night's call with plaintiffs in the Brady case "was designed to give the plaintiffs a clear idea of where the agreement is headed so that they can make an informed decision about the anti-trust lawsuit which must be settled in federal court prior to the CBA taking effect." One participant in the call said that "little was revealed." The "overlying message was that the sides are close on some areas but not close on others" (ESPN.com, 7/7). NFL.com's Albert Breer cites sources as saying that Thursday was a "very difficult day of negotiations." At times "it was tenuous, and there were frustrations for those involved." Still, the two sides "stayed at it for 12½ hours," meeting until 10:30pm "with a few staying behind to complete wrap-up work and lingering" until about 11:30. Smith said, "We still have a lot of work to do. We spent all day working hard for a deal that is fair and in keeping with what the players deserve" (NFL.com, 7/8). Agent Leigh Steinberg said that he believes a new CBA "would be reached in the next week." Agent Ralph Cindrich "saw it as a promising sign that legal teams spent Wednesday and Thursday working on critical language that would be part of a new agreement" before Goodell and Smith rejoined face-to-face negotiations (USA TODAY, 7/8).
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Many owners are concerned with influence of
Kessler (l) on possibly delaying settlement |
CALLING AN AUDIBLE? In N.Y., Judy Battista cites sources as saying that owners "still have a major concern about the influence of the players’ outside attorney, Jeffrey Kessler." Kessler has "long been the league’s main irritant, in part because of his string of legal victories on behalf of players," and now the league "fears that Kessler is trying to delay a final settlement." Until now, it "was assumed that if an agreement was reached, players would withdraw their antitrust lawsuit and ultimately recertify as a union." But two sources said that Kessler "has pushed in recent talks for a class-action settlement rather than withdrawing the antitrust suit, a legal maneuver that could delay for months a resolution and the start of the season because the league year will not begin until an agreement is signed and approved." That tactic could require Smith "to neutralize Kessler to keep negotiations moving -- perhaps with the help of a handful of influential players." But NFLPA Assistant Exec Dir of External Communications George Atallah said that Kessler "would not stop a deal from being completed" (N.Y. TIMES, 7/8).
REMEMBERING A PIONEER: In Baltimore, Mike Klingaman notes Pro Football HOFer and former NFLPA President John Mackey, who passed away Wednesday, "made the first real headway in the NFL players' fight to earn a more equal share of the pie." As the NFLPA's first president following the NFL-AFL merger in '70, Mackey "quickly aroused the owners' ire." Mackey that July "organized a three-day strike that won the players $11 million in pensions and benefits," and in '72 he "filed and eventually won a landmark antitrust suit that brought them free agency." Ravens GM and Pro Football HOFer Ozzie Newsome said, "All of the benefits of today's players come from the foundation laid by John Mackey" (Baltimore SUN, 7/8). Mackey was elected to the HOF in '92, his final year of eligibility, and in N.Y., Richard Goldstein notes "speculation in the news media suggested that Mackey's role as union president may have irked some members of the voting news media who sympathized with management" (N.Y. TIMES, 7/8). SPORTS XCHANGE's Len Pasquarelli wrote, "The plight of Mackey might not be solely responsible for the conversation devoted these days to head injuries, and their catastrophic ramifications, but it was critical" (SPORTSXCHANGE.com, 7/7).
