NFL and NFLPA reps have been "addressing the central economic issue in their labor negotiations -- the split of revenue between the sides -- as they attempt to complete a deal" for a new CBA that "would extend beyond" the '20 season, according to Mark Maske of the WASHINGTON POST. Sources said that league owners and the NFLPA have been "discussing proposals that would give the players" about 48% of league revenue under the salary cap. Sources added that it would be a "slight increase from the players' current share of revenue under the existing 10-year CBA," which is set to expire after next season, and is "in the range of what the owners have believed would be necessary to complete a deal." A source said the sides continue to make "incremental" process toward a potential agreement. However, Maske notes it is "not clear at this point when such slow and steady movement might produce a deal." The next goal, if not by Super Bowl LIV, "would be to have the deal completed by early March," when the new league year begins with the opening of the free-agent market. It is believed that if the split of revenue is resolved, other issues will "fall into place and a deal would be almost certain to be completed." If there is no deal by early March, the negotiating dynamic "could change because the players must elect new leadership at their annual NFLPA meetings that month" (WASHINGTON POST, 1/6).
NOT A GREAT SIGN: In DC, Norman Chad writes under the header, "The Dearth Of Black Coaches In The NFL Is A Problem That Somehow Still Hasn't Been Fixed." The lack of black head coaches in the NFL is "not just a product of racism." Chad: "We tend to hire people we know, people with similar backgrounds." In a league with no black owners and one black GM, that is a "whole lot of white-only business meetings, golf outings and dinner parties." The Rooney Rule "hasn't delivered results." It is "more like public relations than provocative policy" (WASHINGTON POST, 1/6).
