CBA progress and leaked info

Steve Wyche of NFL.com predicts that the free agency signing period will be a frenzy that resembles the rush of a midnight opening of an electronics store when the newest high-tech gadget becomes available. "It's going to be insane," predicts a prominent agent who has several highly sought after players.

If a deal is consummated by mid-July, teams would likely be able to sign, cut, and trade players within a week. And all the wheeling and dealing would need to be completed before training camps open in late July or early August. The immediate frenzy to sign free agent could be like nothing the NFL has ever seen before. Though no terms have been finalized for free agency, team personnel and agents anticipate that in addition to five year players and unsigned rookie free agents, players whose contracts have expired and have four years or more experience will become unrestricted free agents. That could mean close to 500 players will be available once a deal is struck, according to a player representative.

Many teams often wait a few weeks for the initial wave of free agency to settle down and the expense of the first-wave of free agency to level off. "They won't have time for that luxury," a league source said. "Those teams are going to be right there from the beginning just like everyone else."

To compound things even further, per this ProFootballTalk story:
NFL general counsel Jeff Pash made it clear that the lockout won’t end with the negotiation of an agreement in principle. Instead, the doors will be unlocked only after the proverbial i’s are dotted and t’s are crossed.

“We would have to make sure the documents were fully drafted and approved, then both parties would have to ratify the agreement,” Pash said, per Judge. “We would have to do it, and the players would have to do it. There is some litigation that has to be dealt with, and so we would have to go before the various courts, and that would obviously [have to happen] on a quickened basis, as the court would hear us and have those lawsuits disposed of and resolved. Then we could open up. . . .

“If both sides are going to commit to certain positions and clubs are going to be signing players, large sums of money are going to be changing hands and players are going to commit to multi-year agreements, you would want to have this confirmed — not just in a general way but down to some fairly specific details. [Because the doors would be opened] you’re not going to want to close them again for either side.”

Florio at PFT listed last week the steps that would be required: "we opined at the time that all of the steps couldn’t be accomplished before the season starts, based in part on my own experiences with the settlement of class actions. Even if the parties can somehow expedite the process, it’s going to take a lot of work to turn things around in time for the first two teams who head to camp on July 22 — the Bears and Rams — to have a fair shake at signing free agents and/or their rookies.

The message to all parties? Get to work. Come early. Stay late. Meet every day. Order food in. Brew coffee.

Tell the lawyers to start drawing up the papers. Alert the judges and arrange for hearing times. If there’s any chance of the lockout being lifted by the middle of July, the foundation for finalizing the deal needs to be put in place now.

It also would help to have an agreement in principle. We’ve previously predicted that the parties will get to the handshake stage by June 30. Given everything that needs to happen from that point forward, June 30 could be too late."
 
This is why I think it gets done by the 4th of July. The earliest camp starts end of July. So a deal by the 4th gives them a couple of weeks to get "I's" dotted and "T's" crossed and get the major FA work done.

With this though.....
First I do believe teh UFA will be at 4 years...but I think they will get to keep Franchise tags, so the 500 will decrease some.
Second, I think they will expand rosters as stated somewhere here before to alot for loss of time. So the "90" number could be in effect.
 
just got this from PFT:

Chris Mortensen of ESPN told 101 ESPN in St. Louis that, once the free-agency frenzy commences, the owners want to have a right of first refusal as to three or four players per team. This would operate essentially as the transition tag, which provides a right to match but no compensation. And, in cases where the current team chooses to match, it means that the team that pursued the player negotiated his new contract with his old team at no charge. (In this regard, it would be wise for the new CBA to deal with the whole Steve Hutchinson “poison pill” thing.)
Also, Howard Balzer of 101 ESPN tells us that teams that didn’t apply the franchise tag to players with four or five years of service want to have the chance to do so.
Click to expand...

So...no transitional tag per say...but teams get to match 2 to 3 players?????
oh, and the teams want shot to do what they did not get done before lockout..... This could be issue for some FAs if they allow that.

This could be interesting....
 
Okay key things I have heard so far...

1) they need to get the deal done this week, so they don't effect pre-season games. We don't care, but owners do as they generate money. (this was why I picked the july 4th date by the by ;) )
2) They do seem to be locked in with 4 years for FA, but the owners are quibling on players that will suddenly be FAs. One site has owners wanting first right of refusal this year for 4th and 5ht year players, players say no. Now supposedly a concession may have been offered of a few day period for teams to get exclusive negotiations.
3) supposedly they were agreed with 48% off the top in a simplified format for paying players, but then owners hedged. Now it may be closer to 46%. That still isn't locked I don't think.
 
Just heard/read that the 8th Circuit Court ruled the lockout is legal. And that officially (was expected) removes the last foot the players had to stand on. Wonder how/if this will change the entrenched discussions that have been going on the last few days.
 
JScott said:
Just heard/read that the 8th Circuit Court ruled the lockout is legal. And that officially (was expected) removes the last foot the players had to stand on. Wonder how/if this will change the entrenched discussions that have been going on the last few days.
Click to expand...

Ouch, don't think this is a good thing. I also have not seen this anywhere. My concern is the owners will push back on some concessions now. I keep hearing they are close. The late hour negotiations looks good.

Key pts still being argured are FAs: Two options I have heard is team gets 3 players for first right of refusal, or a set period to negotiate before FA period starts. But I do keep hearing 4 years is magic number to be FA.
Other is still the money split.
 
More and more reports of an agreement in principle with small details to be ironed out. One report I read (forget who was quoted) said the new CBA has a 40-50% decrease in a Rookie Salary structure. That plus a Team Salary Floor means win-win for veterans. Teams will have to spend a minimum amount of money and it can't go to the rookies. Von Miller might want to have his name stricken from the law suit because the rookies got F'd w/o lube. :yikes:


Note: I do agree that rookie salaries needed a cap/structure
 
There was something about rookies in the fifth year - like their cap went out the window (hell if i know - and my source was the classic rock station this morning :))
 
NFL spokesman Greg Aiello disputes a report from the Chicago Sun Times that the league has already canceled the Hall of Fame preseason game. The Chicago Sun Times stated just a little while earlier that The HOF game was canceled already.
 
Another rumor says that players who were tendered before the lockout will remain tendered even if the rules going forward are different.
 
The NFL and NFLPA continue to inch closer to a resolution on a new CBA, as owners have now agreed they will not put first-right-of-refusal language regarding 2011 free agents in the deal. The free-agent rule had previously stalled negotiations, according to reports. The players were not in favor of allowing such a clause, as many of them were restricted free agents under last year's uncapped season. The league owners were hoping to designate three free agents that they would have the ability to match offers from other clubs. A joint statement from the NFL and NFLPA said both sides will have their legal and financial teams working through the weekend with hopes of coming to a resolution on a new CBA.

Go.......Go......Go!!! :grin:

:popcorn:
 
-- Players Have Secret Lockout Fund --
Fri Jul 15, 2011 --from FFMastermind.com​
SI.com reports from the moment he was elected executive director of the NFL Players Association in March 2009, DeMaurice Smith always took the long view when it came to negotiations with the owners on a new collective bargaining agreement. Hope for the best, plan for the worst. It's one of the reasons that slightly more than a year ago he received approval from the executive committee to secure insurance that would pay each player roughly $200,000 if there were no football in 2011. Smith disclosed the fund to only a handful of people outside of the executive committee. However with negotiations seemingly at a standstill late Wednesday night, the decision was made to play one of their aces in the hole. So in the relative quiet of the sides' New York City bargaining room the next morning, Baltimore Ravens CB Domonique Foxworth informed the owners of the previously secret lockout fund. Was that the shove in the back that moved the sides closer to a potential agreement? Only the owners know for sure, but a source close to one of them said the disclosure definitely got that side's attention. Perhaps as a result, talks moved forward to where they are now, near a possible agreement.
 
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