CantonLegend

the nfl owners have voted unanimously to opt out of labor contract in 2011....this according to Mike and Mike in the morning

hagan714

well enjoy the 2009 season. players will now go back under the 6 year clause before becoming FA. The media has their story for 2009. Monday night football will be worse than ever. The game coverage will be like commercials. This should put a damper on the spygate thing once and for all. the media now has a bigger story to move to the front burner. Spygate to the back burner for simmering now. Man I love this stuff.
A deal will be worked out and the 2010 season will go on. The last strike cost to much money. no way will this be like baseball. Well I hope not.

"We may have lost the game, but you'll be hurting tomorrow." Doug Atkins

CantonLegend

NFL Statement in CBA Early Termination Decision

New Orleans Saints, NewOrleansSaints.com
Tuesday, May 20, 2008 - 8:41 AM



What happened?

The current Collective Bargaining Agreement, initially negotiated in 1993, has been extended on several occasions, most recently in March 2006. The 2006 extension, which could have continued through the 2012 season, gave both the NFL and the NFLPA an option to shorten the deal by one or two years.

NFL clubs today voted unanimously to exercise that option and to continue negotiating a new agreement for the 2011 season and beyond that will work better for both the clubs and the players.

What does this mean to fans and games on the field?

Even without another agreement, NFL football will be played without threat of interruption for at least the next three seasons. The 2008 and 2009 seasons will be played with a salary cap. If there is no new agreement before the 2010 season, that season will be played without a salary cap under rules that also limit the free agency rights of the players. If not extended, the agreement would expire at the end of the 2010 league year.

We are resolved to do our best to achieve a fair agreement that will allow labor peace to continue through and beyond the 2011 season.

What are the issues?

A collective bargaining agreement has to work for both sides. If the agreement provides inadequate incentives to invest in the future, it will not work for management or labor. And, in the context of a professional sports league, if the agreement does not afford all clubs an opportunity to be competitive, the league can lose its appeal.

The NFL earns very substantial revenues. But the clubs are obligated by the CBA to spend substantially more than half their revenues – almost $4.5 billion this year alone -- on player costs. In addition, as we have explained to the union, the clubs must spend significant and growing amounts on stadium construction, operations and improvements to respond to the interests and demands of our fans. The current labor agreement does not adequately recognize the costs of generating the revenues of which the players receive the largest share; nor does the agreement recognize that those costs have increased substantially -- and at an ever increasing rate -- in recent years during a difficult economic climate in our country. As a result, under the terms of the current agreement, the clubs’ incentive to invest in the game is threatened.

There are substantial other elements of the deal that simply are not working. For example, as interpreted by the courts, the current CBA effectively prohibits the clubs from recouping bonuses paid to players who subsequently breach their player contacts or refuse to perform. That is simply irrational and unfair to both fans and players who honor their contracts. Also irrational is that in the current system some rookies are able to secure contracts that pay them more than top proven veterans.

Our objective is to fix these problems in a new CBA, one that will provide adequate incentives to grow the game, ensure the unparalleled competitive balance that has sustained our fans’ interest, and afford the players fair and increasing compensation and benefits.

"deal with it or you can go play the saints and get trounced by 30 and you won't have to worry about it."-colin cowherd

JKool

Good add Canton.

That is pretty clear, and sounds oddly reasonable.

mikesaintfan

I love football and bleed black and gold(even though I was born and raised in NJ...go figure) but could someone break this down for me as to what it will mean for the league with no cap?
will this be like baseball where if a team (like the marlins) from a small market does pull off the unthinkable and wins they will have to scrap the team and start again?

BooBirdSaint

Big loosers... Small Market Teams and Joe Ticket buyer. We all know its a leverage play by the owners to "get back control" from the player union. But in reality in the short term it could hurt small market teams like the Saints. If you ever wanted to give the NFL an excuse to move a franchise/team then this is the play. It's also a convient excuse for the owners to jack ticket prices in order to "stay competitive" in the free agency market. Don't even start on the big new stadiums needed... You'd think in an economy where the word recession is hanging in the air like an errant Rex Grossman pass the two sides could work this out easly.

IT'S GOOOOOD!!!

SapperSaint

This reads like a Lawyer wrote it.

Bad news for fans everywhere.

Money, money, money, money, Mooney... MOONN'AEY

Euphoria

What it means for New Orleans is that we will end up going back to the days of 1-15, 2-14 and a good year if we get 3 wins. lol. New Oreans can't lure the big players who want major money because well New Orleans being a small market team.

Small market teams will not be able to compete day in and day out.

SapperSaint

I guess that means.... "There goes our chance at a dynasty".

Euphoria

Reggie would be gone in 4 years.