the owners did their part :) Lets Play

[Patler]

The situation of the last few days is starting to look to me like the result of a minor failing and a miscalculation by the players' leadership/negotiating team. I suspect they did not keep the team reps adequately informed about what was going on and the status of things during the negotiations, then they misjudged the depth the reps would want to get into before voting. Issues that the negotiating team viewed as details that could be resolved later were viewed as big issues by the team reps when presented to them. The team reps began asking questions rather than just rubber stamping what their team negotiated.

I think the last few days have been spent informing the team reps about things that should have been explained to them as the negotiations went on. The NFLPA is playing catchup. Not a big deal, just a few days lost, that's all.

[vince]

I agree. The owners had their shit together, while the players were freaking out and in many cases spewing misinformation.

That's not to say that the antitrust litigation didn't need to be cleaned up, but that should have been ready long ago IMO.

[red]

its amazing that after all the bitching and bellyaching by players over the deal, that now they are saying its fine and that they'll be voting to ratify it in the morning.

it sounds now like it is for sure a done deal, like espn says, the players wouldn't be getting together to vote if they weren't 100% sure it would pass

doors will then be opened on wednesday , and camps should be good to go by this weekend

thank god

[pbmax]

From SI:

Owners approved a tentative agreement to end the four-month lockout on Thursday. But the players said they need more information before they can vote.

On Saturday, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and players association head DeMaurice Smith spoke on the phone, and lawyers from both sides worked to clarify language. That work is not completed, the person said.

Read more: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/201...#ixzz1T2nVY0V6

Also remember, they are working twin tracks. The lifting of the lockout is dependent on the lawsuits being settled and I read elsewhere that they had reached an agreement on the settlement for the TV lockout payment on Saturday (I should say finalized would be a better description). The CBA vote must come after recertification and Goodell and Smith were also said to have been negotiating the terms of what that remaining unsettled terms will look like once the union is back in existence.

But I think you both have a point, whatever disagreements they had were either known in advance or of a small enough scale that the outcry that followed (often by players outside the player rep group) dwarfed the areas of disagreement. The two leaked emails citing the remaining issues didn't help the cause either.

Its also worth noting that Kevin Mawae predicted before Thursday's owner's meeting that there might not be a player vote on either Wed or Thurs. He may have known there would be too much to review (or do) for a vote the same day. So the lack of a vote mostly surprised the media, who were convinced it was all about to end by Saturday.

[pbmax]

Still a dispute over the opt-out: http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com...pt-out-clause/

And a list of other items they have been negotiating from Saturday: http://www.nfl.com/news/story/09000d...in-labor-talks

However, as mentioned previously, none of these items seems to have been unknown on the previous Wednesday. The second link from Breer and nfl.com says that the vote is more likely to happen Tuesday to recommend the agreement to the entire 32 player reps. I am curious if the timeframe for finalizing a CBA has been extended, since the schedule PFT have published still gives them 2 days at team facilities to vote to reform.

Here is my question: Do the NFLPA and NFL need to vote again once the union is reformed and the CBA finalized? I think that answer would have to be yes. But I haven't read anything about that.

[MJZiggy]

I think Bretsky wrote this:

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/blog/shutdown_corner/post/Ten-ways-the-NFL-can-make-things-up-to-the-fans?urn=nfl-wp3862

[Bretsky]

I think Bretsky wrote this:

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/blog/shu...urn=nfl-wp3862

I AM BUSTED

I wanted to put the Friday Night Lights at #1 but they wouldn't let me !! Janet topless........classic

[MJZiggy]

I thought you'd like that...

[MJZiggy]

VERY nice article on the Krafts and their role in ensuring that the CBA got done.

http://wtop.com/?nid=357&sid=2469083