We are starting to see reports that the NFL and the players union are making progress in their negotiations on a new collective bargaining agreement.
I can only hope this is true.
I keep reminding myself that up until this point, there really haven’t been any surprises in the stalemate. I have to believe both sides knew that in mid-June the process would likely be exactly where it has turned out to be.
The owners knew that Judge Nelson in Minneapolis would probably side with the players. The players union knew that the 8th Circuit would likely be more favorable to the owners.
Now, however, it’s game on.
I hope I’m correct in believing that no one-the league, the owners and the players-want any part of the season impacted by the labor situation. I understand that the labor issues are real and they are critical. The importance of those issues cannot and should not be minimized.
At the same time, the time to get something done without any impact to the season is drawing closer. No, it’s not time to panic. But it is time to get down to serious business.
Thankfully, it appears that both sides are doing that.
It doesn’t surprise me at all that just at the time when the calendar dictates higher stakes, the negotiations seem to kick into a higher gear. The two sides are pretty much at the point that they have to get serious unless they want to risk losing some portion of the season. If that were to happen, we all know the financial price to pay would be astronomical.
Again, I’m only speculating, but I don’t think anyone wants to pay that price.
It is usually a tricky proposition to know exactly what to believe in situations such as these. Both sides are trying to present their positions in as positive a light as possible and both sides are trying to simultaneously justify their positions.
That is all part of the process and to this point, I haven’t become too worked up about the process. What does concern me is the eventual outcome. Like everyone, I am hoping that recent developments point more towards a timely settlement than a fall without football.
I’m keeping my fingers crossed that this is, indeed, the case.
Are you optimistic that the two sides will reach an agreement in time to allow for the entire season to be played? Or are you more pessimistic than that?
Thanks for reading and posting your thoughts.
Sincerely,
Mike
Tags: NFL Labor
Mike, excellent thoughts. I too hope that this is settled in a timely manner so the season is not impacted more than it already has been. I also know that the ones that will end up paying in the end will be us fans. If the owners have to give up more money, then they will just raise the prices more to compensate. That is how it has always gone, and will always go. That is business, and their business is football. We fans just have to pay dearly to enjoy it.
Ho – hum … wake me when it’s over …
Thanks Mike for your input. I`m pretty optimistic that a new CBA gets agreed upon by both sides and signed. Right now it`s looking positive that the NFL gets started in week 1 come September. I`m especially all for the rookie scale to be cut down drastically. The monies they make are rediculous and are unproven players out just out of school, crazy I think.
If a CBA doe`s get agreed upon in the near future then the next step is signing FA and our draftees. I`m eager to see who we sign in FA. I need to remind myself, lets not put the cart before the horse. This deal isn`t signed just yet, but I`d say that there is a light at the end of the tunnel.
Mike,
Im now “cautiously optimistic” about having a full regular season.
But a lot of the football season has already been lost and unfortunately that doesn’t bode well for bottom of the barrel teams with new management and coaching staff, mainly like us, so it’s a big bummer for 2011 whether we have a full regular season or not.
I guess you could call that “utterly pessimistic”.
So overall my feeling about 2011 is “frighfully realistic”.
That about sums it up for me, LOL.
BTW, thanks strand for mentioning “new blog”, always helpful.
Weatherman, I hear you about the fans will get shafted even more as time goes.
A simple look at some of what they are talking about in the latest proposal will suffice to understand that.
They expect the revenue to double between now and 2016 from 9 billion to 18 billion annually!!!!
Of course most of that will happen through TV revenue and not ticket prices but just try to imagine what the Direct TV package might end up costing!!!! I remember it at $149.95, now it’s over $300 I think, outrageous and it’s just getting started.
This League is like the Romans’ lifestyle before their empire crumbled, something to think about, not just for this league but this governement too, haha.
Good stuff Bay. Your welcome.
Thats why guys like us go to sports bars to watch our game and on 50″ screens or plus.
That and draft beer, LOL.
I fully agree bay, but, who do you think is paying the money to the TV? We are of course. It is called getting their revenue through the advertisers, who are getrting their revenue from us through the purchase of their product. So, it is still hitting us hard. I don’t know about anybody else around the country but here where I live a gallon of milk is now about $5.00 a gallon. Either way we go…we are getting screwed.
Also bay, I am NOT harping at you, and I have absolutely no intention for tjhis to look or sound that way. I am just speaking about this in general.
Amen to that.
Taking no offense whatsoever since you are so right weatherman, it all funnels down to the little man and eventually we pay for it to make the ones at the top richer. Who would of thought that one day both gas and milk would cost around $5 a gallon???? And some wonder why we can’t seem to get out of this economic slump….
No way they will ever get to 18 billion revenue by 2016, they’ll be lucky if they keep up with inflation, anything else would be a farce and an insult to all of us fans, just saying.
Financially in these given times it’s already a farce.
Can these trying financial times get any worse. lol
If NFL footballl is your hobby, of course it will, LOL.
Just think back when this all started. All the owners and players associations could talk about was doing this and that for the fans. I am not hearing any of that now. Seems the fans have been sent to the porch! The money has taken the front seat, and really, I guess it should since that is what the bottomline is anyway. The all american dollar.
BEER DRINKERS BE READY! Concession beer going to $30.00 per CUP!
That better be a big arse cup, haha.
I have hope that a new deal will be reached soon. It’s looking really optimistic right now with the talks I am hoping that the article was close to right with no major dissagreements from the owners and the players coming up with the deal I think they are finally finding common ground to work with.
Dang, hopefully it`s a keg for that price. Down right nuts! lol
Just wait and see. And they will cut the size down from 16 oz. to 12, or the 12 oz. down to the 8 oz. You can bet you are not going to get any extra. They will do this just like the food processors and packagers. They have cut the size of packaging down and still raised the prices. Go figure.
Pretty soon there will be no item on the board at the games costing the consumer less than $10.00. And they will do this just because they can. They care about the fans. Just we wait and see. It is coming.
Actually what they need to do is put a salary cap on everybody. Perfsonally I don’t think that there is any player worth what some of these guys are getting.
Have a good evening guys. Gotta cut out. Start my day all over again at midnight.
Im keeping my fingers crossed too Mr. Rice.
With that said, I will not be giving the NFL, or anything NFL related, one cent for one year after a deal is reached. We all know this is just about money. Not once have either parties considered their “revenue source” in these matters. Outside of the Rodger Goddell and his chats with season ticket holders.
My opinion is- It should have never got to this point. Especially with the shape of the economy.
GO BRONCOS in 2011!!!!!!!!!!! Return of the Mile-High Magic
if there’s a season of course
Surprised I havent seen it posted.
http://www.nfl.com/news/story/09000d5d8206f096/article/affidavit-to-detail-sexualassault-charges-vs-broncos-cb-cox?module=HP_headlines
Interesting charges on Cox, I ain’t saying what I’m thinking, they’ll be after me next. LOL
If guys would stop buying the overpriced junk the NFL and teams are selling to fans maybe the cost of being a fan would get to a reasonable level. I’ve been a fan for a long time, look at the prices they charge and say I can do without. I’ll enjoy the game just as much if I’m not wearing a Tebow jersey. Either quit forking out the cash on overpriced products or quit your whining. Just saying…..
That’s EXACTLY what I intend to do imready.
From overpriced parking. Overpriced game tickets. Overpriced concessions. Overpriced jerseys, including all other forms of apparel. Hats, tees, sweaters or fleece lined jackets. No overpriced memorabilia. No overpriced HOF trips, even if Shannon Sharpe is getting inducted. No overpriced Sunday Ticket. I’m not stopping there. I’ve already informed my family I will not be accepting any NFL licensed product as a gift. I’ve decided against participating in my fantasy football league this year and no Vegas sanctioned wagers. I shall not purchase any officially endorsed NFL product either. What ever brands those may be. Soft drinks, alcoholic beverages, snack chips etc.
That’s my boycott. And if I come across as whining, well, I’m no different than the players and owners whining over OUR billion dollars. Well make that 999,994,999 dollars.
That’s a lot better than whining, hats off to you sndvl, I know that this is a plan you have laid out a while back but I love the fact that you are still planning on going all the way with it for a year after the deal is reached, if everyone did what you will do the League and players would definitely pay it notice.
I personally hope their projection of revenue doubling to 18 billion annually in 2016 is a complete miscalculation and that if the players sign this deal for less percentage money that they used to get simply because of the expected revenue increase projections, as it is reported, will turn out to be a complete slap in their faces long term, haha.
I know part of the players willing to take a lesser percentage is because the owners are backing off the one billion off the top thing, but as reported by Mortensen “Players believe they can justify a 48 percent take because of the projected revenue growth” is like the main reason they are agreable to this. And the owners through Goddell is probably who talked them into believing the next 5 years will be so rosy, LOL, that’s when you can really see who are the men and who are the boys in these negotiations.
Either way I could care less, both parties take advantage of the fans, I know it, but I don’t really care, I just want to watch football, and I’ll do it without financially supporting it a la sndvl. The first moneys I’ll spent is at the end of next Summer when we go to orange jerseys and I’ll get me one of those with “TWELFTH MAN” on it, just like my current navy one, that way I never have to buy new jerseys when a player jumps ship, only when we change colors, and that ticks me off that we will. I may be stupid, but only to a point, LOL.
sndvl, I dont think I can stay away from fantasy football but I am with you on pretty much everything else. Thats alot man. Alot of thought before u do or buy things. More power to you. Wish more fans would do even a fraction of what you plan to do. TRB out…
I’m in New Mexico fighting wild fires and don’t have much time to waste on wether or not the NFL will “$h!+” or get off the proverbial POT!
I hope for a full and fun season and I think that could and will happen!
GO BRONCOS!!!
I’m ready for all the lawyers and judges to go away and for FOOTBALL to RESUME!!!
Fantancy football would be just a waste of time for me. I got better things to do than waste my time with all that garb. I might as well play video games. NOT!!!!
to each his own dude….TRB out….
I think they will get a deal done. I only hope that they include the rookie wage scale. The rookies need to earn their money and the vets need to make more since they have already put their blood, sweat and tears into the game already. I am tired of the million dollar busts.
TRB actually back on! It’s been a while buddy….
true2broncos – are you fighting the fire near the CO/NM border or the Wallow Fire on AZ/NM border? Stay safe man… not much you can do when the fire jumps the fire line, but clear out.
Yet more interesting info on the cba talks, the time table of it and the repercussions it will have on FA:
A source on the owners’ side and two others indicated that getting past the owners on Tuesday was the major obstacle. On Wednesday, the players will hold their own meeting in Boston and then are expected to meet with owners later in the day and again Thursday to continue hammering out the deal.
“At this point, you could probably have the terms drawn up by Friday if you wanted to really hurry the process, but two weeks is probably more realistic,” said the source on the owners’ side. “Two weeks for the paperwork is pretty reasonable.”
There are other steps along the way. For instance, all of the parties involved will have to meet with Minnesota District Judge Susan Richard Nelson to seek preliminary settlement of the class-action lawsuits brought by current players such as Tom Brady(notes), Drew Brees(notes) and Peyton Manning(notes) and former players such as Eller. After that, the league will have the NFL Players Association recertify as a union and the owners will have to reconvene to give the agreement final approval. Given all those steps, the July 15 date starts to look more and more realistic.
“You’d like it to be as early as possible,” one team executive said. “Like I said before, I’d like to get started this week, but we know that’s not happening. The way everybody seems to be talking, mid-July is what we’re all hoping for.”
What that means is free agency figures to be fast and furious. The basic rules of free agency aren’t expected to change, meaning that players with at least four years of experience who are not currently under contract will become unrestricted free agents.
That means players such as Nnamdi Asomugha(notes), Antonio Cromartie(notes), Santonio Holmes(notes) and DeAngelo Williams(notes) will head one of the deepest classes of free agents in NFL history. The depth of free agency is primarily because so many players from 2010 weren’t allowed to hit the market when the rules changed, requiring players to have at least six years of service before becoming unrestricted free agents.
While the depth of this free-agent class is subject to debate, the important part is that free agency may soon start, replacing the boring details of a labor dispute.
That’s our power sndvl, shutting them down. Unfortunately, there aren’t enough people that will tell them to shove it to make a difference in their behavior. Amazing, the way the NFL thanks it’s fans for their loyality is to constantly extort more money out of them. My wife and I have been talking about it for a while and I don’t think it will be long before we pull the plug on Dish Network. I’ll put an antenna up and get the games that are broadcast locally and that will be the end of that. We’ll buy movies and programs that we want to watch. They charge us $85/month for lousy programing with more and more commercials every year, especially during football games. Makes me want to puke. I’ll get my sports news online and be happy. I’ll miss watching the Nuggets more than anything. I’ve become a big fan since the arrival of George Karl.
I used to be a big Nugget fan under skywalker Thompson, Alex English and Dan Issel the missile, they kind of lost me after that. Now that’s old school, haha.
It has baylin. Had alot going on my end and with slow football news just faded. Still drop by time to time and read, especially after I have read an interesting article that im sure people will be talking about. Glad things are “looking up” with the cba. When things get rolling again. Im sure ill be back on. Hope everyone is well. TRB out….
true2broncos-Good luck man and stay safe. Been there—done that (back in my younger days). May the Lord send weather your way to give you guys a big hand at getting those fires out.
Who was it that posted, many, many moons ago, when this cba thing got started that it would be middle July or early August before this was settled and we could get back to talking Bronco football instead of this cba? Whomever that was, I would like to talk to them and get some predictions about the future of the economy, because they seem to know the future pretty well!
http://m.denverpost.com/denverpost/db_19980/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=pHMK695q&src=cat
Woody posted an article about the Bronco/Ram ownership trade we talked about the other day. Pretty insightful comments. If my link doesn’t work it’s because I’m doing this on my phone, but you can find the article on the Denver Post website.
Wow, that was a mouthful!
To think that Mr. Bowlen will NEVER sell the team is however farfetched.
Even with Mr Bowlen saying he will own the Broncos when they take him out in a box since it’s the wise thing to say, for the fans, Denver and the Broncos.
Everything is for sale for the right price.
But Woody did make some very good points about the Rams/Broncos trade rumor being bogus.
The main thing I got this week is Mr Bowlen was present at the last owners’ meeting which is always nice to know he is healthy enough to participate.
Wishing you good health Mr Bowlen!
Very happy to see that Woody thinks as little of Brady Quinn as I always have which got me into a lot of heated discussions (Quinn has some very dedicated fans here which I never understood, to each his own…):
If the agreement is signed and camp starts on time, there will be competition between Orton and Tebow. Brady Quinn never will be the starter here. He needs to go somewhere else. His passes are not accurate, and he doesn’t have command of the game, and he’s not a guy who can do something when the play breaks down. There’s the accurate assessment. If you had nobody else, you’d probably give him a chance. But Cleveland tried him, and didn’t like him, and the Broncos didn’t think a lot of Quinn when he got here.
Amen.
And Woody can’t stop making me feel good today since I have said for a very long time that Fox might bring Delhomme here to replace Orton as the vet QB utilized to back up Tebow (hi Woody!):
Truth is, the Broncos don’t think that much of Orton, and McDaniels was only willing to keep him around until Tebow developed, or busted. And these Broncos aren’t sure about Tebow yet. If the competition is based on running plays in practices, Orton probably will win the competition as he did last year. He looks great in practices and can throw the ball exactly where it’s supposed to go. He works hard and knows the playbooks. Tebow always looks more raw in practices, and his passes aren’t as sharp as Orton’s. You really can’t practice, as I’ve said before, what Tebow does best.
It was a learning experience last year for him. He hadn’t worked under center, and he didn’t know the complicated offensive system that well. The three games of starting and the year of growth and his off-season work ethic will make a difference. If Tebow is named the starter, Orton will demand out. The Broncos will trade him, and I just feel that they may bring in Jake Delhomme . Fox and McCoy loved him. Fox got rid of him last year for Delhomme’s sake. I know that for a fact.
Delhomme had all those interceptions the year before and the struggles in the playoffs, and Fox didn’t want to put him through another year in Carolina. I think Fox would love to have him come here and back up Tebow and help with Tebow’s development.
This illustrates the degree of difference there is between the local Denver media who has clear insights into the team and the National media who has none, by La Canfora:
“Trade Or No Trade”
I’ll select a few of the more high-profile players who have been the subject of trade rumblings, rank the odds of a trade on a highly scientific scale (very likely/likely/not likely) and then give a snippet of what the compensation could look like on the other end.
Kyle Orton
Up next after Kolb, friends, is Orton, another QB. And this one is coming off a strong season and is someone who has proven he can help you win some games. Tim Tebow might be the future in Denver, though, and like Kolb, Orton is in the final year of his deal, too.
Odds: Unlikely.
The skinny: Despite Tebow mania sweeping the country and a segment of the Broncos’ fanbase, Orton by far gives the team its best chance of winning games now … something the Broncos haven’t done an awful lot of lately. It would take a lot to pry him away (starting in the second-round level), and team officials doubt that kind of demand will be there. If it materializes, the Broncos will listen but I’d be surprised given this unusual offseason if he’s not their opening-day starter.
Don’t know if this has been posted or not:
http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=16&ved=0CI8BEBYwDw&url=http%3A%2F%2Faol.sportingnews.com%2Fnfl%2Fstory%2F2011-05-06%2Farizona-cardinals-ask-about-kyle-ortons-availability&rct=j&q=kyle%20orton&ei=0UIDTseiCYTHgAeejY2WDg&usg=AFQjCNEBJHILlvvWprUOa0VSi926dtuUMg&cad=rja
Thanks BFE, it has been known for quite a while now that Kolb is Arizona’s plan A and Orton plan B. Still think Miami would be a good spot for him though.