Well this is disappointing. I am standing on the 50-yard line (I painted my carpet) of my living room with a football in one hand and a can of champagne (Miller Hi-Life) in the other wearing nothing but a football helmet. I was ready for the NFL to comeback to me, but it appears that I am all dressed up with nowhere to go.
All those timelines, schedules, plans and no doubt a few airline tickets aimed at getting players into their team's facilities were for not—the NFL is still in a state of lockout. The players have yet to vote on the new CBA the owners have already approved. The players chose not to release a public statement—in honor of Myra Kraft RIP—and instead chose to circulate an email, and then leaked it so Adam Schefter of ESPN could make it public.
"Guys, To keep you abreast of the latest developments, we are reviewing the latest proposal for a settlement. Because of the passing of Myra Kraft in Boston, the NFLPA will not be making any public statements in honor of the Kraft family. Our recommendation is for everyone to stay put and keep doing what you are doing where you are doing it. We will meet again on Monday to discuss our options and the direction we want to go. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to contact us. Thanks for your patience. Your Player Reps."
So it appears there will be no deal until the earliest Monday. Or will there? One thing is certain in the NFL lockout, and that is nothing is certain. Adam Schefter tweeted:
Although an email told players that reps would meet Monday, NFLPA sources say no meeting is planned and talks will continue through weekend.
The biggest issues remaining vary from legit, pissing contest and sickening.
Legit: The palyers want an opt out in the deal at seven years.
Pissing Contest: The players want to handshake on the notion that they will reform the union when they can do it in person.
Sickening: Vincent Jackson wants a year's worth of free douche for being a plaintiff in the antitrust suit. Apparently that will cost $10 million.
According to a source in the above linked ESPN article, Jackson has not personally made these demands, but someone close to him has.
And that is where we stand. I have to believe a deal is close. If it isn't, we are in deep trouble. ESPN reported this to be one of the stipulations of the Owners' proposal:
Under the conditions of the owners' proposal, the players would have Wednesday, Thursday and Friday of next week to try to bargain any changes to the proposal that would then have to be agreed to by owners in order to be incorporated into the agreement, which would then become final July 30. If the NFL does not agree to proposed changes, the old CBA terms on issues such as benefits, discipline and safety will remain unchanged for another 10 years.
If the owners start taking away concession they've already made—well, I don't even want to think about that.