Last offseason and through the 2019 regular season there was some talk about the upcoming CBA negotiations. The NFLPA was telling players to start stashing away checks in case of a prolonged work stoppage. The league was pushing for an increase in regular-season games and wasn’t going to take no for an answer. There was serious commentary about a work stoppage and since we already saw one — well kind of — in the last round of negotiations, there was a possibility we could end up without football. That would be sad.
Now, for the good news: no one seems to want to kill the goose that’s laying the golden eggs. There is some serious momentum that not only will there be no work stoppage, but that the NFL and NFLPA could come to an agreement before the CBA even expires.
If all goes well, a new deal–predicated on a 17-game regular season that would launch sometime between 2021 and 2023–could be ratified before March 18… and go into effect in time for the new league year.
— Michael Silver (@MikeSilver) February 19, 2020
The meeting of NFL owners and executives that @MikeSilver reported is tomorrow in New York. All 32 teams will be there to hear a report on the status of CBA negotiations and consider terms. Players expected to discuss the same proposal via conference call Friday. Big 48 hours.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) February 19, 2020
Reason to believe an NFL/NFLPA deal is very close. NFL owners will meet at downtown Manhattan hotel tomorrow. Players will have conference call Friday. No guarantee of final actions, but momentum building.
— Ben Fischer (@BenFischerSBJ) February 19, 2020
There’s no way to look at other than this is good news. The owners and players understand that the quicker they can come to a deal, the quicker they can get down to real business, like dominating negotiations with streaming partners and traditional content distributors. Basically, the goal is to rake in money hand over fist and then make sure it’s distributed based on a negotiated percentage outlined in the CBA.
The deal is rumored to run from 2020 until after the 2029 season. That’s 10 years of labor peace. That’s a good deal. For 10 years we won’t have to worry about lockouts, strikes, and no football. We will get a new NFL, one that probably hasn’t 17 games and an expanded playoff. Players will know that for the foreseeable future, they will be able to use their enormous skills and talent to make money. The owners will be even happier because they will be able to negotiate with television partners, focus on the upcoming gambling revolution, and make a ton more money because that’s what happens when you own a football team. The league should see a jump in franchise valuation because that’s what happens when there are labor peace and certainty.
So let’s hope this momentum holds. No one likes hearing about work stoppages. It’s an ugly part of the game. No fan wants to think that there might not be football next year. We already miss it now.
