Hey, just saw this on PFT (not directly Jets related, but will have an impact on the Pennington/Abraham decisions): http://www.profootballtalk.com/rumormill.htm NFL DELAYS OFFICIAL CROP REPORT A league source tells us that the NFL previously promised to disseminate on Monday the official crop report (a/k/a salary cap numbers) for 2006, and that the league ultimately failed to do so. This development has prompted increased speculation among league insiders that a new CBA is imminent, since an extension would require the team-by-team salary maximums to be re-calculated pursuant to the formula set forth in the new agreement. We've previously heard that the new CBA will determine the cap numbers based on a percentage of "Total Football Revenue." Current thinking in some circles is that the number will be 59 percent, and that the salary cap will be between $100 million and $110 million per team for 2006. Raw revenue numbers suggest an even higher number, but we're told that there are certain deductions that will be made before the 59 percent figure is applied. Anyway, brace yourself for what looks to be an inevitable announcement that peace and harmony will continue in a sport premised upon anything but.
Well it's definately very good to hear. I wouldn't get your hopes up just yet. Things of this magnitude go can go the wrong way in a hurry.
The NFL has SO much money to share, it's hard to imagine them not coming to some sort of agreement. Tagliabue: Well Gene, it seems we have another eleventy gajillion to divy up. Upshaw: *puffs cigar* indeed we do.. but we want 60% of it Tagliabue: 55. Upshaw: 59 Tagliabue:57. Upshaw: 58. Tagliabue: yeah, fine. Upshaw: Gonna need about 10 million more on the cap. Tagliabue: Whatever. *lights cigar with 100 dollar bill*
Confirmation from ESPN that things are moving. Owners to conference Tuesday on CBA negotiations By Len Pasquarelli ESPN.com Amid indications that there has been some progress in talks aimed at extending the NFL's collective bargaining agreement, league owners are tentatively scheduled to meet Tuesday via conference call to discuss the status of negotiations. Two owners said Monday afternoon that they have delayed their departures from Indianapolis, site of the NFL scouting combine since Wednesday, to accommodate the timing of the conference call. "In this case," one AFC owner said, "any news would be good news." The scheduling of the conference call might be the most concrete sign yet to substantiate whispers that the NFL and NFL Players' Association, who have been discussing the proposed extension for more than a year, have finally made some headway in breaking the inertia that has marked negotiations. Without the add-on, the 2007 season would become a so-called uncapped year with no spending limit and no minimum, and players could potentially face a lockout in 2008. Team officials and player agents have said that doing business without an extension -- particularly with the free agent signing period set to begin Friday and the draft on April 29-30 -- will prove virtually impossible. Because of the extreme circumstances that would exist with an uncapped year on the horizon, it would be difficult to meet the financial expectations of free agents and high-round draft choices. Compounding the situation is that several franchises are in the throes of salary cap overages and will find it difficult, if not painful, to come into cap compliance for 2006 without an extension. If an extension is not struck before Friday, several cap managers acknowledged, there figures to be many veteran players purged from rosters in the next few days. Among the owners who have expressed optimism that an 11th-hour deal will be hammered out is Jerry Jones of the Dallas Cowboys. "I think that we'll likely have a deal," Jones told the South Florida Sun-Sentinel on Monday. Other owners and team officials allowed there have been rumblings of progress and that they feel an extension will be in place before the end of the week. "I've said sanity will ultimately prevail," an owner of an AFC team said. "Hopefully, we're getting to that point. This has always been a deadline league and the clock is ticking. Smart people from both sides know that we all need this. I mean, why kill the golden goose?" If a deal is struck before Friday, it is likely the start of free agency would be delayed at least a week in order to allow teams to recalculate their cap status. NFLPA executive director Gene Upshaw insisted last week he will not delay the free agency timetable. That stance aside, Upshaw might reconsider if an accord that extends the CBA also means a significantly higher spending limit for 2006. Still to be resolved as well is the issue of revenue sharing among the league's 32 franchises. Given the increasing disparity between the high revenue teams and those at the bottom of the earning chart, the issue is a significant one and the subject of considerable debate. But there are signs that some owners are ready to reach a deal with the NFLPA before proceeding to a battle over revenue-sharing models. Upshaw has said he will not agree to an extension of the collective bargaining agreement before owners are in agreement on revenue sharing, but some owners believe the battle over revenue sharing will be contentious and drawn out. They also suggest the union will ultimately agree to the extension -- even without a revenue-sharing deal -- assuming the numbers are right. "They both have to get done," Pittsburgh Steelers owner Dan Rooney said, "but they don't necessarily both have to get done at the same time."
Take this for what it is, but Jerry Jones was just on and he said that the CBA was all set in an almost oops way. He then recinded and said that it should be done soon...so, I don't exactly know what this means, but it sounded good anyway
