NFL Lockout Thread

Greg Ambrosius · Post by **Greg Ambrosius** » Wed Jun 01, 2011 2:58 am

Originally posted by W. Klown:
This whole thing is a joke IMO. So let me get this straight.......

In a few days a judge will convene and decide if what has been going on is legal. However, he will not decide for 4-8 more weeks??????

They all need to be Locked Into a room until their asses work out a deal.

It is pathetic that a league this big cant collectively bargain and finalize a deal. There are two big bargaining chips out there that both sides are waiting to see which side wins them before more serious negotiations take place. One is the TV money award that will go back to the players and if Judge Doty really puts the hammer to the owners it could result in hundreds of millions of dollars to the players. Sure the NFL will appeal, but it will be a chip on the players' side. The other ruling, of course, is in St. Louis in the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, and everyone expects the owners to win that. So barring any surprises, both sides will have a win on their side, both sides will appeal the rulings and we'll be back to negotiating a new deal without the courts.

I'm not sure why both sides have to wait until the midnight hour to get that done when they know what is likely coming from the courts. But I guess that's how we play this game of chicken, resulting in millions and millions of lost revenue and potentially a lost fantasy football season.

I still hope for a deal in late July, but you're hearing more folks predict a deal in August that saves the regular season. Both are too late for me. GET IT DONE NOW!!!

Tom Kessenich · Post by **Tom Kessenich** » Wed Jun 01, 2011 3:05 am

Example No. 8,343,213 why the lockout is asinine - the league has told 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh to stop talking about Alex Smith because Smith is a free agent.

Nice.

Greg Ambrosius · Post by **Greg Ambrosius** » Wed Jun 01, 2011 5:20 am

Andrew Brandt summarizes the legal dispute before Friday's court hearing in St. Louis:

http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/Pre ... ppeal.html

Nothing new here, but still a good piece on how we got here.

Old School · Post by **Old School** » Wed Jun 01, 2011 6:27 am

Originally posted by Tom Kessenich:
Example No. 8,343,213 why the lockout is asinine - the league has told 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh to stop talking about Alex Smith because Smith is a free agent.

Nice. As a lifelong 49e fan, I wish they had stopped talking to Alex Smith years ago, and had talked more to
AARON RODGERS before that draft!

Tom Kessenich · Post by **Tom Kessenich** » Wed Jun 01, 2011 7:15 am

Originally posted by Old School:
quote:Originally posted by Tom Kessenich:
Example No. 8,343,213 why the lockout is asinine - the league has told 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh to stop talking about Alex Smith because Smith is a free agent.

Nice. As a lifelong 49e fan, I wish they had stopped talking to Alex Smith years ago, and had talked more to
AARON RODGERS before that draft! [/QUOTE]Rodgers was projected to go first for quite awhile before the draft. While he's turned out to obviously be much better than Smith I do wonder what would have happened to Rodgers if he went No. 1 and got caught up in the same mess that Smith has in San Francisco. I think Rodgers benefited greatly from learning from Favre and studying under McCarthy for a few seasons before becoming the starter. I don't know if he becomes the player he is today if he had to start right away.

That said, I understand your frustration with the 49ers' clinging to Alex Smith. He's pretty awful.

Greg Ambrosius · Post by **Greg Ambrosius** » Wed Jun 01, 2011 7:31 am

Good story here and another example of how the lockout affects common folks:

http://espn.go.com/blog/nflnation/tag/_ ... he-lockout

Greg Ambrosius · Post by **Greg Ambrosius** » Thu Jun 02, 2011 2:45 am

Is there hope on the horizon?? ESPN's Adam Schefter and Chris Mortenson report that a secret meeting was held last night in Chicago that involved Roger Goodell and DeMaurice Smith. Let's hope this report is correct and that the analysis that a deal could be done by the end of the month is true. WOW.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=6618259

Thoughts???

Here's the story:

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, NFLPA leader DeMaurice Smith, along with owners and players association officials met Wednesday in Chicago to try to bridge some of their significant differences, according to multiple league sources. The two sides worked into the night, though it is hard to ascertain exactly how long the NFL and NFLPA spent meeting.

But clearly, one day before the hearing in St. Louis in front of the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, the two sides are making an effort to determine whether they can work out a settlement that eventually leads to football and a collective bargaining agreement.

One source said any potential deal still was a ways away, however, the hope would be that the two sides could get something done sooner rather than later, potentially even later this month.

With the two sides needing to be in St. Louis on Friday, Chicago made sense as a logical meeting place. NFL owners, including Dallas' Jerry Jones, New England's Robert Kraft and Carolina's Jerry Richardson, each were in Chicago along with Goodell.

The meetings were so secretive that, as of Wednesday night there, there were other NFL owners that didn't know what was taking place.

The NFLPA was equally secretive, declining to respond to inquiries about the meeting and its leaders' whereabouts.

The two sides have been at a stalemate throughout the spring since the NFLPA decertified and the NFL locked out the players.

The court mediated session in the Brady vs. NFL antitrust case is scheduled to resume next Tuesday in Minneapolis before U.S. Magistrate Judge Arthur Boylan.

Chris Mortensen is ESPN's senior NFL analyst. Adam Schefter is ESPN's NFL Insider.

Greg Ambrosius · Post by **Greg Ambrosius** » Thu Jun 02, 2011 5:18 am

Wow, now there are reports that the mediator was involved in Wednesday's talks and that the Chicago meeting is still continuing today. Finally, some good news. Glad to see the two sides used some common sense and decided to get together and talk this through. C'mon guys, we can get this done.

Here's the latest update from PFT:

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/20 ... n-the-mix/

News out of Chicago regarding the clandestine meeting between NFL and NFLPA* representatives continues to leak, and most of it sounds positive for everyone hoping for progress in labor talks.

Mark Maske of the Washington Post reports that talks between the two sides have continued Thursday, and are expected to wrap up mid-day. Since we saw a picture of Patriots owner Robert Kraft leaving Chicago last night, presumably not all of the original parties at the session remain in attendance.

Maske also reveals that mediator Arthur Boylan was present during Wednesday’s talks. Those conversations began over dinner on Tuesday, when NFL Commissioner, NFLPA* head DeMaurice Smith, and other representatives from both sides quietly broke bread.

The two sides will presumably see each other again in court on Friday in St. Louis, when the appeal is heard over the lifting of the lockout.

[ June 02, 2011, 11:20 AM: Message edited by: Greg Ambrosius ]

Greg Ambrosius · Post by **Greg Ambrosius** » Thu Jun 02, 2011 6:16 am

Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune just tweeted: De Smith and 5 players just left meeting w/ NFL in a Chicago suburb. Details to follow this afternoon at Chicago Tribune.

Greg Ambrosius · Post by **Greg Ambrosius** » Thu Jun 02, 2011 8:31 am

There's hope on the horizon and hopefully we'll hear more good news soon. This was just reported:

The minnesota federal court has cancelled mediation set next week saying it is engaged in confidential settlement talks with the parties.

Does anyone else feel some positive vibes? Am I alone with this feeling? C'mon, express yourself.