Monday, March 06, 2006

Is Today the Day?


I’m really surprised this isn’t settled yet. Neither side wants to walk away having given up ground but neither side wants to be classified with MLB and the NBA.

The problem is not between the owners and the NFLPA it is between the owners and the owners. As long as the small-market and large-market owners are arguing amongst themselves there will not be an agreement made.

The question for the owners is, how long can they push back free agency before it really hurts their teams? With the draft a month away there are holes that can be filled by signing free agents before drafting.

The question for the players is, how much money do they want to make? An uncapped year in 07 may sound great but 06 free agents will pay dearly for it. Guys like Ed James and Lavar Arrington, who bought his freedom for $4 million, will play for much less than they are worth because of the low cap.

If an agreement is not reached today then teams must be under the cap of $94.5 million by Wednesday. That would mean a lot of big names and big contracts will be getting cut.