As you probably already know by now, the NFLPA decertified this afternoon after negotiations over the collective bargaining agreement stalled. In response, the NFL is expected to announce a lockout that goes into effect at midnight tonight. Basically, everything outside of the NFL Draft is coming to a screeching halt, as the CBA and players association are no longer in place.
I will just be up front about this whole story: it's not fun to write about. It's tough enough to wrap my head around all of the different legalities of this situation, and in general it's just not something I enjoy covering. Talking about how there may not be football next season because these two groups couldn't agree on how to divide up $9 billion of annual revenue just sucks the life out of me. If there aren't many updates on this story outside of something notable, this is why.
Just so we're all on the same page for now, here is a brief rundown of what happened on Friday: DeMaurice Smith and the NFLPA were presented with a new CBA proposal from the NFL, which you can read here. The proposal did not result in a new deal, partly because the NFLPA wants to get a look at the NFL's financial information. That didn't happen, so the union decided to dissolve, allowing class-action lawsuits to be filed against the NFL. This situation is destined to become a legal battle as a result, and all I can say is good luck to those who have to sift through every minute detail of this story. It doesn't sound like fun.
At the end of the day, I just want there to be football in 2011. I have enough faith that a deal will be worked out before any games are threatened, so for now I'm just going to think about the NFL Draft and not worry about the labor situation. Like I said before, it's just not a fun topic, and I'd much rather focus on mock drafts, scouting prospects and other things like that.
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