A new NFL/NFLPA CBA may be ratified soon as owners meet

The National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) and NFL owners are nearing ratification of a new NFL CBA, collective bargaining agreement.

Sides are set to meet separately over the next two days and many feel there is a good chance that a new NFL CBA could be ratified as both sides have already agreed to many of the points during negotiations.  Having a new CBA in place prior to the league’s new year should make fans happy as this eliminates any chances of a work stoppage in the near future.

There are still a few sticking points though, the most widely known is the owner’s desire to move to a 17 game regular season.  While owners and fans like the idea of an additional regular-season week of football, many players are still against this option.  This option would also come with a decrease in preseason games to three.

The other obvious sticking point between the two sides is money.  Currently, players receive 47% of total league revenue. In the new proposed CBA the players share will increase to 48% if the schedule remains at 16 games or 48.5% if a 17 game schedule is agreed to.  While a point or point and half don’t seem like much, it is a substantial amount of money.

Over the course of 10 years, the 1% uptick for the 16 game schedule equates to an increase of $2.5 to $3 billion for the players.  While over that same timeframe the 1.5% uptick for the 17 game schedule would equate to over $5 billion more for the players. These numbers are unfathomable for the common person.

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The new proposal also would make changes to the current playoff system.  Currently, the top six teams in each conference reach the playoffs with the 1st and 2nd seeds getting a bye week.  The new proposal would expand the playoff field to 14 teams. Seven teams from each conference would make the playoffs with only the 1st seed getting a bye week.  This means that there would be three games on both Saturday and Sunday on Wild Card weekend.

There are a few other minor things in the new proposal such as an increase in the performance bonus pool over the next two seasons as well as a $12 million increase per club in benefits.  There’s also a 5 day acclimation period during training camp with no hitting as well as limits on consecutive days of hitting.

From a fan’s perspective, a new collective bargaining agreement is good news.  It’ll be interesting to see if the 17 game schedule gets ratified after all the talk of player safety over the past several years.  The allure of an additional $5 billion in player’s pockets may be hard to turn down.