NFLPA tells the NFL there will be no vote on the proposed CBA

The NFLPA has decided not to vote on the NFL owner’s CBA proposal casting some doubts on whether or not a new deal will get done by March 18th.

The current CBA runs through 2021 but the league and the NFLPA were hoping to get a deal in place that would go into effect for the upcoming NFL season. The league’s new year starts on March 18th and while no deal in place would cause a work stoppage, the players will have money left on the table for the upcoming season.

For the last month or so the NFL and the NFLPA have been working well to developing a new CBA that would continue to benefit the owners while also giving more to the players in return. The league wants to focus on adding another game as well as potentially a new playoff format while the NFLPA wants more of the television money and better health care for the long-term.

The player’s representatives were expected to vote on the proposal today but opted instead to delay the vote. It is unclear when exactly a new vote will take place or if it will happen before the start of the league’s new year. That again is the critical timeline for getting it done, if a deal is not in place by then, it will likely get shelved until after the season.

That could potentially lead to a work stoppage in 2021. In 2011 the owners locked the players out as a result of negotiations. The entire off-season was pretty much shelved until the day before training camps began.

Now with the NFLPA walking away from a vote, not that there was a guarantee they would have passed it, the chance of going back to the negotiating table prior to March seems unlikely for now.

UPDATE: Tom Pelissero is saying that the next opportunity to vote will be on Tuesday when the NFLPA members meet in Indianapolis.