NFL Owners Approve New Collective Bargaining Agreement

The NFL owners met in Atlanta on Thursday and voted 31-0 (the Raiders abstained) to pass a new labor agreement. The new agreement would stay in effect for 10 years and puts the ability to end the lockout in the hands of the NFL Player's Association.

According to ESPN the NFLPA is likely to vote on the agreement today after the player representatives receive the full details of the agreement that the owners ratified. The player reps had a two-hour conference call on Thursday night but did not receive the full details of the agreement until after the call had finished.

If the players agree to the deal today they want the owners to lift the lockout on Saturday. This would allow them to have union cards at team facilities for players to sign and reunionize. The owners believe that this process could be done electronically but the NFLPA wants to be as thorough in reunionizing as they were when they disbanded earlier this summer.

The NFLPA played chicken with the owners earlier in the week by not voting on the new agreement in a meeting Wednesday, forcing the owners to make the first move. However, if the players decide not to approve the new agreement they now risk losing the backing of thousands of fans across the country.