NFLPA player representatives delay vote on collective bargaining agreement proposal

After a lengthy day of discussions, the NFL Players Association’s 32 player representatives elected not to vote Friday on the proposed collective bargaining agreement presented to them by team owners on Thursday. 

According to a statement issued by the players' union, the executive committee wants to have additional discussions with the owners on key aspects of their proposal and vote shortly afterward. 

The NFLPA executive committee and board of representatives plan to meet with the NFL management council executive committee on Tuesday in Indianapolis at the scouting combine, according to a person with knowledge of the situation, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the negotiations. The union hopes the player representatives will agree to a vote afterward.

It’s unclear, however, if the owners will agree to negotiate further. 

Early Friday afternoon, the NFLPA executive committee voted 6-5 against recommending voting in favor of the owners’ proposal. A conference call including the 32 player reps followed and lasted longer than two hours, leading to the decision not to vote on the proposed labor deal. 

It wasn’t immediately clear which sticking points concerned the members. 

The owners approved a deal that would increase player revenue sharing by roughly 1.5 percentage points relative to the owners' piece (approximately $5 billion more for players over the life of the 10-year CBA). A 17-game regular season schedule also was included in the new deal.

Several players have voiced reservations about an extended regular season, but some have acknowledged that concessions would have to be made to get the improvements they sought.  

The owners have pushed to get a deal done by the start of the league year on March 18, claiming that such an agreement presents the best chance of avoiding a work stoppage when the current deal expires at the end of the 2020 season. Securing a new deal now gives the NFL greater leverage to negotiate more lucrative broadcast deals this offseason.