NFL Players Ratify New CBA; 17-Game Season, Expanded Playoffs
(CBS Sports) -- The National Football League will have 10 years of labor peace.
The players voted to approve the proposed CBA Saturday night. The new CBA will take effect starting in 2021 and will run until 2030. A simple majority of the players need to vote "yes" for the proposed deal to go through. The final vote was 1,019 to 959, the NFLPA released in a statement. There are roughly 2,500 players in the players union, so an estimated 79.1% of the players voted on the CBA.
Under the proposed CBA, the NFL will increase the season to 17 games (from 16) and the addition of an extra team to the playoffs in each conference. The 14-team playoff would have the top seed earning a first-round bye while seeds No. 2 through No. 7 would play on Wild-Card Weekend. The expanded playoff is expected to begin in 2020. The salary cap will be $198.2 million per club for 2020.