Goodell Has High Hopes For New CBA
(KDKA/AP) - NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has high hopes that a new collective bargaining agreement will be in place by the Super Bowl.
Goodell says he and the owners are willing to work night and day to get an agreement; and, the commissioner adds that he expects the same from the NFL Players Association. Spokesman Carl Francis, however, said the NFLPA has "no comment at this time" on the matter.
The major sticking point for the owners is the desire to restructure the players' share of designated revenues.
Another point of contention is the creation of an 18 game regular season.
Fearing that such a move could lead to more injuries, the NFLPA countered the owners' proposal with a request for additional roster spots. The union also wants to cut off-season workouts by about one-third from the current 14 weeks.
Another area for concern among the NFLPA is the current review process for illegal hits on defenseless opponents. Steelers' safety Troy Polamalu has called for current players to be more involved in the discipline process.
The CBA expires on March 4th but the NFL has no deadline to get a deal done.
At the owners' meeting in Fort Worth, Texas several owners who have been through previous collective bargaining processes, said this the pace of negotiations are nothing new. Those owners expect to get a new CBA in place to prevent a lockout, but not until after the postseason.
