We're hoping that players like Clay Matthews will be sweating and giving interviews as early as this weekend. Raymond T. Rivard photograph

Andrew Brandt, that knowledgeable former Packers negotiator, knows this football business best and that’s why we here at lombardiave.com have been following his sage advice through this entire CBA negotiations issue: It’s not agreed upon until EVERYTHING is agreed upon.

So, with that in mind, we take Jay Glazer’s announcement very early this morning announcing “Sources: NFL, NFLPA agree to CBA terms” with at least a small grain of salt.

We all know what transpired yesterday. We all know that players and inside sources were tweeting, emailing and commenting about the fact that the league and players were very close to agreeing to a deal after breakthroughs in negotiations – namely the obstacles surrounding the reinstitution of the players’ association and whether there will be a 10-year deal or a deal that gives players an opt-out option.
All that is well and good, but like Brandt said, it’s not a done deal until everything is agreed upon and as of Monday morning it appeared that the only thing that could screw things up is the class action suit filed by Hall of Fame defensive end Carl Eller and other retired players. (more…)

Commissioner Roger Goodell could still come out of this mess smelling good if he can help usher in a CBA that benefits both sides and gets football players on the field soon. Raymond T. Rivard photograph

The players’ reps email allegedly went out Friday (though there are those claiming it was never sent) saying they would huddle again on Monday to consider how to proceed. Now Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk is reporting today that the work continues behind the scenes through the weekend.

That’s a good thing … and at least sheds some light on the situation.

He cites Ravens cornerback and players association executive committee member Domonique Foxworth’s Twitter that everything is happening by phone today (Saturday). Florio also reports that Michael Lombardi of NFL Network is saying the owners, who despite Packers’ President Mark Murphy’s statement that the league has put down its pens, is having a conference call today to discuss the situation.

In addition there are many reports that are claiming the 10 named plaintiffs in the Brady case are moving out of view to allow the process to continue. Yet to be decided is how the NFLPA is to be recertified as a union … a question that should have been determined weeks or months ago and a situation Florio rightly points to as the fault of both sides.

Why didn’t someone take a look at this necessary step weeks or months ago and come up with a plan to make it happen in a timely manner?

Like one league source who was quoted in Florio’s post so succinctly said: “It’s like putting a man on the moon and worrying about how he’ll get back after he gets there.”

Yes, it’s even worse than Apollo 13 … our hope is that the league and players association have enough duct tape to fix the situation.

Florio said:

“It’s hard not to point to the lack of urgency in May and June, once the parties realized that the time had come to start talking, as one of the primary causes of the current predicament. Two days per week ultimately weren’t enough, and now that the plane is supposed to be landing, the pilots are circling the runway trying to figure out how in the hell to put the wheels down. For two supposedly sophisticated parties poised to do a deal that, over time, will kick out well over $100 billion dollars, it’s worse than disappointing. It’s embarrassing.”

We here at lombardiave.com simply can’t believe it. Aren’t these people supposed to be smart?

Why can’t this be resolved through human interaction, a look in the eye, a handshake and an understanding between people that their word is as good as their handshake.

The past two days have been a demonstration of where we have come and where we are going in this country. It’s not surprising that our political atmosphere is polluted with the same kind of mistrust and misunderstanding.

Check out the post at Pro Football Talk and keep the discussion going … we ARE turning our lonely eyes toward something, but we’re not so sure it’s a CBA agreement.

See the link here.

It seems like it's going to be a while before we will have the opportunity to see Clay Matthews bearing down on Jay Cutler. Decisions on how to proceed will be addressed starting Monday, according to an email sent by players association officials to membership Friday afternoon. Raymond T. Rivard photograph

As if we couldn’t be any more disgusted.

After a week in which optimism swirled as fast as the blender mixing your favorite cool beverage, this afternoon’s email from players association officials to the membership went down like your last turd headed toward the septic tank.

Yep, the association will wait and look at the options Monday; nothing to be done over the weekend; no sense of urgency whatsoever.

The email sent was this -

“Guys, to keep you abreast of the latest developments, we are reviewing the latest proposal for a settlement. Because of the passing of Myra Kraft in Boston, the NFLPA will not be making any public statements in honor of the Kraft family.

“Our recommendation is for everyone to stay put and keep doing what you are doing where you are doing it. We will meet again Monday to discuss our options and the direction we want to go. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact us. Your player reps.”

What this means in the grand scheme of things is quite unclear and won’t be explained until the player reps reconvene Monday.

All we can say here at lombardiave.com is that we would hate to be a member of the association. If fans are anxious to watch the players hit the field, can you imagine what’s going through the minds of the membership? They’ve got to be champing at the bit. Like thoroughbreds who are trained to hit full speed when the doors open, this is the time of year when players are ready to get to it.

Will they ever be allowed to do so?

Well, not for a while, it seems.

Packers President Mark Murphy, a former player himself, was toeing the management line yesterday with his comments about where things stood with the CBA. Raymond T. Rivard photograph

Packers president Mark Murphy’s statement last night as reported by Kareem Copeland of the Green Bay Press Gazette today, “NFL owners are done negotiating,” is pretty tough sounding, especially coming from a former player who should know better.

Murphy’s statement,

“We’ve put our pens down,” Murphy said. “We’ve negotiated in good faith with the union. We’ve reached an agreement on all the key points.

“They know what we ratified and they’re voting to ratify the same thing.”

was made last night during the hectic few hours of finger-pointing and miscommunication, but it still emphasizes the point that there are and always will be deep divisions between employees and management.
With sideways glances and mistrust, the players were pissed yesterday when the owners passed their own version of the collective bargaining agreement … a document that players said they hadn’t fully seen and wanted to study before even considering a vote. (more…)

The fans are dead tired of it ... we want football ... now! Raymond T. Rivard photograph

Whether it’s Congress voting on national health care or the National Football League owners passing by near majority the most recent version of the collective bargaining agreement, it always comes down to one side or the other sneering and saying it’s not fair or its not complete or there isn’t enough time to evaluate the positive and and negative aspects.

In my mind I can’t believe what’s happening at this point. The owners playing hardball and the players playing like they’ve been asleep for the past four months. They’ve had at least that amount of time to figure out what’s being placed on the table and now their games are holding the American football fans hostage over their last minute finagling?

Clearly De Smith’s late night emails and conference calls have done nothing productive at this point. The owners forcing the issue was a given … one side or the other has to force the point and get these negotiations to the point where some sort of action, good or bad, get s the ball moving. Enough of the talking. (more…)

He’s a guard for the Seattle Seahawks and the player rep with inside insight into what’s been happening with the

Our hope is that Chester Pitts is completely wrong. Getty Images

negotiations between the players association and league owners.

What he said late last night is probably worse than the proverbial cold shower – he told Tony Bruno of FOX Sports Radio that it will take “two full weeks” to get the situation resolved.

The celebratory mood going into Tuesday took a hit when the players failed to sign off on the deal in what some are saying is a stall tactic to let the owners take the lead and sign off on the deal Thursday.

Whatever the players’ strategy in this matter, we find it difficult to believe that it will take two weeks to figure out solutions to the issues that seem to be still on the table: the players’ request for $320 million in lost benefits during the uncapped year of 2010; and the demands of Chargers receiver Vincent Jackson and Patriots guard Logan Mankins – that they still want $10 million each to put their signatures on the settlement papers of the Brady antitrust class action.

We can’t believe that with all the heavy lifting that’s already taken place to get the two sides to this point that they can’t come to terms quickly.

We also can’t believe the players or owners will allow the loss of hundreds of millions of dollars in lost revenue if the deal isn’t signed this week.

Yes, now is the time that DeMaurice Smith get the lawyers out of the room and tell the players, “Look, now is the time … It’s your time … You either pull the trigger on this deal now or you’re going to lose every fan in America and you’re going to to be flippin’ burgers at McDonald’s or mowing lawns to get by.”

Commissioner Roger Goodell must do something similar. His message will be more along these lines: “You guys need to climb out of your ivory towers and see what’s in front of you -take it now or you’ll be looking for every monster truck show and circus to perform in your stadium.”

So what happens today and tomorrow will probably determine where every Chester Pitts is in the coming year … Get it done, people!

Donald Driver will benefit from the extra time afforded by the lockout.

Of all 32 teams in the league, the delay in getting back on the field in top physical condition has helped the Packers most.

Not only were the Packers one of the most injured teams in 2010, but obviously because of their trip all the way to the Super Bowl they were also one of the two final teams to leave the field of play.

Consider that the team played together for a solid six months last year – there isn’t a group of  players who looked forward any more to an offseason more than the Packers. (more…)

There have been multiple reports, including one here at lombardiave.com that players were contacted yesterday and told to report to team facilities by Saturday for a team meeting.

However, an unnamed Packers executive refuses to comment, and the league told PFT that they are focused on getting the CBA settled and didn’t have the time to look into any allegations.

“We are focused on closing the agreement and will not comment on this,” NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said in an email to PFT.

When this writer initially saw the reports last night, it seemed odd that team officials would be contacting players to report to facilities even though they were officially forbidden to have contact during the lockout. However, when Aaron Rodgers tweeted that he had heard nothing, it seemed to ameliorate the situation.

It will be interesting if the league doesn’t investigate this … there are too many questions for the league to try to sweep this under the rug.

Clipped from: profootballtalk.nbcsports.com (share this clip)

Let’s hope this is a week where we can forget about the past four months and move forward with free agency and training camp.

It's time for Charles Woodson, Nick Collins and the rest of the 2010 Green Bay Packers to pay a visit to the White House. Raymond T. Rivard photograph

There have been volumes written about the negative impacts of the NFL lockout- the loss of face time between players and coaches through OTAs and such, but not much written about the celebratory aspects … The fact that last season’s Super Bowl-winning Green Bay Packers have been locked out of the fun.
Team quarterback Aaron Rodgers said in an interview with media last week in preparing for a golf tournament in Lake Tahoe, Calif., that it hasn’t been an issue for the players.  (more…)