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Nobody's expecting anything major to come of it, but NFL owners and the union are finalizing plans to meet for another negotiating session this week at the scouting combine in Indianapolis. The union, which has an executive committee meeting as well as events with draft prospects scheduled during the combine, requested the latest session. Union officials enjoyed the brief session the day before the Super Bowl because it featured actual team owners instead of just negotiators, and with owners expected to be in attendance this week the NFLPA would like another chance to address them face-to-face.Sources on both sides of the league's labor dispute confirmed that, while not yet set in stone, a negotiating session in Indy appears likely to happen. Though neither side thinks there's any chance of reaching a new agreement before March 5 -- the deadline for avoiding an uncapped 2010 season. The owners are in no rush, having made their peace with the idea of an uncapped year, and the most serious CBA negotiations are likely still at least a year away.
To date, the sides have made no progress on what they describe as "core economic issues." Union chief DeMaurice Smith is still asking owners to show audited financial statements to support their claims of economic distress, and owners continue to refuse. And the rhetoric on both sides flares up occasionally, as it did in a recent Boston Herald story in which the league disputed Smith's assertion that the league's guaranteed TV contracts are proof that the owners are girding for a lockout.
The negotiating sessions that have happened so far have yielded progress only on non-core issues. The sides have exchanged proposals aimed at establishing a rookie wage scale, and there has been much discussion about changes to off-season workout requirements (mandatory/non-mandatory OTAs, etc). This week's session isn't likely to move the needle much on those issues, either, but the sides appear to see some benefit in increased face-to-face negotiating time.
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