Source: Union and league agree to seven straight days of negotiations

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal on February 17, 2011, 6:37 PM EST

After a week without communication, the NFL and NFLPA have agreed to do nothing but talk for a week.

A league source (but not a league office source) tells PFT that the league and union have agreed to seven straight days of negotiations.  This development was disclosed in a conference call with agents.  The seven straight days will kick off Friday.

Thursday included two tiny steps forward for everyone hoping for a resolution by early March.  The two sides agreed to federal mediation and now have agreed to the kind of sustained discussions necessary to get a deal done.

It’s a start.

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29 responses to “Source: Union and league agree to seven straight days of negotiations”

  3. Seven Days In February. ….rife with intrigue, betrayal of trust, backstabbing, and deceit, it will keep you on the edge of your seat.

  6. Ohhhhh no Gregg!! You guys have been telling us that this season may not happen! What are you going to write about if they sign a deal??

    Ohh and no number 4!!

  7. they can lolly gag around this all they want but the truth is the longer the hold out the less money they will make ex ( NFL network sponsors for free agency )

    sponsorship money (why pay for advertising when they wont even be playing

    I dont see this lockout lasting long at all

  10. finally!
    tell you what, it is like being in school… you don’t start working on your homework until the night before the submission date

  14. I sure hope Marvin Miller is wrong. My wife and are already going through NFL withdrawal, and it’s not even March. Just git er done!

  17. ev pimp – consdering the extra effort both sides have made to bring in an outside party to facilitate negotiations, coupled with new agreement to meet for seven days, what makes you think a CBA can’t be reached before the summer? To me this proves that both sides would rather not allow a major lockout to occur.

  18. Now that there is no football to watch on the weekends why not work 7 days straight. I bet the lawyers charge time and a half on the weekends too.

  22. Yes! They finally agreed to something!!!!!!!

    Are you ready for some football?!?!?!

    Ow, wait, DAMN IT this was a agreement for a agreement.

    my bad

  23. I can see the Geico commercial now:

    “Can switching to Geico really save 15% or more on car insurance?”

    “Is Roger Goodell tip toeing out of a CBA meeting with Tap Shoes on really a good idea?”

  26. 7 days? Both sides should agree to meet until a deal is done. All the rest is just posturing. A little hope for the masses.

  28. “The players are getting nervous. They realize the owners are resolved.”

    Maybe; one also suspects that the TV networks have quietly informed the owners that they are not amused.

    I also doubt that Jerry Jones can afford to keep his cattle palace dark for a season.

    So long as people get over their romantic delusions of defiance or total victory there’s no reason not to get this done.

    Speaking as a person with a background in mediation I’m delighted that a serious third party has been engaged. While not a panacea it’s a sign of getting down to business.

  29. A deal may not be reached, but this step is clearly the only way that a deal will be reached. I have participated in many, many civil mediations & have seen many hopeless cases resolved through the process. DeMaurice Smith undoubtedly also has a wealth of experience civil mediation from his private practice days.

    For one thing, the mediator will keep both sides talking. That is key. I have literally tried to walk out of the room in several mediations, but the mediator is able to keep the discussion going.

    Also key is that parties will no longer be dealing directly with each other. They won’t be in the same room. So you won’t have any more jerry richardson unpleasantness…or owners walking out without replying to a proposal. The mediator will demand that the parties reply to one and another, and he will at least get that.

    What is also key is that each side speaks to the mediator confidentially. That is also important, because while staking out a position, the parties will “telegraph” their true position (always leaving soom room) to the mediator. He will then have a better idea than either side as to where the true middle is in the negotiation. The mediator’s most important role – besides keeping everyone talking – is to use the additional information he has to move each side towards each other…and to make creative suggestions that he know has some possibility of working, but each side does not. This also allows the mediator to quickly resolve tangential issues that are played out in the media, but are not really a matter of concern to either side. The mediator should be able to focus on the really divisive issues and work to get those resolved. The other stuff then falls into place & does not cause a distraction from getting the real disputes resolved.

    These parties have established that they cannot negotiate directly in good faith and/or without acrimony A third-party is the best and only way this will get resolved…and a LOT can get done in seven straight days of talks. A whole, whole lot.

    …or maybe not….not every dispute is capable of resolution, and if this does not work, then start watching baseball, because we will be in for a LONG lockout. But rest assured that this is the best news to come out of these negotiations so far…and it’s our last, best hope as football fans.

    …and lastly, this is NOT the federal government taking over the negotiations. I agree that we are too harsh on our government relative to what the rest of the world has to deal with, but also agree there’s plenty of room for criticism…but fear not…this is a mediation service, not a government takeover!

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