When the NFL and NFL Players Association met on Tuesday, the league made three specific concessions. However, none of them were sufficiently significant to require the NFL’s owners to reconvene for a new vote.
Per a league source, the league agreed: (1) to remove the $250,000 cap for players who play a 17th game in a season when they’re already under contract; (2) to give players 48.5 percent of the revenue in any season during which 17 games are played, regardless of the so-called “media kicker” that tied 17 games to a specific revenue goal; and (3) to jointly study strategies for reducing the offseason program during seasons that result in the playing of 17 games.
Under the prior proposal, the 48.5-percent players’ share for 17 games would have been tied to a mininum amount of money generated by the broadcast deal(s) tied to the extra week of games. Now, the players get the 48.5 percent of all revenue when 17 games are played, no matter how much money the extra games will create.
As to the offseason program, there has been no specific agreement regarding further reduction in order to accommodate an extra game. However, the two sides have agreed to further study strategies for reducing the April-to-June practice and workout sessions to reduce the overall injury risk to which players will be exposed, given the added regular-season game.