NFL owners will vote next week whether to allow each team a possession in overtime in the playoffs if the team winning the OT coin toss kicks a field goal on the first series.

NEW YORK — NFL owners will vote next week whether to allow each team a possession in overtime in [...]]]> Associated Press

NFL owners will vote next week whether to allow each team a possession in overtime in the playoffs if the team winning the OT coin toss kicks a field goal on the first series.

NEW YORK — NFL owners will vote next week whether to allow each team a possession in overtime in the playoffs if the team winning the OT coin toss kicks a field goal on the first series.

Previously, the game would end whenever either side scores, as happened in the NFC Championship Game in January, with New Orleans beating Minnesota 31-28 on Garrett Hartley’s kick. But NFL competition committee chairman Rich McKay says a trend has developed showing too strong an advantage for teams winning the coin toss to start overtime.

If the team that falls behind by three points on the first series also kicks a field goal, then the game would continue under current sudden death rules.

The proposal is only for the postseason.

“Statistically, it is pretty clear there has been a change,” McKay said. “When sudden death was put in for 1974, it clearly worked very well and was a good system. It brought excitement and effectively broke ties. From ’74-’93 you had a 50-50 [breakdown] in who would win between those who won the toss and who lost the toss.

“Changes occurred over time, and the numbers have changed to 59.8 percent winning the coin toss and winning the game. The team that loses the coin toss wins 38.5 percent.

“We are trying to put in a system that emphasizes more skill and strategy as opposed to the randomness of the coin flip.”

McKay credited the advancements in field goal accuracy and skills of return teams for the hefty switch in statistics. The competition committee found that since 1994, when the kickoff was moved back 5 yards to the 30, teams winning the OT coin toss won 34.4 percent of the games on the first series. They kicked field goals 26.2 percent of those times, an increase from 17.9 percent in 15 years.

“I would say this is something that’s been on our radar for a number of years and been talked about a lot,” he said. “In the last four or five years, we have not proposed anything because we thought if there weren’t enough votes [among the 32 owners], we should not propose it. This year, the statistics are so compelling we need to get the discussion going.”

Rest assured there will be plenty of discussion; 24 votes are needed to adopt the change.

The players union strongly has supported the current overtime setup because it fears another system could lead to more injuries. McKay said the competition committee has “not spent a lot of time with them” on this proposal, but will make the players association aware of the recommendation.

Another recommendation to the owners, who will hold their meetings in Orlando, Fla., beginning Sunday, centers on expanding protection for defenseless players, most notably receivers. McKay said a recent rule change helped, but there are cases where receivers already have made a catch and still are defenseless when they get hit in the head area.

The proposal will offer those players protection from hits to the head until after the catch is made and the receiver has an opportunity to protect himself.

When the clock struck midnight Friday, teams were permitted to chase free agents. How far teams were willing to pursue players was another matter.

Bidding wars are not expected. In the last year of a collective bargaining agreement, there is no salary cap for the upcoming season. Many veterans [...]]]> By Jon Saraceno, USA TODAY

When the clock struck midnight Friday, teams were permitted to chase free agents. How far teams were willing to pursue players was another matter.

Bidding wars are not expected. In the last year of a collective bargaining agreement, there is no salary cap for the upcoming season. Many veterans are expected to be released. With the spectre of a potential 2011 lockout looming, and the uncertainty of a new agreement, owners might show more restraint.

Because of the uncapped year, there aren’t as many unrestricted free agents, but there is an expanded group of more than 200 restricted free agents — but that costs teams who sign them compensatory draft choices.

Some teams, such as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, have said they will not be active in the free agent market. Others, among them the San Diego Chargers and Miami Dolphins, have specific needs that must be addressed. They probably will nibble at prospective free agents.

It is anticipated that few NFL teams will take big bites because of the potential for down-the-road indigestion.

Teams like the Pittsburgh Steelers and Green Bay Packers, who have been selective in free agency in prior years, likely will remain circumspect, which places an even greater premium upon signing the right players at the right prices.

One team that will be particularly interesting to watch will be the Dallas Cowboys. After years of stumbling in the postseason, they finally won another playoff game last season and the roster doesn’t appear to need anything but minor tweaking.

But With Jerry Jones, perhaps the league’s most influential owner, you never know — particularly with an unsettled labor situation and his ownership brethren closely monitoring every move.

Here is a glance at five teams that might be wheeling their shopping cart down the league’s free agency aisle:

Washington Redskins: Can a leopard change his spots — or will high-profile owner Dan Snyder continue to roam the free agency jungle with his usual voracious appetite?

Snyder has a new coach (Mike Shanahan) and a new general manager (Bruce Allen), but it remains unknown whether the owner’s old, often-unproductive spending habits regarding the chasing of free agents have changed.

Last season, Snyder all but tackled Tennessee Titans defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth, signing him to a record contract, including $41 million in guaranteed money. With another guaranteed $22.5 million, Snyder locked up cornerback DeAngelo Hall.

The Redskins went from 8-8 to 4-12.

Among free agents reported by The Washington Post as potential Redskin targets are defensive end Julius Peppers, linebacker Karlos Dansby, safety Darren Sharper and running back Darren Sproles, whom the San Diego Chargers tendered Thursday to make him a restricted free agent.

Chicago Bears: Head coach Lovie Smith already has loaded up on assistant coaches — including adding former NFL head coaches Mike Martz and Mike Tice and promoting Rod Marinelli to defensive coordinator — and the Bears boss has made it no secret the franchise will be active in free agency.

“When you go 7-9, of course you need to make some changes,” Smith said at last month’s scouting combine.

The Bears have not made the playoffs the last three seasons.

“(We) need to change some things up, which we will look to do,” Smith said. “We are excited about this next phase as far as seeing if we have an opportunity to bring in some other veteran players, which you always look to do to improve your club.”

Translation: Look for the Bears to shore up the defensive line, particularly with the offseason death of Gaines Adams. Smith could look to add another pass-rusher, and bolster the running game and safety position.

Baltimore Ravens: Coach John Harbaugh and his staff will be all eagle-eyes when it comes to seeking free agents who could improve the team’s skill positions on offense for young quarterback Joe Flacco.

Harbaugh wants smart, tough guys who can catch the football — guys like Derrick Mason, who the Ravens are trying to re-sign. Baltimore already has signed Donte Stallworth, but could use more depth at the position.

Keep an eye on Terrell Owens who, for a very brief moment several years ago, was a Raven.

And consider this: Would general manager Ozzie Newsome take a shot on Denver’s talented, but sometimes-troubled receiver Brandon Marshall?

Philadelphia Eagles: Andy Reid’s offense often soars, but the coach’s defense needs help to regain its once-lofty status.

The Eagles, who also need bolstering along the offensive line, are concerned about generating a more sustained pass rush out of their 4-3 alignment instead of relying primarily on blitz pressure. Peppers offers a potentially expensive solution for owner Jeff Lurie.

Defensively, the Eagles also need a free safety and more depth at outside linebacker.

Arizona Cardinals: Defensive depth is a major concern for coach Ken Whisenhunt and general manager Rod Graves.

They would like to re-sign Dansby, but elected to release free safety Antrel Rolle on Thursday. The Cardinals also have lost defensive end Bertrand Berry to retirement and linebacker Chike Okeafor might not return.

With the retirement of quarterback Kurt Warner, the Cardinals also will be on the lookout for a veteran signal-caller to backup starter Matt Leinart.

NFL Players Association Executive Director DeMaurice Smith, right, says not to expect professional football in 2011.

NEW YORK — NFL Players Association executive director DeMaurice Smith sent a memo to players and their agents Tuesday, telling them it is likely no new collective bargaining agreement will be reached and the upcoming season will [...]]]> Associated Press

NFL Players Association Executive Director DeMaurice Smith, right, says not to expect professional football in 2011.

NEW YORK — NFL Players Association executive director DeMaurice Smith sent a memo to players and their agents Tuesday, telling them it is likely no new collective bargaining agreement will be reached and the upcoming season will be played without a salary cap.

In the memo, Smith outlined the union’s talks with the league, but made it clear he doesn’t think a new deal will occur before the March 5 deadline — giving the NFL its first uncapped season since 1993.

“While we are doing all that we can to reach a fair agreement with the NFL before the start of the 2010 league year,” Smith wrote, “it appears likely that no new CBA will be reached and the 2010 season will be uncapped.”

Smith said the union’s most recent proposal contains an offer to keep the current capped system for another year to allow both sides to continue negotiations.

“It is our view that obtaining an extension to the CBA prior to the uncapped year is in the best interest of both the players and the owners,” Smith wrote. “However, the terms of any CBA extension must allow for players to get their fair share of NFL revenues while at the same time address the owner’s issues in such a way as to allow them to continue to grow the game of football.”

He added that another general bargaining session is scheduled for Thursday at the NFL combine in Indianapolis.

NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said the league would have no comment on the union’s internal memo. Commissioner Roger Goodell said before the Super Bowl that he believed negotiations would lead to a new deal before March 2011, when the CBA expires.

Having no salary cap means richer teams could far outspend others for free agents, while teams not as wealthy might try to cut costs to stay afloat financially. That could affect the number of opportunities the more than 200 players scheduled to become unrestricted free agents might have to sign with new teams.

If no deal is reached next season, a work stoppage could occur before the 2011 season. It all puts the future of the league in uncertain territory despite soaring TV ratings and an average team value of $1 billion.

“The NFL has made it clear that the league and its clubs remain profitable,” Smith wrote. “There has not been any statement, affirmative or suggested, by the NFL that any team is losing money. Moreover, the league has rejected any offer to discuss their profit margins, team profitability or any of their teams’ individual financial statements.”

Smith said the sides have had 12 general bargaining sessions to discuss issues related to developing a new CBA. He added that there have been more than 30 overall bargaining sessions with the league in the past six months.

“And while we have made progress in some areas,” Smith wrote, “we continue to have significant disagreement with the NFL over their desire to have players take an 18 percent reduction in their share of revenues given the NFL’s failure to provide meaningful financial data to support the assertion that their costs have increased significantly since the capped system was put into place in 1993.

“Their demand that the players take such an historic pay cut is even more disturbing given the NFL’s continuing economic growth despite the worst recession in recent history.”

Smith closed the memo by asking players and agents to keep the NFLPA updated on their individual contract negotiations because “it will allow us to be informed of the trends in the market for player services.

“With that information, we can then help all players maximize their ability to get the best contracts possible. In the meantime, the NFLPA will continue its efforts to reach agreement with the league on a new CBA.”

Roger Goodell made just south of $10 million last season, of which $2.9 million was salary and $6.55 million was bonus and incentive compensation.

NEW YORK (AP) — NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has been given a new five-year contract as the league heads into a key period of labor negotiations that could lead [...]]]> Associated Press

Roger Goodell made just south of $10 million last season, of which $2.9 million was salary and $6.55 million was bonus and incentive compensation.

NEW YORK (AP) — NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has been given a new five-year contract as the league heads into a key period of labor negotiations that could lead to a work stoppage in 2011.

Goodell replaced Paul Tagliabue on Sept. 1, 2006, and his contract was due to expire this September. The NFL said Friday that owners voted to award the new contract when they met in December, and his new deal runs until March 2015.

“We’re going into a major negotiation. It will be very difficult probably in many ways and we want to have someone who has his own views, who’s going to have to make some hard decisions that maybe some of us won’t like,” New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft said during a telephone interview.

“But in the end, I think we’re confident that he and his team will do what’s for the best long-term interest of the league,” said Kraft, a member of the league’s compensation committee. “Having stability in our management team is critical.”

Goodell’s new deal and the NFL’s latest federal tax filing were first reported Friday by Sports Business Journal, and the league then released the information to The Associated Press.

Next season, the last in the current agreement, is on track to be played without a salary cap. NFL Players Association executive director DeMaurice Smith said last week the union views the chance of a lockout as a “14″ on a scale of 1-to-10. That would end a streak of labor peace since the 1987 strike led to the cancellation of 14 games and three weeks of play with replacement players.

“Commissioner Goodell and his staff have done an outstanding job and this is a statement of confidence in Roger’s leadership,” said Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank, who chairs the compensation committee. “NFL ownership recognizes his already significant list of accomplishments and is fully behind his strategic vision for the future of our league.”

While all terms of the new deal have not been completed, Blank said Goodell’s annual compensation will be unchanged.

The NFL said a year ago that Goodell voluntarily took a cut of 20 to 25 percent, and that he and other league executives were freezing their salaries for 2009. That announcement was made at the same time the league announced it cut 169 jobs through buyouts, layoffs and other staff reductions, a drop of just over 15 percent of a work force that had been 1,100.

The tax return for the year ending last March 31 showed Goodell made $9,759,000, of which $2.9 million was salary and $6.55 million bonus and incentive compensation.

Baseball commissioner Bud Selig had compensation of $17,470,491 for the year ending Oct. 31, 2007, according to the sport’s last available tax return.

“I think Roger and his team run the entire business in a way that in today’s economic environment is just outstanding,” Kraft said. “And I’m comfortable with the way we’re rewarding him. He on his own declined to take a bonus that we wanted to give him last year because he didn’t think it was appropriate.”

Compensations listed for other top officials included executive vice president of media Steve Bornstein ($7,478,000). executive vice president and general counsel Jeff Pash ($4,845,000), executive vice president business ventures Eric Grubman ($4,453,000), executive vice president public relations and government relations Joe Browne ($1,741,000), executive vice president football operations Ray Anderson ($1,158,000) and chief financial officer Anthony Noto ($853,000). Tagliabue received $3,195,000.

In a separate filing, executive vice president Harold Henderson was listed at $2,087,000.

“It’s a tremendous amount of money. But if you look at it on a competitive basis, you understand that we can’t bring in people from the outside and overnight they know what they’re doing,” Kraft said. “We have to promote people from within because it’s a complicated organization. They’re a lot of nuances. So we have to find good people, develop them and then make sure we’re compensating them very fairly. Otherwise they would have alternatives of going to other places.”

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell predicts players' salaries will still grow under a new labor agreement

MIAMI — NFL commissioner Roger Goodell predicts players’ salaries will still grow under a new labor agreement, even if their share of revenue is reduced as owners have proposed.

Appearing Sunday on CBS’s “Face the Nation” hours before the [...]]]> Associated Press

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell predicts players' salaries will still grow under a new labor agreement

MIAMI — NFL commissioner Roger Goodell predicts players’ salaries will still grow under a new labor agreement, even if their share of revenue is reduced as owners have proposed.

Appearing Sunday on CBS’s “Face the Nation” hours before the Super Bowl, Goodell said the owners need more money to cover rising costs for international ventures and infrastructure projects such as new stadiums.

“You have to invest in these stadiums that we’re in today,” Goodell said. “You need to find new ways of creating revenue, whether it’s international or otherwise. And that takes investment. And we need to make sure that the owners have the capital to be able to do that. And then the pie grows, and everyone benefits.”

The union has said management wants players to reduce their share to 41 percent of applied revenues from about 59 percent. Goodell counters that of the $3.6 billion in incremental revenues since 2006, players received $2.6 billion.

“We want to structure something that really is going to lead us into the next decade in a way that’s constructive, so the players benefit, the teams benefit, and most of all, the game,” Goodell said.

The league’s current labor contract expires in March 2011. NFL Players Association executive director DeMaurice Smith said Thursday the chance of a lockout next year is a “14″ on a scale of 1 to 10.

“I don’t agree with that,” Goodell said. “The owners don’t win by having a lockout. Shutting down your business is not good for anybody. And it’s certainly not good for the players. It’s certainly not good for the fans.”

Addressing the issue of concussions has been another priority for the commissioner, and he said the league will continue to look for ways to make the game safer. He didn’t rule out the idea of getting linemen out of their three-point stances to reduce the ferocity of collisions at the line of scrimmage.

“As you’ll see tonight, you’ll see a lot of players that never get down in a three-point stance,” Goodell said. “So it’s possible that would happen.”

While science is still trying to determine the long-term effects of concussions, Goodell said, the league has made progress in increasing awareness about the severity of such injuries.

“For many years the culture had been quite different — that concussions weren’t serious injuries,” he said. “I think we have changed that culture and made sure that people understand they are serious, and they can have serious consequences if they’re not treated properly.”

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — NFL commissioner Roger Goodell wants to see more progress in labor talks between the league and players’ union.

Speaking Friday at his annual state-of-the-league address during Super Bowl week, Goodell said fans “expect solutions … and we should deliver” on a new collective bargaining agreement.

The NFL Players Association said Thursday [...]]]> Associated Press

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — NFL commissioner Roger Goodell wants to see more progress in labor talks between the league and players’ union.

Speaking Friday at his annual state-of-the-league address during Super Bowl week, Goodell said fans “expect solutions … and we should deliver” on a new collective bargaining agreement.

The NFL Players Association said Thursday it is bracing for a lockout in 2011 after the current labor pact expires. Goodell said he and the league’s owners want an agreement and it’s “absolutely false” that owners would want to see a work stoppage.

Goodell added that there is no contingency plan for the 2012 Super Bowl, on the chance that no football is played in 2011.

“We still have a lot of time and a lot of important opportunities here to structure something that makes sense for everybody,” Goodell said.

NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith said Thursday the union views the chance of a lockout as a “14″ on a scale of one to 10, something Goodell said he hopes won’t become a “self-fulfilling prophecy.”

“I sure hope he’s wrong. … Right now, we don’t need a lot of focus on that,” Goodell said.

Goodell has also said he doesn’t agree with the union’s contention that owners are insisting on an 18 percent player pay cut.

“The players should be paid fairly and they should be paid well,” he said. “And I assure you that they will.”

Tennessee Titans center Kevin Mawae (68) is shown in an NFL football game against the Minnesota Vikings in Nashville, Tenn. Without a deal in the next five weeks to preserve the labor peace that has lasted in the NFL since a bad month in 1987, next season will have no salary cap. Mawae, [...]]]> Associated Press

Tennessee Titans center Kevin Mawae (68) is shown in an NFL football game against the Minnesota Vikings in Nashville, Tenn. Without a deal in the next five weeks to preserve the labor peace that has lasted in the NFL since a bad month in 1987, next season will have no salary cap. Mawae, president of the NFL players' union, says, "It looks very bleak to get a (deal) done before March of this year or the beginning of the new NFL season."

NEW YORK — Rich, powerful and more popular than ever, the NFL gets closer to a doomsday scenario every day.

Without a deal in the next five weeks to preserve the labor peace that has lasted since a bad month in 1987 — anybody remember scab football? — next season will have no salary cap. That means richer teams such as the Redskins and Patriots will be able to far outspend clubs such as Jacksonville and Buffalo for free agents, while the Jaguars and Bills might try to pinch pennies to stay in business.

And if no deal can be reached next season, that uncapped, maybe less competitive year will be followed by no NFL at all in 2011. Stay tuned as the nation’s most lucrative and most watched sport heads into the Great Unknown.

“It looks very bleak to get a (deal) done before March of this year or the beginning of the new NFL season,” says Titans center Kevin Mawae, president of the players’ union.

“We’re going to continue to try. … Until we come to some terms of what’s really important and what are the big issues in this deal it’s going to be tough to get something done.

“The players are more united than ever before, and we’re preparing for a lockout.”

And getting antsy about the future.

“From our standpoint right now, you not only prepare for the worst, that seems like the direction it’s headed,” Titans defensive end Kyle Vanden Bosch says. “If players aren’t prepared, if guys are in bad financial situations, it hurts our leverage as players.”

The main issue, of course, is money — despite soaring TV ratings, an average franchise value of $1 billion and even a storybook Super Bowl featuring the hard-luck Saints and MVP Peyton Manning’s Colts.

The NFL owners in 2008 opted out of their contract — called the collective bargaining agreement, or CBA — and have asked for significant givebacks from the players, including a reduction in salaries of nearly 20 percent.

That works out to about $800 million; overall NFL revenues are estimated at $6.5 billion. Those owners say the agreement that will expire next year is far too favorable for the players, who get about 60 percent of the revenues actually used to determine the salary cap.

“What we’re trying to accomplish here is to have an economic system … that will allow us to look back 15 years from now and say that we, meaning the clubs and the players, were creative and thoughtful and laid the groundwork for the game to continue to grow,” says NFL executive VP and chief counsel Jeff Pash.

“If we have the right type of structure, it will lead to better salaries and benefits for current and retired players, and a better and healthier game for fans.”

The alternative?

A work stoppage similar to 1982 and 1987, when the union went on strike. Under labor law, the union has the right to strike and management has the right to lock out.

“Our focus is on getting a deal and we will have a deal,” Pash says. “The only question is when.”

For most of those years since the two sides reached the contract that brought the current free agency and salary cap system, mention of an uncapped season was heresy.

Now, it’s nearly upon us. It would mean:

— Players would need six years in the league before becoming unrestricted free agents rather than four. Some veterans with less than six years in the league would become restricted free agents, meaning their current club will have the right to match an offer or be compensated for losing them.

— Each club already has one transition player tag and would get a second. A transition player must be offered at least the average of the top 10 salaries for his position during the previous season, or 120 percent of the player’s previous year’s salary, whichever is greater.

— The eight clubs that made the divisional playoff round this year will have limits on signing unrestricted free agents under what’s called the Final Eight Plan.

— The 32 teams would be relieved of their obligation to fund numerous player benefit programs, including 401Ks, player annuity, severance pay, and tuition assistance. That would be a reduction of more than $7 million per club.

— A supplemental revenue-sharing plan will be scrapped by the league, which says about $100 million is involved; the union claims it’s closer to $200 million. That’s not a huge sum in the scheme of NFL finances, but would still hurt clubs on the financial bottom rung.

— There would be no salary floor or salary ceiling. In 2009, the cap was $128 million and the floor was $111 million.

“I think the fans will see a different system with no limit on the high end or the low end, and on what teams can spend,” says Falcons president Rich McKay. “Each team will have to decide how they will operate.”

Does that mean the NFL salary structure will resemble baseball’s rich get richer-poor get poorer model — at least for one year?

No, says Marc Ganis, president of Chicago-based consulting company Sports Corp. Ltd.

“It won’t happen, at least now, because of the competitive balance rules that are in effect during the uncapped year,” Ganis says. “You will not see a baseball type of hoarding of the all-stars occur in the NFL, certainly not this coming season.”

For one thing, the crop of players available won’t be as substantial as in previous, capped seasons, with the likes of Shawne Merriman, Miles Austin, Elvis Dumervil, Owen Daniels, Brandon Marshall and DeMeco Ryans now becoming restricted free agents. And, as Mawae notes, if NFL owners are looking to save money on player costs, here’s their opportunity.