Player reps vote for CBA; Free agency to start Friday
The Philadelphia Inquirer Blog - Eagles
Player reps vote for CBA; Free agency to start Friday
Jonathan Tamari and Jeff McLane
UPDATE:
NFL player representatives voted unaminously to approve the collective bargaining agreement, according to NFLPA spokesman George Attalah.
"It's unanimous," he tweeted.
The recommendation from the reps then goes to the Brady plantiffs who filed suit against the NFL. They have already agreed to sign off on the settlement. And then finally, the 1,900 or so players will have their opportunity to vote, but it is expected the deal will pass by a landslide majority.
Teams can start negotiating with free agents and start signing their draft picks on Tuesday. Free agency will start on Friday. It is still uncertain when the Eagles will begin training camp, but reports are Wednesday.
FROM EARLIER:
NFL owners and players have agreed to the terms of a new collective bargaining agreement, FoxSports.com reported early this morning.
Some other media outlets have reported that a deal is not 100 percent done, but that it should be finalized sometime today.
The NFLPA will hold an 11 a.m. conference call with its player representatives, a league source said. A vote could come at that time. After the reps vote, 1,900 players would vote individually. A majority vote -- 50 percent plus one -- would be needed to accept the CBA proposal.
There are conflicting reports on when free agency would begin. FoxSports.com and others have reported it will start Friday at 6 p.m. ESPN is reporting that free agency begins Tuesday at noon, and that teams can sign their own free agents this afternoon and also begin negotiating with other free agents.
They would also be permitted to discuss player trades with other teams at that time.
The Eagles, of course, are expected to trade backup quarterback Kevin Kolb once they are allowed. Many believe that a deal with the Cardinals could be announced minutes into free agency. The most logical trade has the Eagles exchanging Kolb for cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie with perhaps a draft pick from Arizona tossed in.
The Eagles have more than a dozen players that will be unrestricted free agents, but may only try and sign linebacker Stewart Bradley, running back Jerome Harrison and punter Sav Rocca.
The deal would also let team facilities open Tuesday and some training camps could begin as soon as Wednesday, according to FoxSports.com, with others opening Thursday, Friday or Sunday. NFL Network reported that Eagles training camp would start on Wednesday.
The Eagles have said they are committed to holding their training camp at Lehigh University. Whenever they open camp they will have approximately two weeks to prepare for their preseason opener when they host Baltimore on Aug. 11.
This is all pending a player vote, but the players are expected to rubber stamp a deal approved by the NFLPA executive committee.
Finally. Let's get those trades done. Personally, I'd rather see DRC, Edwards, and Posluszny here than just Aso and a bunch of rehabbing no-name fill-ins(see Jackson, Marlin). Aso isn't going to get us the Lombardi by himself.— goeagles87- This should be fun.— maximus
- I think tyhe first think skinflint Joe Banner will do is raise ticket prices.— Wilhelm Von Humboldt
- If they get DRC + a pick they'll announce that first, if not they'll announce a few FA signings. Either way, it's about time.— phillipkatz
- --Also, if they announce FA signings that'll tip their hand around where they're going to send KK
- I'm afraid NFL owners will keep raising ticket prices as long as we the addicted consumer stops watching and attending. We'll see if there's any fallout from the protracted lockout. Doubtful.— retzlaff
- Good things come to those who wait! My free agents list includes Charles Johnson(DE-Carolina), Haynesworth(using the draft pick from the Kolb trade),DRC(Arizona), and the recently paroled Plaxico Burress— khenders
- The Eagles are not going to trade for Haynesworth and most definitely wouldn't be using the picks they get for Kolb (likely 2nd or 3rd rounder). That's absurd. If you trade for him, you have to pay him that ridiculous contract. Nobody will. They will release him or trade him for a late pick (5 - 7th round) and have to redo his contract first....— SouthPhillySam
- Get 'R Done!!!!! We need some fresh stories and only a season underway can fix the fan's jones for news!— unbelieveable!
- And a big fat NO on Farve! We don't need a princess in the team lockeroom. He is done, so stick a fork in that rumor!— unbelieveable!
- It will be interesting to see how badly the players got r@ped by the owners. The owners had more reason to wait so the players must have folded. Either way, the fans dumb enough to continue to go to the games will get a real mugging over the next few years.— 2ndNlong
Comment removed.- Hey Wilhelm, what does tyhe first think mean? Back to Germany!! lol!— noeyes43
