Lockout Looming

The day has come at last. At 11:59 PM tonight, the NFL's collective bargaining agreement with the Players' Association expires, and if nothing is done in the next few hours, the league heads into a lockout. The possibility of not having football for a prolonged period of time is realistic.

Four outcomes are possible as a result of today's negotiations:

1) The most unrealistic outcome, but certainly the best: The Players' Union and the NFL come to an new collective bargaining agreement by 11:59 PM, ending all possibility of a lockout. Negotiations come to a conclusion and there will be football this coming season. This will probably not happen today, but there is a small chance.

2) Negotiations are extended. This means the mediated talks between the players and the owners continue for a set period of time, and whether or not there will be a lockout would still be unknown today. Expiration of the CBA is delayed.

3) The Players' Association decertifies. They would lose their right to collectively bargain, but could file individual antitrust lawsuits against the league, and hopefully prevent a work stoppage. Peyton Manning, Tom Brady and Drew Brees have agreed to be lead plaintiffs if this happens.

4) The worst outcome possible: The two sides come to a stalemate. When football is played again would become uncertain, and negotiations would be postponed for an unknown period of time. Sundays would likely not include football this year.

There are four core issues that the owners and players are split on:

1) How to split the nine billion dollars in revenue the league brings in every season: The owners, this past season, received the first billion dollars for various needs. They are demanding for another billion dollars, therefore slashing the amount received by the players.

2) The rookie wage scale: The owners want smaller contracts initially given to rookies, thus not wasting money on busts. A prime example of an overpaid rookie is JaMarcus Russell, who was taken by the Raiders with the first overall selection in the 2007 draft.

3) The 18-game regular season: The owners want 18 regular season games in order to bring in more revenue. The players would rather sustain the current 16-game season, claiming the added two games adds to injury risk.

4) Retirement benefits: The owners want player benefits to end five years after a player retires. The players say that since many of them have sustained long-term injuries and conditions from their playing days, the benefits should continue for a longer period of time.

All of this aside, all of the players and fans want football. Most likely the owners do as well. This conflict has been deemed the "Millionaires vs. Billionaires" by fans, saying both sides are greedy and that they should agree to something, so there are games to watch on Sunday. Which just so happens to be the best situation for everyone.