Gutekunst ‘Hopeful’ New CBA Gets Done
The NFL and the NFL Players Association will meet at the Scouting Combine next week in Indianapolis to discuss a proposed new collective bargaining agreement that the league’s owners ratified on Thursday.
The players union had been scheduled to vote on Friday but, after a lengthy conference call, elected for more meetings with the league.
“Today, the NFLPA Board of Player Representatives did not take a vote on the principal terms of a proposed new collective bargaining agreement,” the union said in a statement. “The Executive Committee looks forward to meeting with NFL management again next week before the Board takes a vote shortly after.”
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Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst said team president Mark Murphy has been keeping him informed.
“I’m very hopeful that everything gets done but that’s kind of the extent of it,” Gutekunst said on Friday.
Getting the CBA hammered out in advance of the new league-year would provide a huge lift for Gutekunst as he attempts to assemble a team capable of getting to the Super Bowl after losing in the NFC Championship Game this year. According to OverTheCap.com, the Packers have about $23.95 million of cap space, with the ability to create more with the potential release of tight end Jimmy Graham and guard Lane Taylor. However, hammering out a contract extension with defensive tackle Kenny Clark, the potential re-signings of free agents such as kicker Mason Crosby and right tackle Bryan Bulaga, and signing the 2020 draft class would eat into that figure quickly.
The deal that the owners approved has the potential to mean an additional $5 billion for the players – or $15.625 million per team per season.
From a team perspective, the big issue of going forward in 2020 – the last year of the CBA – is the so-called 30 percent rule, which states “no player contract extending into a season beyond the Final League Year [2020] may provide for an annual increase in salary … of more than 30 percent of the salary provided for in the Final League Year, per year, either in the season after the Final League Year or in any subsequent season covered by the Player Contract.”
The 30 percent rule would severely restrict how Russ Ball could structure a contract with Clark. For instance, last offseason, the Packers signed Za’Darius Smith to a contract with base salaries of $1 million 2019, $2 million (with a $9 million roster bonus) in 2020, $9.5 million (with a $5 million roster bonus) in 2021 and $14.5 million in 2020. Those annual increases are far greater than 30 percent and wouldn’t be allowed in a deal for Clark (or any potential free-agent signings/re-signings). That means Clark’s contract would eat up a ton of cap space now and couldn’t be back-loaded, as the team did in its free-agent spending spree last year.
“There’s some limitations, but we’ve been kind of operating under that,” Gutekunst said. “And if something changes, then we’re prepared to change with it. But it’s kind of out of our control, so it’s just kind of something we’re waiting on.”
The NFLPA’s executive council on Friday voted 6-5 not to recommend the proposal, according to reports. A simply majority of players – about 2,100 – will make the decision on whether or not to ratify.
The major point of contention is the creation of a 17-game regular season for the 2021 season. Players don’t want the additional wear and tear on their bodies, especially if it’s not worth their while financially.
