The NFL lockout is finally over. On Monday, the NFL Players Association officially agreed to the league owners’ proposal for a new collective bargaining agreement. The new deal will cover the next ten NFL seasons and the shortest, wildest off season in recent league memory begins on Tuesday morning. The official league year will start on Aug. 4, exactly one week before the first preseason games.
All 32 teams’ facilities open to players at 10:00 a.m. ET on Tuesday. At that time, teams can begin to trade players, sign rookies and begin negotiations with free agents. At 4:01 p.m. ET, teams can begin to waive and cut players. On Friday, teams can begin to sign free agents. However, newly signed players cannot begin practicing until Aug. 4.
Perhaps the most chaotic part of the shortest off season in NFL history is the free agent signing period. Teams can begin signing free agents on Friday, but all teams’ payrolls must be below the new $120 million salary cap by the first day of the league year, less than one week away. That means all the marquee free agents won’t have a month or two to shop around for a new team. Guys like Oakland Raiders cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha will have to sign quickly so each team has time (albeit not much) to get under the new salary cap. New York Jets fullback Tony Richardson, a member of the NFLPA’s executive committee, described what is ahead in this sporadic off season.
“Chaos,” Richardson said. “That’s the best word for it.”
Original Story:
http://www.thecowboyscentral.com/2011...
