I couldn’t have timed my return from vacation any better: After a week of hemming, hawing and delaying a couple votes to end the lockout, the NFL is finally back to work. But unlike yours truly, who had a splendid time in Costa Rica, the NFL has returned from exiling its employees and will come back to a summer schedule that will be frantic to say the least.
Let’s take a look at all the positives to come out this deal, not including the obvious one that, of course, football is back, baby!
There’s a rookie salary cap: I wrote last year that Sam Bradford would be the last of the big money rookies and I was right. No more massive bonus that can crush a team if their high draft choice busts. No more teams trading away high picks because they feel that they can’t afford to pay a certain player in that slot. This is one of the smartest and easiest moves the NFL could have made.
We get confirmation that Al Davis is still crazy: The owners voted 31-0 in approval of the new deal with Oakland abstaining from the vote citing financial reasons. Really, Al? Every other team – rich or poor – thinks this deal is a great one and you don’t? Maybe it’s time to retire and/or give up the Weekend at Bernie’s routine.
We get one week of absolutely crazy activity: Free agency, trades, cuts and training camps will all begin with the span of days, starting today. There will never be such a frenzied period of movement and team adjustment in any pro sport, ever. Just keep a sports website open and continually hit refresh during the day, something should always be going down.
Retired and injured players get more benefits: We’ve found out recently how much a football career can weigh on a player both physically and mentally. Concussions are leg injuries are serious things that can have lasting repercussions on a person’s well being. Now the men who have played this game for our entertainment get more help after their careers and a better health plan. Kudos everyone for making this happen.
The new CBA runs for ten years: That means a whole decade of labour peace with no chance of either side opting out and causing another lockout or strike. Even though this lockout didn’t really hurt fans the way the NHL’s did in 2004 or how the NBA’s current one will, it was terribly annoying to say the least. It was like a mosquito bite that just kept on itching, but you knew would go away eventually with no real harm done.
Fantasy football and football betting are back: These two things were billion dollar industries themselves and were put in jeopardy with the lockout. Now, we can start analyzing team’s records against the spread and start scouting out sleepers for our office pools.
Now, off to talk to the boss about my coming fantasy football spread
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Whoa, thank you for these details. Excellent to understand that people have been important as well as dealing with inside by doing this. I hope to experience a lot more like this before long.