The night before delivering a joint message to NFL rookies with commissioner Roger Goodell, NFL Players Association executive director DeMaurice Smith held an under-the-radar conference call Tuesday to update many of the league’s most prolific stars on the status of labor negotiations, FOXSports.com has learned. Perhaps the most important thing to emerge from the talks so far was this: While saying he was optimistic because the two sides were continuing to negotiate, Smith painted a different picture than that of a collective bargaining agreement being reached as soon as this weekend. Smith began the call by informing players — 50 Pro Bowlers were given call-in information, but the number
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Secret phone call dampens CBA hopes
The Eagles are popularly linked to Nnamdi Asomugha in free agency speculation, but they may be eyeballing an in-state cornerback option instead. Citing multiple sources, Adam Caplan of FOXSports.com reports that the Eagles “will show strong interest” in free agent Ike Taylor when the lockout ends. Taylor, of course, has spent the first eight years of his career with Pittsburgh. Caplan also hints that Philadelphia is considering playing more zone coverage under first-year defensive coordinator Juan Castillo in order to complement changes up front. Along the defensive line, new position coach Jim Washburn is implementing a “wide-nine” philosophy in which both ends line up well outside of the
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Report: Eagles will show "strong interest" in Ike Taylor
If Kevin Kolb is traded before the NFL season begins (whenever that may be), the Eagles will be in need of another backup alongside Mike Kafka. And if Andy Reid and co. want to make another splash like they did with Michael Vick, NFL.com senior analyst Pat Kirwan suggested they sign a player similar to Vick: former Titans first-round pick Vince Young.
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Could Vince Young be the Birds’ backup?
Legal teams for the NFL and players have met for three days at a Minneapolis-area law firm under the auspices of U.S. Magistrate Judge Arthur Boylan, marking the first time that owners and players haven’t been involved in the clandestine talks. But owners and players will return to the proceedings Thursday. A number of owners and players arrived Wednesday in the Twin Cities to prepare for scheduled talks that will include NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, NFL Players Association executive director DeMaurice Smith and the legal teams. The parties are scheduled to meet only on Thursday for now, but they’re prepared to continue into Friday if it’s deemed necessary to help the league-imposed
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NFL owners, players will rejoin Goodell, Smith in labor talks
As the NFL owners and players continue to negotiate in hopes of solving the labor impasse, the lawyer for a group of retired players has fired a shot across the bow at management and the union. Attorney Michael Hausfeld, who is representing Carl Eller and a cluster of other players who have sued to gain control of health, disability and retirement benefits, said that his group will not sign off on a court settlement until its demands are satisfied. More troubling is that Hausfeld said his side has not been involved in the mediation of the lawsuit. “If our side is not heard and our desire for change is not met, we will not agree to a settlement of this case,” said Hausfeld, whose suit on
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Retired players group threatens settlement talks
Keenan Clayton doesn’t know what his sophomore season in the NFL will be like. Clayton’s hoping to earn a starting spot as the Eagles’ weak-side linebacker, but because of the lockout, he just isn’t sure. “I hope so,” Clayton said. “It’s what I’m working toward. But I know that eventually me and [Jamar Chaney] will be out there together, some way, somehow.” It remains to be seen if Clayton will join Chaney on the field whenever the 2011 season begins, but there they were on Monday, both on the field, working out together. Clayton, for the first time since several Eagles began training and working out at the Memorial Sports Complex in Marlton, N.J., joined his teammates to take part in
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Clayton working hard to earn starting gig
Another new face showed up at the Eagles’ lockout workout Monday. No, not Donovan McNabb. Keenan Clayton, the Eagles’ second-year linebacker, worked out with several teammates for the first time this season at the Memorial Sports Complex, doing drills under the supervision of the Power Train staff. He joined fellow second-year linebacker Jamar Chaney, offensive tackle Austin Howard, defensive tackle Trevor Laws, running back Eldra Buckley and professional hockey player T.J. Brennan, a Buffalo Sabres draft pick. After the hourlong session on a muggy morning, Clayton discussed the benefit of working alongside Chaney, a staple of the lockout workouts, and made what sounded like a prediction
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Clayton brings big ideas to Eagles’ workout
Players involved in labor negotiations with the NFL traveled to Minnesota on Monday, but not just to meet with their legal team. They are there for a fifth round of “secret talks” with the league, a source with knowledge of the situation said. Minnesota is home to Arthur Boylan, the U.S. magistrate judge assigned to run court-ordered mediation and who has been present for the previous talks. Also constants in the room have been NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, NFL Players Association executive director DeMaurice Smith, Carolina Panthers owner Jerry Richardson, New York Giants owner John Mara, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, New York Jets fullback Tony Richardson, Baltimore Ravens
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Minnesota welcomes league, players for labor negotiations
If incoming draft picks can wait before signing their NFL contracts, they can do the same before making a large financial expenditures once the player lockout is lifted. That’s the message the NFL Players Association will send to its newest members Tuesday during a rookie symposium in Bradenton, Fla. A 90-minute seminar on financial management will stress that players be especially prudent in their early spending — something that wasn’t the case with some members of previous rookie classes. Karl McDonnell, the chief operating officer of Strayer University, said rookies will be told to “take a year off from making any big financial decisions.” “These players have a tendency to get
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Rookies urged not to make big purchase
Joe Gibbs had witnessed the jarring scene too many times. “A player would be upset with his contract, (and) we’d be in serious discussions,” says the Hall of Famer who guided the Washington Redskins to all three of their Super Bowl titles during his 16-year head coaching career while recalling moments that typically unfolded in his office. “And during the conversation, it dawns on you, ‘Are you in financial trouble?’ That happens over and over again. “It played out a lot.” Even in retirement — Gibbs stepped down from his second stint with the Redskins after the 2007 season — he remained bothered that so many players were flirting with fiscal ruin. So he reached out to Redskins owner Daniel
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Joe Gibbs behind NFL rookie financial seminar this week
The clock continues to tick. And the NFL and players continue to work. With the St. Louis Rams and Chicago Bears — the participants in this year’s scheduled Hall of Fame Game — scheduled to open training camp just three weeks from Friday, time is beginning to run short for negotiating teams as they look to preserve the preseason in its traditional form. The two sides return to the bargaining table later this week for a fifth round of “secret talks.” The league and players have spent a total of nine days in four different locations — suburban Chicago, New York’s Long Island, Maryland’s Eastern Shore and suburban Boston — during this phase of negotiations. They’ve also communicated away
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Parties must reach resolution soon to preserve full preseason
So the latest speculation — because again, that’s all that’s available right now — is that the Cardinals could end up with Kevin Kolb as their quarterback by trading not a draft pick but cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie. That was the talk a couple of days ago on Philadelphia radio station WIP (H/T to Paul Calvisi and Dave Burns on Sports 620 KTAR for the heads-up) and frankly, it’s not the first time DRC’s name has come up in such speculation. Around the draft, people were spitballing the idea the Cards would send Patrick Peterson to Philly for Kolb, and that morphed into DRC. Some of that is connecting of the dots. The Cards need a QB and most assume Kolb is the most reasonable
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Speculation on a Dominic Rogers-Cromartie for Kolb trade is just that
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