Players Meet With Lawyers

As the lockout continues to near a resolution, there was a little twist in developments on Monday. A group of players reportedly met with with their Antitrust lawyers without owners present. Not much information was released about what went on in these meetings, but I have heard two main theories: One of them is good, and the other one is not so good.

Let’s start with the not so good possibility. Some people have said that the meeting could have been for the lawyers to encourage their clients to stand up to the owners and not roll over in negotiations. If this is the case, then the lockout is far from over. I have made it clear that I think the two sides need to keep the lawyers out of this as much as possible because I don’t believe the attorneys have the best interest of their clients in mind. If the lawyers get in the heads of the players, we might be in for an even longer summer.

Now, moving on to the more preferable option: The players wanted to hammer out some post-lockout issues because they know a deal is imminent. Once an agreement is reached, there will still be plenty of issues for both sides to resolve amongst themselves, and one school of thought is that the players wanted to get the wheels in motion on some of their issues early. If this is the case, then this thing could be over sooner rather than later. I really hope this is the case, especially with the mostly positive news we have heard in regards to the lockout over the last week or so. I still believe we will all be able to sit down and watch the Rams and Bears kick off the preseason in the Hall of Fame game, but time is running out, so this needs to happen soon.