Packers like new labor deal
The Green Bay Packers will be one of the teams contributing to revenue sharing in the NFL under the new collective bargaining agreement between the owners and the players.
Though revenue sharing ultimately will hurt the Packers’ bottom line, the team’s executives believe it was the best thing for the long-term future of the Green Bay franchise and its ability to remain competitive.
“That’s not so much an expense to us as it is an investment in the future of the league and stability to the Green Bay Packers,” John Jones, the Packers’ executive vice president and chief operating officer, said Wednesday night from Grapevine, Texas, where the deal was finalized.
“It was our view from the beginning that not only was revenue sharing the right thing to do, but we were prepared to support it financially. We’ll be among the contributing clubs in the league.”
Other revenue-sharing plans discussed would not have been as favorable to the Packers as the one put in place, Jones said.
The top 15 teams in terms of revenue, which includes the Packers, will help fund the rest of the league’s teams. Jones said he expects the Packers to stay among those 15 teams.
The deal also preserved the salary cap, which is expected to increase by as much as $10 million from the $94.5 million cap previously in place.
“We’re delighted with the new CBA and that a salary-cap system was preserved,” Packers President Bob Harlan said in a statement.
“Continuation of the salary cap was our No. 1 goal because without it, the long-term viability of the Packers would be in doubt.”
The new labor deal gives the Packers time to continue negotiations with defensive end Aaron Kampman, who is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent at 11:01 p.m. Friday. Without a deal, free agency would have started at the same time Wednesday.
Andrew Brandt, the Packers’ vice president of player finance, was working into the night with Kampman’s representatives, but no deal appeared imminent.
The Packers have made re-signing Kampman their top priority but there remains a significant gap between the two sides.
The Packers are believed to have increased their offer, but it hasn’t been enough for Kampman, who is coming off the most productive season of his four-year NFL career. He had a career-high 6½ sacks last season and led the Packers’ defensive linemen with 105 tackles.
If Kampman becomes an unrestricted free agent, the Packers could get another crack at re-signing him. He could give Green Bay the opportunity to counter any offer he receives from another team.
That might not be the case with kicker Ryan Longwell, whose career in Green Bay could be over.
Contract talks between the Packers and Longwell don’t appear to have covered much ground in the final days leading up to free agency. There’s a feeling in the organization that Longwell might not give the Packers a chance to match an offer he gets from another team.
“Everybody’s professional, but we also know that free agency is free agency,” General Manager Ted Thompson said. “So you never know once that starts.”
Though revenue sharing ultimately will hurt the Packers’ bottom line, the team’s executives believe it was the best thing for the long-term future of the Green Bay franchise and its ability to remain competitive.
“That’s not so much an expense to us as it is an investment in the future of the league and stability to the Green Bay Packers,” John Jones, the Packers’ executive vice president and chief operating officer, said Wednesday night from Grapevine, Texas, where the deal was finalized.
“It was our view from the beginning that not only was revenue sharing the right thing to do, but we were prepared to support it financially. We’ll be among the contributing clubs in the league.”
Other revenue-sharing plans discussed would not have been as favorable to the Packers as the one put in place, Jones said.
The top 15 teams in terms of revenue, which includes the Packers, will help fund the rest of the league’s teams. Jones said he expects the Packers to stay among those 15 teams.
The deal also preserved the salary cap, which is expected to increase by as much as $10 million from the $94.5 million cap previously in place.
“We’re delighted with the new CBA and that a salary-cap system was preserved,” Packers President Bob Harlan said in a statement.
“Continuation of the salary cap was our No. 1 goal because without it, the long-term viability of the Packers would be in doubt.”
The new labor deal gives the Packers time to continue negotiations with defensive end Aaron Kampman, who is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent at 11:01 p.m. Friday. Without a deal, free agency would have started at the same time Wednesday.
Andrew Brandt, the Packers’ vice president of player finance, was working into the night with Kampman’s representatives, but no deal appeared imminent.
The Packers have made re-signing Kampman their top priority but there remains a significant gap between the two sides.
The Packers are believed to have increased their offer, but it hasn’t been enough for Kampman, who is coming off the most productive season of his four-year NFL career. He had a career-high 6½ sacks last season and led the Packers’ defensive linemen with 105 tackles.
If Kampman becomes an unrestricted free agent, the Packers could get another crack at re-signing him. He could give Green Bay the opportunity to counter any offer he receives from another team.
That might not be the case with kicker Ryan Longwell, whose career in Green Bay could be over.
Contract talks between the Packers and Longwell don’t appear to have covered much ground in the final days leading up to free agency. There’s a feeling in the organization that Longwell might not give the Packers a chance to match an offer he gets from another team.
“Everybody’s professional, but we also know that free agency is free agency,” General Manager Ted Thompson said. “So you never know once that starts.”
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