Vote by NFL Owners Hints at a Settlement

The 28 NFL clubs gave Commissioner Paul Tagliabue and the executive committee of the NFL Management Council the authority to settle lawsuits with players and negotiate a new labor agreement.

The executive committee previously needed to go back to the clubs for approval of its actions. Monday’s vote in Grapevine, Tex., appeared to increase the chance that the league would push for a settlement in the Freeman McNeil free-agency trial, which is scheduled to resume next Monday in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis.