NFL Labor Discussion Gets Back Underway

Talks between the NFL and its players union resumed Friday afternoon, minus the rhetoric that has characterized earlier discussions.

That was perhaps a sign that the sides take seriously the ramifications of beginning free agency without a new deal -- something that was seven hours away from happening before the league and the union agreed Thursday to extend by three days the start of the NFL’s new calendar year.

It now begins at 9:01 p.m. on Sunday.

The two sides were not talking publicly Friday and wouldn’t reveal the location of the talks -- but they were said to be in New York, where they broke off Tuesday after three days. Owners were under the threat of fines for talking to the media and Gene Upshaw, executive director of the NFL Players Assn., and other union officials were also silent.

The decision to resume talks came a day after Commissioner Paul Tagliabue suggested the picture for any agreement was grim. Another good sign was that Dan Rooney of Pittsburgh and Jerry Richardson of Carolina -- two owners who are considered moderates -- stayed in New York after Thursday’s league meeting to help with the talks. Rooney has helped settle labor disputes before and is one of the owners Upshaw trusts.

The contract between the players and the league doesn’t expire for another two seasons.

But this would be the final year of the salary cap, which would be about $94.5 million if there was no deal. That would leave many teams well over the cap, forcing them to cut many veterans. The cap could be $10 million higher if there was a contract extension.

If there is no deal, it would leave a glut of players on the free-agent market and many teams without much money to sign them. Next year, the final season of the contract, would be without a cap -- and that would contain limitations that could hurt the players, such as raising the number of years of eligibility for free agency from four to six.

There were reports that several players called the union urging officials to avoid a scenario that would most likely have its biggest effect on high-salaried veterans.