The seven day extension that both the NFL owners and players union agreed to a week ago has expired as you are reading this. The 5pm deadline Friday afternoon comes after a week of negotiations and some agreements, but obviously not enough to warrant celebration on on new Collective Bargaining Agreement being reached.
With some of the issues agreed upon (rookie salary scale) and others far apart (18-game season, revenue sharing), the union plans to de-certify and then the owners will start their lockout of the players, officially putting the 2011 season on hold.
Recent reports have the owners willing to 'split the difference,' with the difference being around $600 million dollars, but that additional $300 million obviously does not appear to be enough for the players.
The 2011 NFL Draft, beginning on April 28th, will go on as planned, but players will not be signed and free agency will remain in limbo. With so much on the line for both sides and the fans angry at everyone, one would have thought this additional time would either result in a meeting of the minds or at least another extension to keep the negotiations going until a common ground could be attained.
A sad state of affairs for the NFL, felt hardest by the millions of fans across the country. Git 'er done, boys!