With the NFL Lockout on the brink of being over, the NFL owners and player representatives appear to have a tentative agreement in place, as the owners are due to vote later today on the proposed CBA in Atlanta. However, we could have a hang up on the players side.
According to Mike Freeman of CBS Sports, our own Logan Mankins and San Diego Chargers wide receiver Vincent Jackson, two plaintiffs in the Brady v. NFL antitrust lawsuit, are reportedly demanding the each receive 10 million dollars in a possible settlement between they and the owners. Freeman has more:
Mankins and Jackson are still asking for $10 million each and this is slowing the process, the source explained. Jackson has denied he is seeking compensation. And just to be clear: Mankins and Jackson are not themselves asking for the money. Lawyers representing them are. The lawsuit against the NFL cannot be settled until all the plaintiffs agree and as of late Wednesday night, the source said, Mankins and Jackson were still seeking payment. The NFL, thus far, refuses to agree (via CBS Sports)
As a Patriots fan, it doesn't surprise me at all that Mankins wants compensation in a possible deal. In the past, Mankins has expressed his displeasure with the Patriots, as they won't offer the all-pro guard the money he deserves. Mankins even went to the extent of holding out from the Patriots for the first month of the season before eventually signing a one-year tender with the team in November.
Meanwhile, Jackson has had problems with his San Diego Chargers. After violating the team's conduct policy in the beginning of last season, Jackson was suspended by the Chargers for the first three games of the season.
If not compensated, both have also reportedly expressed a desire to be granted rights as unrestricted free agents, so they can test the open market. That request however seems to be out of the question at the moment.
Mankins is set to earn just over 10 million dollars this season before becoming a free agent in 2012. If i'm the Patriots, I would be doing my best to sign 29-year old Mankins to the long-term extension that he deserves. However if I'm Logan Mankins, I put my demands aside for a little bit and just sign off on the new proposed CBA.