Lockout more certain with each passing day

INDIANAPOLIS - With less than a week to go before the expiration of the NFL's collective-bargaining agreement, hope seems to fade with each passing day that the league can avoid a lockout of the players by Thursday.

NFL Players Association executive director DeMaurice Smith addressed nearly 700 agents Friday about the seemingly intractable labor situation. And though Smith didn't directly discuss recent negotiations with the owners, very few agents who attended the meeting sounded optimistic about a quick resolution.

"I can't see how there won't be a lockout," said one agent, who asked not to be named. "It doesn't look good right now. They're very far apart ."

After the meeting, agents Tom Condon, Ben Dogra, Drew Rosenhaus and Joel Segal stood side-by-side to support the players in front of the media. The four agents also took some questions.

Negotiators from both sides met for a week in Washington, D.C., but seemed no closer to a resolution. The talks will continue Tuesday with federal mediator George Cohen. Owners are scheduled to meet Wednesday and Thursday in Northern Virginia to discuss the labor situation.

If no agreement is reached by 11:59 p.m. Thursday, it is likely that a lockout would be declared by the owners. However, there also is a possibility that owners would be willing to "stop the clock" and continue negotiations. There has been some discussion among the owners about eventually deciding to allow football to be played under the current terms of the CBA.

Complicating matters even further is uncertainty over whether the NFLPA will opt to decertify, which would in essence dissolve the union. The tactic was used in 1987 when the NFL last had a players' strike, but the union re-formed in 1993. The current CBA was forged that year, and there haven't been any work stoppages since.