Packers president: Owners are done negotiating

Players can take a look at the deal the owners ratified on Thursday all they want.

But there will not be any more negotiations. Not according to Mark Murphy, the president of the Green Bay Packers. Murphy said in a conference call with Packers media that the owners have “put our pens down.”

It’s been reported that the players could take a vote on the tentative agreement later today. Otherwise, the issue could drag into next week with just the smallest items being argued.

“We’ve negotiated in good faith with the union. We’ve reached an agreement on all the key points,” Murphy said. “They know what we ratified and they’re voting to ratify the same thing.”

Murphy was a key member of the NFLPA during the 1982 players strike so he’s been through the labor wars in the NFL before. He’s typically measured in his public comments and this gives you an idea where the owners are coming from at this point. Now, we just wait to see what move the players make.
 

“I would be surprised if they don’t ratify,” Murphy said. “That’s really our hope, that they do. If they don’t, we’ll deal with that when it comes. We certainly want to have a full preseason and not miss any preseason games.”

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Brad Biggs covers the Bears for the Chicago Tribune