Report: NFL Proposed Cutting Each Team's Player Costs by $40M in NFLPA Proposal

The NFL proposed cutting each of the 32 teams' player costs by $40 million "in salary cap and/or benefits" in 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which has already shortened the preseason to two games and forced teams to limit attendance or eliminate it entirely.

Tom Pelissero of NFL Network dropped the report Thursday evening and noted that "player leadership [is] strongly opposed to such a short-term hit."

The NFLPA wants to divide the shortfall over multiple future salary caps, while the league wants to absorb the financial blows immediately.

Per Pelissero, any revenue shortfall not handled in 2020 would have been accounted for in 2021, perhaps leading to a situation where veteran players would be released or asked to restructure their deals.

"No thanks," one player told Pelissero. "Not taking the COVID risk and (the) financial burden."

A failure to meet a deal now would mean that a "projected multibillion revenue shortfall in 2020 would be accounted for in 2021," which would entail a salary-cap drop between $50 million to $70 million. Over the Cap currently lists a base salary cap for the 2021 season at $215 million.

The NFL wants a deal finished by training camp, which is scheduled to start July 28. The NFLPA is in "no rush," per Pelissero.

Players can also opt out of the 2020 season by Aug. 1.

The NFL and NFLPA had agreed to a new CBA that would take them through 2030, per ESPN's Dan Graziano. However, as Pelissero reported, the two sides "must negotiate in good faith to correct a projected multibillion-dollar revenue shortfall."

Some of the NFL's most popular players have chimed in recently regarding negotiations with the NFL, with Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt listing players' questions and concerns:

Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes also noted how the NFL and NFLPA are now in a race against the clock despite having a lot of time to figure out a solution:

As Pelissero noted, the Chiefs and Texans, who are supposed to open the regular season Thursday, Sept. 10, are mandated to report to training camp Monday or face discipline if the NFL and NFLPA can't come to terms on testing and health and safety protocols amid COVID-19, perhaps setting the stage for multiple grievances.

Per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, Texans and Chiefs rookies and quarterbacks are supposed to report to camp Monday for COVID-19 testing.