NFL Lockout: 10 Biggest Questions Surrounding a Possible Lockout

Super Bowl XLV is just over a week away, and we better enjoy it.

With the owners and players far apart on a new collective bargaining agreement, the potential for an NFL lockout is greater than ever.

There has been some discussion between the two sides, but nothing's really come out of it.

And if a new CBA isn't reached by March, we could see Sam Bradford retire before another NFL game is played.

OK, not really, but there are several key questions surrounding the possibility of an NFL lockout.

Let's take a look. 

10. Who Would Be the First To Be Affected By a Lockout?

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TAMPA, FL - FEBRUARY 01: A detailed picture of bottles of beer before Super Bowl XLIII between the Arizona Cardinals and the Pittsburgh Steelers on February 1, 2009 at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

Here's a shocker: The NFL players aren't the only ones who will be affected by a potential lockout!

In fact, the first people to feel the effects of it will be the guys who don't wear jerseys or coordinate defenses.

Lower and mid-level employees—anyone from the guy selling $9 beers at the Superdome to an assistant in the media relations department—could be, at the very least, laid off temporarily.

That's not to say that Bill Belichick or Mike Tomlin won't get hit in the pocketbook at some point—they just won't be the first ones. 

9. Are Replacement Games a Possibility?

During the 1987 strike, the NFL staged three weeks worth of games with replacement players, which cracked the foundation of the players' union when some veteran players crossed the "picket line".

In other words, they went all Eddie Martel in The Replacements.

There is a remote possibility of this happening again, but it's less likely this time around because of—believe it or not—fantasy football.

No one wants to have a fantasy football season where Brooks Bollinger is the first overall pick. 

8. Would NFL Players Start a New Football League?

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MIAMI GARDENS, FL - FEBRUARY 07: Scott Fujita #55 of the New Orleans Saints speaks in a press conference after defeating the Indianapolis Colts during Super Bowl XLIV on February 7, 2010 at Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. (Photo by Scott Boe

In an interview with Yahoo! Sports, NFLPA Executive Committee member and Cleveland Browns Linebacker Scott Fujita gave was asked whether players could start a new football league or even jump to the UFL in the event of a lockout.

His response: “Would we do that? Maybe. Will we do that? I don’t know.”

So it's certainly an intriguing possibility, especially when you consider the number of wealthy businessmen in the country who might be willing to invest in such a league and the fact that football is arguably at is peak in terms of popularity.

And, man, this would create a storyline made for the movies, huh?

7. How Is Player Safety Involved?

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ORCHARD PARK, NY - NOVEMBER 28: James Harrison #92 of the Pittsburgh Steelers rises after hitting Ryan Fitzpatrick of the Buffalo Bills during their game at Ralph Wilson Stadium on November 28, 2010 in Orchard Park, New York. Harrison was flagged for ro

One of the hot topics of the NFL this season has been the league's new crackdown on violent hits.

Just ask James Harrison, but only if he's not writing out another check to the league office.

Anyway, when NFLPA executive committee members Scott Fujita and Domonique Foxworth participated in a media conference on Jan. 11, we learned that this issue will come into play during the discussion of a new CBA.

Fujita said the new rules on player safety are confusing, misleading and hard to interpret.

"We had a meeting in which we were shown legal and illegal hits on film, and we walked out of there more confused than when we went in."

Expect this to be as a big of an issue in the labor talks as sexting is in the Favre household. 

6. Why Are Teams' Financial Statements Not Available?

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ATLANTA, GA - JANUARY 15: Fans of the Green Bay Packers support their team against the Atlanta Falcons during their 2011 NFC divisional playoff game at Georgia Dome on January 15, 2011 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

Though profit among owners is obviously a huge point of tension between the two sides, it's interesting to note that a lot of financial information isn't readily available.

Because most NFL teams are private organizations, their full financial picture is relatively unknown.

The only NFL team that has revealed their financial info is the Green Bay Packers, who did so because they are a publicly-owned team and thus required to make that info available to the public.

NFLPA President Kevin Mawae made an interesting remark over the summer about the Packers' situation:

“It’s 1/32nd of the financial information we’ve requested in response to their demand that we give back $1 billion and increase our risk of injury by playing two additional games," Mawae said.

In other words, the NFLPA doesn't have a lot of the necessary info because of the privatization of NFL franchises.

5. Who Are the Key Players in the Dispute?

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FORT LAUDERDALE, FL - FEBRUARY 04: Center Kevin Mawae #68 of the Tennessee Titans and President of the NFL Player's Association speaks to members of the media during the NFL Player's Association Press Conference held at the Fort Lauderdale Convention Cen

The NFLPA has a board of player representatives, one for each NFL team, who do exactly what their job title implies: represent their respective teams.

The executive director of the NFLPA is DeMaurice Smith, but anyone with a TV probably knows who he is—I mean, the guy is everywhere and is arguably the most important person in the dispute.

The organization also has an executive committee, headed by former NFL player and NFLPA President Kevin Mawae.

For a full list of committee members, check this out.

But it is worth noting that Scott Fujita and Domonique Foxworth have been two of the more vocal committee members recently.

4. Will There Still Be an NFL Draft in the Event of a Lockout?

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ENGLEWOOD, CO - APRIL 23: Tim Tebow is introduced by the Denver Broncos at a press conference at the Broncos Headquarters in Dove Valley on April 23, 2010 in Englewood, Colorado. The Broncos picked Tebow in the first round of the 2010 NFL draft. (Photo

Yeah, don't worry—you can still have all your friends over and take a shot every time a player is selected.

Scratch that. I know from personal experience that that is a horrible idea.

But to be straight forward, there will be a 2011 NFL draft no matter what happens with the CBA talks.

The catch is that teams won't be able to sign the players they draft, there won't be any mini-camps and teams won't be able to generate the same type of revenue from drafted players.

Here's an example: If you're a Carolina Panthers fan and you want to buy an Andrew Luck—oops, I mean Nick Fairley—jersey, then you won't have a name on the back until a new CBA is reached.

In other words, you'll feel like you're a Penn State fan. 

3. Who's the Aggressor in the Situation?

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Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones (left) and New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft at the NFL's 2007 annual meeting in Phoenix, Arizona on March 26, 2007. (Photo by Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images)

Essentially, the owners—especially guys like Dallas' Jerry Jones and New England's Robert Kraft—are the ones who want a new collective bargaining agreement that will account for all the money they've put into their respective franchises.

With a few exceptions, the owners agree that the CBA they agreed to in 2006 was awful, and the players receive too big a share of the revenue.

After owners take away expense credits, the players receive roughly 55-60 percent of what is called "Total Revenue", which has exceed $1 billion over the past two years.

The owners receive roughly 40-45 percent of that TR and are hoping to make it more of an even split. 

2. What is the Key Date in the Dispute?

Write it down, draw a picture and hang it on your refrigerator, do whatever you want.

Just make sure that you put the date March 4th somewhere that is highly visible, because that's the date that could go down in NFL history, or NFL infamy.

If the owners and players cannot agree to a new CBA by that date, then there will be a lockout.

Remember when you were a kid and you would have a "lock-in" with a bunch of other kids at a local skating rink or something like that?

Well, that was cool, but the NFL lockout is pretty much the exact opposite. 

1. What Are the Major Issues Between the Two Sides?

Of the near-infinite issues between the players and the owners, four are at the center of it all.

They are, in no particular order: the revenue split, healthcare, an 18-game schedule and a rookie wage scale.

Here's a little more info on the situation, but the basic gist of it all is that the owners want more of a 50/50 split in total revenue, the players want better healthcare and the owners are in favor of an 18-game schedule and a rookie wage scale (while the players aren't).

That'll save you a lot of headaches, because I took one for the team.