azdad1978
Championship!!!!
It appears that Terrell Owens won't be the only party attempting to nullify the trade that sent him from the 49ers to the Baltimore Ravens.
The NFL Players Association plans to file what is known as a "special-master case" in the next few days to nix Thursday's trade and have Owens declared a free agent, union chief Gene Upshaw told The Washington Post for Sunday's editions.
Upshaw met with Harold Henderson, the NFL's executive vice president for labor relations, on Saturday. Upshaw and Henderson, who also serves as chairman of the NFL Management Council, were scheduled to speak again Sunday, according to The Post.
If the two cannot reach a resolution in the disputed trade of Owens, a four-time Pro Bowl performer, the union will then move to void the final three seasons of Owens' contract, Upshaw told The Post.
Upshaw said that if his meetings with Henderson do not resolve the dispute, the union will then submit its request to special master Stephen B. Burbank.
A special-master case is a trial-like proceeding and differs from the usual grievance process, in which the parties present their cases to an arbitrator.
Burbank, who is in charge of settling disputes regarding the league's collective bargaining agreement, would then have the power to void Owens' current deal, making it possible for the receiver to negotiate with any team he chooses, the newspaper reported.
"We think, at this point, that's the only case we can file," Upshaw said. "That's what we'll do the early part of next week. I want to talk to Harold Henderson in the early part of next week to see if there's something the parties can work out short of that proceeding. If not, that's what we'll do."
In the interim, the Ravens will also likely have a chance to rescind the trade. Owens is scheduled to report to the Ravens on Monday to take a physical, but a source told The Post that Owens will refuse to show up.
Since all players must pass a physical before their trade can be completed, the Ravens could choose to overturn the trade or waive that provision if Owens fails to take the exam.
The Ravens, if the trade is nullified, would have the second-round pick in the upcoming draft -- which they sent to San Francisco for Owens -- returned to them. At that point, Owens would also become an unrestricted free agent.
Owens failed to become a free agent when he and his agent, David Joseph, missed a Feb. 21 deadline to exercise a clause in Owens' contract that would void the final three seasons of his deal.
The Eagles reportedly agreed to a contract with Owens that included a signing bonus believed to be worth about $10 million and would have paid Owens more than $6 million a year. That deal was supposed to be a precursor to a trade that would have sent Owens from San Francisco to Philadelphia in exchange for a fifth-round draft pick and likely wide receiver James Thrash.
But Owens was traded to the Ravens for a second-round pick Thursday before Philadelphia could complete a trade with the 49ers.
Under Owens' current contract, he is due to make $17.7 million in base salary over the next three seasons -- $5.3 million next season, $5.9 million in 2005 and $6.5 million in 2006. The Ravens said Thursday they would try to negotiate a new deal with Owens, but those efforts have been impeded by the Eagles' proposal, according to the Post..
Upshaw refused to elaborate on the details of the union's case Sunday, but a source familiar with the proceedings told the Post that the union will concede that the receiver's agent, Joseph, made a mistake by failing to file the paperwork in time to make Owens a free agent.
According to the Post's sources, the union intends to argue that Owens should be declared a free agent because it had been known his intention was to leave the 49ers.
League sources, however, have said the NFL considers Thursday's trade legal and a done deal, and sees no reason to overturn it.
According to the terms of the NFL's collective bargaining agreement, the special master's decision is subject to review by U.S. District Judge David S. Doty, who over sees the CBA.
The NFL Players Association plans to file what is known as a "special-master case" in the next few days to nix Thursday's trade and have Owens declared a free agent, union chief Gene Upshaw told The Washington Post for Sunday's editions.
Upshaw met with Harold Henderson, the NFL's executive vice president for labor relations, on Saturday. Upshaw and Henderson, who also serves as chairman of the NFL Management Council, were scheduled to speak again Sunday, according to The Post.
If the two cannot reach a resolution in the disputed trade of Owens, a four-time Pro Bowl performer, the union will then move to void the final three seasons of Owens' contract, Upshaw told The Post.
Upshaw said that if his meetings with Henderson do not resolve the dispute, the union will then submit its request to special master Stephen B. Burbank.
A special-master case is a trial-like proceeding and differs from the usual grievance process, in which the parties present their cases to an arbitrator.
Burbank, who is in charge of settling disputes regarding the league's collective bargaining agreement, would then have the power to void Owens' current deal, making it possible for the receiver to negotiate with any team he chooses, the newspaper reported.
"We think, at this point, that's the only case we can file," Upshaw said. "That's what we'll do the early part of next week. I want to talk to Harold Henderson in the early part of next week to see if there's something the parties can work out short of that proceeding. If not, that's what we'll do."
In the interim, the Ravens will also likely have a chance to rescind the trade. Owens is scheduled to report to the Ravens on Monday to take a physical, but a source told The Post that Owens will refuse to show up.
Since all players must pass a physical before their trade can be completed, the Ravens could choose to overturn the trade or waive that provision if Owens fails to take the exam.
The Ravens, if the trade is nullified, would have the second-round pick in the upcoming draft -- which they sent to San Francisco for Owens -- returned to them. At that point, Owens would also become an unrestricted free agent.
Owens failed to become a free agent when he and his agent, David Joseph, missed a Feb. 21 deadline to exercise a clause in Owens' contract that would void the final three seasons of his deal.
The Eagles reportedly agreed to a contract with Owens that included a signing bonus believed to be worth about $10 million and would have paid Owens more than $6 million a year. That deal was supposed to be a precursor to a trade that would have sent Owens from San Francisco to Philadelphia in exchange for a fifth-round draft pick and likely wide receiver James Thrash.
But Owens was traded to the Ravens for a second-round pick Thursday before Philadelphia could complete a trade with the 49ers.
Under Owens' current contract, he is due to make $17.7 million in base salary over the next three seasons -- $5.3 million next season, $5.9 million in 2005 and $6.5 million in 2006. The Ravens said Thursday they would try to negotiate a new deal with Owens, but those efforts have been impeded by the Eagles' proposal, according to the Post..
Upshaw refused to elaborate on the details of the union's case Sunday, but a source familiar with the proceedings told the Post that the union will concede that the receiver's agent, Joseph, made a mistake by failing to file the paperwork in time to make Owens a free agent.
According to the Post's sources, the union intends to argue that Owens should be declared a free agent because it had been known his intention was to leave the 49ers.
League sources, however, have said the NFL considers Thursday's trade legal and a done deal, and sees no reason to overturn it.
According to the terms of the NFL's collective bargaining agreement, the special master's decision is subject to review by U.S. District Judge David S. Doty, who over sees the CBA.
