FanHouse

Yesterday's decision by the NFL owners to opt-out of the CBA was, hopefully, a move made with the intention of negotiating a deal that forestalls possibilities like work stoppages and uncapped seasons. The spectre of the latter, though, will likely have a big impact on the way teams deal with contract negotiations in the present.

That's not good news for players like Devin Hester. If 2010 should come to be played without a cap, players like Hester would be affected the most. His contract runs out in 2009 but, because of a clause in the CBA, players will need six years of service time, not four, to become unrestricted free agents. Hester would have four years at that point and, thus, wouldn't be as free as he'd like.

Goodbye leverage. Nothing's likely to be settled before the 2008 season begins so it wouldn't make much sense for the Bears to sign a deal this offseason. They won't know just how against the wall their backs will be when Hester's contract runs out and it makes sense to roll the dice since you've got one more full offseason before the final year on Hester's deal.

The news wasn't bad for all Bears.

Tommie Harris turned down a massive contract already this offseason and it's hard to see the Bears going much further given all that's going on. If Harris played out this season and then was franchised in 2009, David Haugh of the Chicago Tribune opines, he'd be on the market for an uncapped year for deep-pocketed owners to bid the moon on.

Can you imagine the potential bidding war between Washington Redskins owner Daniel Snyder and Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones for a 27-year-old defensive tackle who could be coming off five straight Pro Bowl appearances?

2010 is a long way off but the prospect of an uncapped year and major changes to the free agency qualifications of many players will make it seem like it's right around the corner until the CBA gets hammered out.