Updated: June 23, 2011, 1:09 PM ET
The NFL labor talks are continuing for a second consecutive day in the Boston area, a source with direct knowledge of the negotiations told ESPN Thursday.
Owners' CBA Proposal in Perspective
Since 2006, the players have seen a steady decline in their percentage in all revenues, with 2010 equaling the lowest since 2000. In the owners' new proposal, they are asking the players to take 48 percent of all revenues, the lowest in the salary cap era.
Players' "all revenue" percentages,
last 5 years
last 5 years
| 2010 | 50.5 |
| 2009 | 50.6 |
| 2008 | 51.0 |
| 2007 | 51.8 |
| 2006 | 52.7 |
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Another source said the talks on Wednesday were "very fruitful" and the expectation is that they will continue until a deal is reached.
"We are headed in the right direction," the source said. "There is a desire on both sides to reach an agreement sooner rather than later."
In the Boston-area meeting Wednesday, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and his negotiating team were able to share some of the feedback from Tuesday's Chicago owners' meetings with NFLPA leader DeMaurice Smith and his team -- specifically the owners' response to the framework of a new deal presented by Goodell.
According to one player representative, Smith scheduled a noon ET conference call with team player representatives to update them on where the talks stand.
The owners spent five hours Tuesday listening to updates on various collective bargaining agreement issues. Afterward, the league's chief negotiator, Jeff Pash, said, "We're eager to accelerate the pace of the negotiations."
Sources told ESPN senior NFL analyst Chris Mortensen that the players' share in the proposed CBA would be 48 percent, but the expense credits -- about $1 billion last year -- that the league takes off the top would disappear.
Owners still will get some expense credits that will allow funding for new stadium construction, sources said.
A rookie wage scale will be part of the new deal but is still being "tweaked," and the much-discussed 18-game regular season will be designated only as a negotiable item with the players and at no point is mandated in a potential agreement.
NFL Labor Negotiations and Lockout
Players believe they can justify a 48 percent take because of the projected revenue growth, as well as built-in mechanisms that require teams to spend close to 100 percent of the salary cap, a source told ESPN.com's John Clayton. The mandatory minimum spending increase is an element that concerns lower-revenue clubs, sources say.
For example, if the 2011 salary cap is determined to be $120 million, a team would have to have a cash payroll of close to that amount. In the previous collective bargaining agreement, the team payroll floor was less than 90 percent of the salary cap and was only in cap figures, not cash.
If and when an agreement is reached, all players whose contracts have expired and have four or more years of experience are expected to be unrestricted free agents, sources familiar with the talks told ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter. Certain tags will be retained, but that still is being discussed.
Thursday is Day 100 of the lockout, which is the NFL's first work stoppage since 1987 and the longest in league history.
Sal Paolantonio is a reporter for ESPN. Information from ESPN senior NFL analyst Chris Mortensen, ESPN.com senior NFL writer John Clayton, ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter and The Associated Press was used in this report.
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