TO's got more problems

[Hogskin]

Originally Posted by FRPLG

Actually they way I understand it was that while he and his agent were definitely in the wrong the 49ers were also arguably culpable to a smaller degree.

I'm not sure what you heard on this, but here is what the Washington Post reported:

"The union maintained before Burbank, though, that Owens had given the 49ers sufficient notification of his intent to become a free agent. The deadline for voiding the remainder of the deal originally had been set for March 2 in Owens's contract. The deadline was changed to Feb. 21 as part of an agreement between the league and the union, and union officials said that Joseph was notified of that change. But because the change in the deadline was made after Owens's contract was signed, the union argued to Burbank that the March 2 deadline should apply to Owens. "

It is a dicey situation for sure, but the NFL can not change a clause in a contract simply by notifying the other party that they want to change it. They should have requested and gotten a signature or initial on the change. That is the way it works everywhere. If the 49ers had written into the original contract that they would use a date agreed to with the union instead of specifying March 2, it is an entirely different situation. So, that is what it came down to, and why the arbitrator was almost certain to rule in Owens' favor. As Upshaw said, it then just came down to where TO wanted to play - because he would have been a free agent. So to keep from TOTALLY screwing the Ravens, all 3 teams reached an agreement just before the arbitrator was to announce his ruling.