The NFL Players Association approved the league's drug policy proposal on Friday. As of Sunday, however, the two sides are still working through the final language issues holding up an agreement.
NFL Media Insider Ian Rapoport reports, via a source involved in the negotiations, the hope is that the new agreement will be finalized on Monday to give suspended players such as Wes Welker and Orlando Scandrick a chance to get back in their team's buildings for Week 3 action.
Both sides realized it wasn't realistic to have suspended players back Friday night or Saturday afternoon, per Rapoport. They had not practiced last week, and it wouldn't have been fair to the players they would be replacing.
The holdup has been language issues such as third-party appeals for violations by law, according to Rapoport. For instance, players want to ensure due process if there is a steroid violation without a failed test, such as an arrest for drugs.
The two sides have been negotiating the drug policy for four years. They are utilizing the next 24 hours to take a fine-toothed comb to the agreement and produce a deal everyone can be proud of, Rapoport reports.
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