Is It Really Over? NFL, Colts May Be Back This Afternoon

UPDATE: A report from ESPN now indicates that free agent negotiations could start as soon as this afternoon, and signings could actually happen tomorrow.   Under this scenario, teams could talk trades today, too.

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Lots of Internet activity this morning indicates that the NFL lockout may finally be on its last legs.  Jay Glazer’s piece is representative of the news I’m hearing, which all points to the players voting on an agreement reached by the league and the NFLPA very early today.   If all goes as planned with the vote, then we could hear later this morning or this afternoon that football is back in business.   Of course, we’ve heard this type of thing before, especially late last week, so there is always the chance that wires are crossed or some last-minute issue will crop up again.  Still, this is the closest we’ve been to a resolution in months.   Other rumblings around the reported deal this morning feature an accelerated timeline and free agency notes.  Here are some of the various tidbits floating around:

• Facilities would open tomorrow.
• NFLPA would recertify tomorrow and then the final CBA could be ratified.
• Training camps would start opening on Thursday.
• Colts camp would presumably open as scheduled on Sunday in Anderson.
• Teams would have three days, starting tomorrow, to negotiate with draft pick, undrafted free agents and their own free agents before open-season begins for free agency.

If any or all of these points are true, then the frenzy is nearly upon us.  Hold on tight!