NFL players ratify new deal
Posted August 4, 2011 5:24 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
NFL players have ratified a new, 10-year collective agreement, and two people familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press the contract allows the NFL to become the first major U.S. professional sports league to use blood testing for human growth hormone.
The people spoke on condition of anonymity because no formal announcement had been made about the HGH tests.
Most of the deal to end the NFL’s 4 1/2-month lockout was agreed to last month, but certain elements still had to be ironed out.
Final CBA language was in place Thursday afternoon, and shortly before 5 p.m. ET, players had voted to approve it.
The NFL will be allowed to check each player annually for HGH — but only after the union is confident in the way testing and appeals will work.
