Knocking heads on CBA

The current CBA is due to expire after next season, which would be an uncapped year because owners voted to opt out back in 2008. With the NFL’s popularity proving recession-proof - television ratings are up 11 percent from last season and through four weeks the league is averaging 17.4 million viewers per game, most since 1989 - it would be risky business for the sides to not reach an agreement to keep the games going in 2011.

“People don’t want to see well-to-do owners and well-to-do players squabbling about money,’’ said Patriots owner Robert Kraft, a member of the league’s Management Council executive committee, which deals with labor issues.

“We have a product that the public accepts, they want, and that is very important. So, I think part of this meeting will be what do we do to recalibrate our business to be sensitive to what is going on in America and also keep the quality of the product up.’’

At the crux of the labor uncertainty is the idea of risk. The owners believe that under the current CBA, which funnels almost 60 percent of total football revenue to the players, they’re absorbing too much of the financial risk. Kraft said that since the current agreement was passed in 2006, 75 percent of all incremental revenue created has gone to the players.

Part of the fall meeting agenda is to make sure the owners are in unison on the labor situation this time. That was not the case in 2006, when the current CBA was passed.

“We did a bad deal last time,’’ said Kraft, who then retracted his words. “We agreed to something that I don’t think was as carefully structured as it should have been. People go out and build stadiums and 75 percent of the revenue goes to the players.

“Now, I guess you go out and you play and you take physical risk, but the financial risk, it’s out of sync. What’s important for us is to be able to grow the business, have competitive balance.’’

DeMaurice Smith, executive director of the NFL Players Association, and his members counter that no one is taking a greater risk than the players, who draw those TV ratings and fill owners’ self-financed stadiums every Sunday by putting their bodies on the line.

“Chad Pennington, Brian Urlacher, Chester Pitts, those three guys understand risk, and after talking to them, they have a very real sense of risk,’’ said Smith, citing players who have suffered-season ending injuries. “I’m sure that your quarterback [Tom Brady] has a very real sense of risk. Each and every week when players get hurt, or unfortunately if their season ends, I either call them or shoot a text message to all of them.

“I’ve made a lot of calls by the third week of the season. We’re moving forward now where Congress is now interested in the long-term effects of head trauma and concussions. I’ve talked to the doctors who want to serve on that panel. We created a new panel to address those issues from the players’ side. I have a pretty healthy understanding of risk.’’

A lockout remains a real possibility, with owners having girded for it with lucrative extensions of television contracts, like the one with satellite provider DirectTV. Smith acknowledged that he doesn’t have the keys to the stadiums, so he can’t stop a lockout. He is preparing his players by telling them to save 25 percent of their salary this year and next.

Ultimately, the answer to the labor problem might be growing the revenue pie by expanding the season to 17 or 18 games.

“We’re not going to discuss at this meeting extension of the season, but I really believe that, in the end, for us to continue to grow the business and have labor peace, we’re probably going to need to do that,’’ said Kraft. “But we’re going to have to do it in a way that the quality of the product remains high. What that means in terms of rosters or active players or working out in training camp, all these things have to be discussed and worked out.’’

Smith, who was in Foxborough Friday to brief players on the status of labor negotiations, remained upbeat about the chances for a deal. He characterized the tenor of recent meetings between the sides on non-core issues as positive.

He said he was “optimistic’’ that the sides, which will meet again this month, could get a deal done without a cessation of play.

Crennel has Edwards covered

Edwards wore out his welcome in Cleveland and had just 10 catches for 139 yards in four games this season, going catchless for the first time in his NFL career last Sunday. But in 2007 he was a Pro Bowler with 80 receptions for 1,289 yards and 16 touchdowns.

Few people know Edwards better than former Patriots defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel, who coached him in Cleveland from 2005-08. What does he think?

Can Edwards be what the Jets are looking for at wide receiver? “Evidently, they think they need a receiver that is proven. Braylon has gone to a Pro Bowl and had an outstanding year in ’07; he has shown he has that kind of ability. He is a big receiver, will go get the ball, and can make big plays. He made a lot of big plays in ’07. He could be the piece they’re missing.’’

Which is the real Braylon Edwards: the Pro Bowl player of ’07 or the guy with 10 catches this year? “The jury is still out on who the real Braylon is. From a consistency standpoint, you got a Pro Bowl player on one hand and an inconsistent player on the other hand. This move will have a major impact in how his career turns out and what kind of player he ends up being in the NFL.’’

What happened from ’07 to ’08, where his production fell to 55 catches for 873 yards and 3 TDs? “The [heel] injury, where he missed almost all of training camp; when he came back, he wasn’t as consistent. The first preseason game, he made an outstanding catch for a touchdown, the next week he hurt his foot, missed the rest of camp, and with that type of injury, he wasn’t able to do anything.’’

This year’s new coaches seem to making a lot of rookie mistakes

The league has 11 new head coaches this year, including Oakland’s Tom Cable and San Francisco’s Mike Singletary, who were interim coaches in 2008. Not all have fared as well as former Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, whose 4-0 Broncos play host to the Patriots today:

Cable, Raiders: Team is 1-3 and last in the NFL in total offense. The only punch the Raiders have shown was the one Cable allegedly landed on former assistant Randy Hanson in training camp.

Jim Caldwell, Colts: It’s not easy replacing Tony Dungy, but Caldwell has the Colts sitting 4-0. Highest compliment for Caldwell is that they look like the same old Colts.

Todd Haley, Chiefs: Alleged offensive innovator hasn’t had his team score more than 17 offensive points in a game on the way to an 0-4 start.

Eric Mangini, Browns: He blew up the team, benching Brady Quinn and trading malcontents Kellen Winslow and Braylon Edwards, but it takes more than character guys and Draconian discipline to win in the NFL, hence an 0-4 record.

McDaniels, Broncos: When you’re as smart as McDaniels, maybe it really doesn’t matter whether you have Tom Brady, Matt Cassel, Jay Cutler, or some other guy (Kyle Orton) at the controls of your intricate offense.

Jim Mora Jr., Seahawks: Maybe Mike Holmgren wasn’t the problem. Mora’s team is 1-3, with the lone win against the horrifically bad Rams. In fairness, Mora has been forced to play 2 1/2 games without Matt Hasselbeck.

Raheem Morris, Buccaneers: The 33-year-old Morris is the NFL’s youngest and coolest coach, but he took over a team in transition that let go of mainstays like linebacker Derrick Brooks and is without a starting-caliber QB. The result is 0-4.

Rex Ryan, Jets: Forget the bluster and bulletin-board chatter, Buddy’s boy has turned the Jets into a legitimate threat to the Patriots in the AFC East with a 3-1 start, bringing his blitzing defensive philosophy to Broadway.

Jim Schwartz, Lions: If you don’t think the Titans miss him as defensive coordinator, check their 0-4 record versus the Lions’ 1-3. Schwartz led the Lions to a win after 19 straight losses. That alone merits Coach of the Year consideration.

Singletary, 49ers: There is a method to this former Monster of the Midway’s madness. He has the Niners sitting atop the NFC West at 3-1 with the heady Shaun Hill at quarterback and a defense that is allowing only 13.2 points per game.

Steve Spagnuolo, Rams: St. Louis has been just plain offensive on its way to an 0-4 start, averaging 6 points per game. Spags is a legit defensive mastermind (see: Super Bowl XLII), but his porous defense is allowing 27 points per game.

Etc.

1. Ahman Green - The 32-year-old Green, a four-time Pro Bowler, still wants to play. He averaged 4 yards per carry last year for the Texans, but was placed on injured reserve because of an incentive-laden deal and then released in February. He almost hooked on with the Rams in August.

2. Dominic Rhodes - The former Colt and Raider was a surprise cut by the Bills. He is still only 30 and has been successful in a backup role during his career. Plus, the Patriots love to collect former Raiders.

3. Tatum Bell - Bell has a career 4.9-yard per-carry average, but is viewed as a product of the Broncos’ interchangeable running game under Mike Shanahan. You know he is in football shape because he is in the UFL with the Florida Tuskers.

4. T.J. Duckett - The 28-year-old Duckett was dumped by the Seahawks in August, when they signed Edgerrin James. At 254 pounds, he is a pure power back who could add another element to the offense.

Christopher L. Gasper can be reached at cgasper@globe.com; material from personal interviews, wire services, other beat writers, and league and team sources was used in this report.