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NFL, union strike 24-hour extension WASHINGTON -- The NFL and the NFL Players Association agreed Thursday to extend their negotiating deadline until tomorrow Coach Handbags night. The move delays what could have been one of the more historic days in league history. With the collective bargaining agreement set to expire at midnight Thursday, the Players Association was prepared to decertify its union and have its players take the league to court if the owners locked them out at 12:01 a.m. Friday, as expected. League sources confirmed that quarterbacks Peyton Manning, Tom Brady and Drew Brees were among a host of players who had agreed to participate in a class-action suit against the owners, alleging antitrust violations. MCCANN: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT POTENTIAL NFL LOCKOUT League representatives proposed the extension this morning, before the owners and players held their 10th negotiating session before federal mediator George Cohen. Before agreeing to the request, the union wanted identifiable assurances that the owners were serious about getting a deal done. The league has known since 2008 it wanted a new 2011 coach purses CBA that would provide the owners with greater protection against the risks associated with growing the game, however the union accused it of using delay tactics until this week. The extension allows the sides to operate under terms of the current CBA (for the 2010 league year) until midnight tomorrow. That means there can be no trades and no free-agent signings until a new deal is done. At the Super Bowl in February, two owners told SI that if a deal weren't finalized before the deadline, nothing would happen until September at the earliest. That scenario seems plausible because there would be little "real" incentive for either side to do a deal before then. The primary issues that need to be resolved are revenue distribution, a rookie wage scale and an 18-game season. The league generated $9.3 billion in revenues in 2010, of which slightly more than $1 billion went to league off the top as an expense credit to grow the game. The rest of the money was split among the players (57 percent) and owners (43 percent). The league has been seeking an additional $1 billion in expense credits, while the players ostensibly have said: Open your books and show us why you need the money. The NFL had been unwilling to do that before Thursday, although it's still uncertain exactly Coach Wallets how much they disclosed during the session.