Strike might be best thing for mediocre NFL

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So this is showdown weekend for the NFL and its union, and if the two sides can't figure out a way to extend their collective bargaining agreement there might be a work stoppage... in 2008. What drama. I haven't figured out all the details of our latest gripping sports labor spat, but I have only one question: If next season will be played under a salary cap no matter what happens this weekend, is there any way NFL players can go on strike, say, tomorrow?

Having the NFL go dark for a year or two might be more entertaining than the dreck the league has foisted upon fans in the salary cap era. Yes, the NFL is the economic model the NHL, NBA and MLB aspire to-it has cost certainty, a passive union, rich owners and financially thriving franchises in every corner of the country. That's enough to whip accountants and labor lawyers into a frenzy every Sunday. But football fans -- the ones who wipe off their face paint long enough to take a clear look at what they're watching, anyway -- know that the NFL is excruciatingly dull to watch.

It's not quite the pre-lockout NHL, but it's close. Talent is diluted, and players are little more than interchangeable parts who can shift seamlessly from one team to another. There are too many franchises, and too few of them have a distinct personality, style or edge. The league likes to call that parity. I call it a league where everyone is equally mediocre.

The players union has a chance to help fix those problems, and maybe even make some money for itself in the process: It should hold strong and send the NFL salary cap into extinction. (Of course, holding strong on this or any other issue would be a first for the players union.) Losing the cap wouldn't kill competitive balance, especially if the owners continue to share revenue. Yes, owners like Jerry Jones might spend like madmen, but sophisticated fans know by now that financial resources alone don't guarantee success in any sport. Besides, the league is so successful, so awash in cash, that Jones wouldn't be the only owner writing checks. The ones who spend wisely (surely there's a football version of Billy Beane out there) are the ones who will win.

A capless league won't eliminate all the factors that drain the life out of the league -- control-freak coaches, for example -- but it might make things more entertaining. And, as teams concentrate on talent instead of denuding their rosters with salary cap cuts, we might get to see some football worth watching too.