DeMaurice Smith Again Says Chances Of Lockout Are A 14 On A 1-10 Scale

Back at the NFL Draft, Chad Ochocinco asked NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith on a scale of 1-10 what the chances of a lockout were. At the time, he said it was a 14.

A month later and not much has changed. Smith told SI.com in a recent interview that the likelihood of a lockout was again a 14 on a 1-10 scale.

Throughout the article he details the NFLPA's plans to prepare for a lockout.

We've asked players to save 25 percent of their salary last year, 25 percent of their salary this year.

He says the players should never feel they need to make decisions based on money because they're making exponentially more than the average American.

On the flip side, he said the owners are preparing for and willing to lockout the players.

We're trying to get a deal done. If you remember, right before the uncapped year, we said, look, we'll take a deal that's very similar to the deal we have now, let's just extend it. And the owners said no. I know that they've renegotiated every assistant coach's contract to envision a lockout, and I know their lead negotiator now is a guy named Bob Batterman, who locked out hockey for a year. They also negotiated every one of the television contracts, FOX, NBC, CBS and DirecTV with this in mind.

If public perception is anything, Smith is doing his darnedest to make sure the average football fan knows the players want a deal and the owners don't.