As the clouds begin to gather for a possible — emphasis on “possible” — work stoppage in 2011, there’s an extremely important point to keep in mind.

More than 20 years after the last NFL strike, most owners aren’t in a position to swallow with a work stoppage. 

The issue is debt.  Owners who paid big money for franchises and/or stadiums need that ticket-and-TV money to continue to flow, so that they can continue to make payments on the money they borrowed to make the transactions happen.

So why is the league risking Armageddon by possibly pulling the plug on the CBA two years early? 

Basically, why not? 

Even if the owners don’t come out of the negotiations with an agreement that pays the players less than 59 or so cents on the dollar in total football revenues, the early negotiations present an opportunity for the owners to undo some of the noneconomic gains that the union made when the league pushed the current CBA through without considering the one-sided proposals made by the union regarding issues such as player discipline and bonus forfeiture.

We’re also hearing rumblings that the players aren’t as adamant about not making cash concessions as NFLPA Executive Director Gene Upshaw claims they are, setting the stage for a situation that would justify Upshaw’s fear of being undermined by forces within the union that don’t believe the per-team spending limit needs to continue to increase by $7 million per more each and every year.

Still, with Upshaw looking to hang onto his job and with a long-term deal reached sooner rather than later making Upshaw irrelevant to the future of the union, it’s in Upshaw’s interests to toss around rhetoric in an effort to push the situation closer to the brink.

If/when it gets there, the challenge will be for both sides to avoid falling off the cliff.