NEW YORK — The NFL and the players' union have, over the past three weeks, opened informal labor-talks discussions on a successor agreement to the current collective bargaining agreement, two years before that agreement is scheduled to expire. The early start reflects a shared assessment that the conditions for a constructive negotiation are unusually favourable now and may not be later.

The favourable conditions include continued revenue growth that the league has been operating against, a stable competitive picture that has, for several seasons, kept ratings strong, and a rare alignment between league leadership and union leadership on several substantive priorities for the next agreement.