NFL's request to resume lockout denied

NFL players suing the league on antitrust grounds scored another courtroom victory late last night, as Federal District Court Judge Susan Nelson denied the NFL’s request for a stay to the preliminary injunction she granted Monday to lift the six-week lockout.

The league now will take its case to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis and request that the higher court reverse Nelson’s ruling and issue a stay, pending the NFL’s appeal of Nelson’s injunction to end the lockout.

Said league spokesman Greg Aiello: “We believe there are strong legal and practical reasons that support a stay and that the Court of Appeals should have an opportunity to address the important legal issues that will be presented. We have asked the Court of Appeals to consider on an expedited basis both our request for a stay and the appeal itself. We are evaluating the District Court’s decision and will advise our clubs in the morning on how to proceed.’’

The NFL filed a request for a stay hours after Monday’s injunction, and Nelson found that the league didn’t meet the burden for granting the stay. In the short term, this could mean that the NFL will be forced to begin the new league year, which means free agency and trades soon could resume.

It’s uncertain when that period would begin, however. The draft is scheduled for today through Saturday. If the lockout were in effect, teams would not have been permitted to trade players, only draft picks, during the selection process. It remains unknown whether those rules will change during the draft.

The injunction request initially was filed by two groups of players suing the NFL on antitrust grounds.

Attorneys for the plaintiffs in the Brady et al v. the National Football League case yesterday filed a brief to argue against the NFL’s motion to stay the injunction. NFLPA counsel Barbara Berens argued that players should “not be prevented from working one day longer” and that the league should post a $1-billion bond if a stay is granted. The bond won’t be necessary, now that Nelson denied the motion for a stay.

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Commissioner Roger Goodell said earlier yesterday that there was still a good amount of uncertainty about just how to proceed in the wake of Nelson’s ruling on Monday. That situation may continue until the league has its request for a stay heard by the Eighth Circuit.

Goodell said the league is “prepared for every contingency,” but that he hoped to get back to the bargaining table to work out a long-term solution.

“Litigation is not going to resolve this matter, and the sooner we can get back to the table and start discussing the issues, we can get an agreement,” he said. “That’s where it’s going to come from — the two parties. And the judge made that clear.”