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Ezekiel Elliott’s 2017 Suspension May Be Over Before It Began
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That sickening chorus of cheers you heard earlier tonight was every Cowboy fan you know (and of course you know a few…everyone does) reacting to the news that star running back Ezekiel Elliott’s six-game suspension for violating the National Football League’s personal conduct policy is, for now, in a state of indefinite suspension of its own.
United States District Court Judge Amos Mazzant III issued a ruling declaring that the league’s suspension of Elliott would be enjoined because “Elliott didn’t receive a fair hearing during his appeal hearing in front of arbitrator Harold Henderson, who was appointed by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell,” per the league’s website’s own story.
Judge Mazzant’s ruling does not mean that Elliott’s suspension is voided or that his disciplinary case with the league is over. Rather, it means that while the courts, the league, Elliott and all of the lawyers involved fight about whether the suspension was valid, he can play. And, seen through the prism of the time it took the league to ultimately suspend New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady for the Deflategate mess, well, these things can take a lot of time.
Which means, most likely, that Elliott has a very good chance to play the entire 2017 season.
As Todd Archer expressed it in his ESPN.com piece:
Brady was able to play in 2015 while going through court proceedings to roll back his four-game suspension in relation to Deflategate. He ended missing the first four games in 2016 when the suspension was upheld. But in the here-and-now world that is the NFL, the Cowboys’ chances of contending in 2017 improved dramatically.
Color me jaded if you like, but something about the way this all fell out stinks — and it’s not just the (allegedly) reprehensible behavior that got Elliott into this predicament in the first place.
Elliott’s suspension was announced by the league in early August. Coverage of the league for the past month has repeatedly analyzed the Cowboys’ chances to repeat as NFC East champions given that they would miss Elliott for almost half of the season.
Then just yesterday, reports surfaced that Elliott would be permitted to play in the Cowboys’ opener against the New York Giants while T’s were crossed and I’s dotted on the denial of his appeal.
And now this.
Far be it from anyone here to suggest that a U.S. District Judge cares one bit about the fact that last night’s New England Patriots/Kansas City Chiefs matchup had the lowest ratings for an NFL opening game since 2009. Or that the league, for all of its craven insistence on the wielding of absolute power by commissioner Roger Goodell, might not be too heartbroken to see one of the best players on one of its marquee teams active as the new season begins.
You’re right. It’s probably just a funny coincidence.
Formerly a Featured Columnist on the Philadelphia Phillies and Manchester City Football Club for Bleacher Report. Full-time attorney, part-time pundit. Follow me @philkeidel on Twitter.