Roughly eight hours after a hearing regarding Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma’s effort to lift his one-year suspension pending the outcome of his lawsuit aimed at reversing it began, the hearing is over.
But a ruling has yet to come.
According to Tulane law professor Gabe Feldman, Judge Helen G. Berrigan ended the hearing with no ruling. She said she plans to wait to hear from the NFLPA, whose brief opposing an effort by the league to dismiss lawsuits filed by Saints defensive end Will Smith, Packers defensive end Anthony Hargrove, and Browns linebacker Scott Fujita is due on Friday, August 3.
If that’s what happens, it means that Vilma will miss more than a week of training camp. Even if a ruling is issued on August 3, it’s highly unlikely that he’d suit up and play on Sunday, August 5, when the Saints kick off the preseason against the Cardinals in Canton.