NFL files motion to dismiss in Ezekiel Elliott case

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The National Football League has filed a motion to dismiss the federal case brought by the NFL Players’ Association in support of Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott.

According to A.J. Perez of the USA Today, the league claims the NFLPA doesn’t have the standing to seek a temporary restraining order for a decision that does not yet exist. The decision in question would be the opinion of arbitrator Harold Henderson in his review of the six-game suspension imposed on Elliott by the league.

In essence, the league contends the NFLPA must wait for an arbitration decision to be reached before having the basis to file a challenge against that ruling and a TRO to halt its effects.

The motion to dismiss by the NFL was the next expected move in the court proceeding. Even if the court agrees the NFLPA doesn’t currently have standing for their filings, the union and Elliott could resubmit the claim once the arbitration process has played out.

27 responses to “NFL files motion to dismiss in Ezekiel Elliott case

  1. The NFL should put the woman beater on the Commissioner’s Exempt list until a final decision and all court proceedings are finished. No matter how long that may take.

  2. …and now you know why Henderson didn’t rule anything today. They know he’ll stay suspended and needed to get their motion to dismiss filed before the ruling.

  3. Yes, but as we all know, the Arbiters decision won’t be reached until Friday afternoon before the opening game against the Giants. This will give the Players Association no time to respond, and Elliot will miss the game against the Giants. This is by design as Goodell helps out his good buddy Mara.

  4. I won’t lie, I really, really want to get excited about football, but I just can’t. It is stuff like this that lends itself to “Soap Operas for Men” that I just can’t relate to. I have enough problems in my own personal life and look to sports for solace. Beyond all of this, I just can’t patronize an organization that already rakes its employees over the coals. Many will say that it is “Millionaires vs. Billionaires and I don’t feel sorry for them” but the players invest a lot and risk permanent physical damage. I don’t like the wussification of the the league, and I believe that player compensation should be more equal throughout, based on each players risk of injury. I realize that the league hosed the players in the last CBA and the players let them. That does not mean that, when a player is subject to discipline, that they should not have due process. All of these scenarios, save the Brady situation begin with a civil claim. One where the player is either accused of a crime or arrested for a crime. The NFL is the only Corporate entity in this country that acts as if it is its own branch of the law. This, regardless of the CBA is inherently wrong, unjust, unconstitutional and unethical. If the local DA in any case, regardless of any jurisdiction, does not press charges, the league has no legal grounds to uphold a player to any other standard, period. They are citizens first and professionals second. I am not a Cowboys fan. I am not an Elliott fan. I was never a Greg Hardy fan. I was never a Ray Rice fan. I was never a fan of the Giants or their kicker. The league put a standard in place, constantly changed it based on social media at the time and worried about PR in each case, rather than getting it “right”. Has Zeke acted immaturely at times? Yup. In this case, however, the league’s own internal investigators, albeit female, have found the complainant not credible based on interviews with her and texts and photos. The league has chosen to not include Ms. Kia’s interpretation as it is not congruent with their agenda. That is clear. If it was about truly getting to the bottom of the issue and resolving it, we would already be talking about week one. Instead, we are still talking about a corporate entity abusing their supposed power and trying to swing the scales of competitive equality. I don’t want to watch the WWE. I want to watch real people play a real game and may the best and most prepared team win, period. Until the Player’s Union fires De Smith (which should have been after the last CBA) and replaces him with someone who directly notifies the league that they will not extend the current CBA until Goodell is fired and the CBA will never allow the Commissioner to determine discipline, I won’t watch, patronize any team or support any business that advertises with the NFL. Goodell is done or I am done.

  5. When I first read this headline, my sleep deprived brain interpreted it as “NFL files motion to dismiss case because Roger admitted that there wasn’t concrete evidence against Elliott.” and I was shocked that they did the right thing. Shame on me.

  6. Don’t expect me to say this often, because I won’t, but in this case the league is right. In fact, they should suspend the little punk indefinitely. Do we spend so much time hating RG (rightfully so) that we are willing to let the bad guys off easy. EE has been on the wrong side of the media since day one. Even if his girlfriend made THIS incident up, I’ld place money there being others that were not. I personally believe this punt doesn’t deserve to be in the NFL.

  7. This does not show the league’s hand. This is merely the NFL’s lawyers doing their jobs countering the NFLPA’s lawyers.

    The league will probably win this round and file in the 2nd circuit if Henderson doesn’t vacate the suspension.

    This is why NFLPA wanted the ruling from Henderson yesterday and was ticked it didn’t happen.

    It doesn’t matter if you think the NFL lost in the court of public opinion, they are likely to win in the court of law.

  8. Zeke did it. Innocent men don’t lawyer up.

    (Just repeating the logic I saw a million times during the deflategate saga.)

  9. The league is litigious and will take every single case as far as they can. Brady won and then lost on appeal by the league even though one of the 3 appellate judges thought it was nonsense. its going to be hard to take the NFL down.

  10. The NFL will win the dismissal and will file a suit in advance of the NFLPA in NYC just like they did in the Brady case. They know exactly when the arbitrator’s ruling will be issued and will time it so that they select the venue for the court case.

  11. I don’t know what all the whining is about. You guys say just take your punishment like a man. Goodell has the power the nflpa bargained and everyone should just accept it, right?

  12. Goodell’s nfl is so predictable. It’s like being a d coordinator against a team that lines up and runs the same play in the same formation, down after down–this was expected.

  13. This was funny. The first line decries the tactic of the NFLPA doing a “footrace” to the court house. This complaint is from the same NFL that on the day they handed down their decision on Brady had lawyers positioned in the lobby of their chosen venue and everything coordinated so they could walk in and file right as the announcement was made. Surely they were planning the same trick this time and are just mad the NFLPA anticipated it and jumped them.

    I have no love for the Cowboys and Elliot is a dangerous opponent I would rather not face. But still I would rather face them than have it go down this way. I hope the suspension does get tossed because at this point the whole deal just smells bad. Originally I wasnt sure if he was guilty or not and if he was I wanted him to pay for it. But the more I see the NFL applying their same old tricks here the more I think Elliot didnt do it. Otherwise the league would have been able to play it straight up no problem.

  14. NFL did exactly what a good defendant would do. NFLPA and Elliott have nothing to counter the Commissioner’s initiative on discipline. To think otherwise is to put collective bargaining outside of contractual space. No can do, no matter the court’s location. Weren’t the parties paying attention to events of a year ago? One did; one did not.

  15. What is nonsense is that anyone, player or league, resorts to use my tax money to resolve a dispute in a game. It’s a game folks. We have real problems to solve out here.

  16. thisistheendifyouletit says:
    September 5, 2017 at 5:14 am

    This then shows the league’s hand? That they are fully going forward with the suspension?
    ————————-

    Since Roger fudged himself into a corner with his incompetence, probably.

  17. reddzen says:
    September 5, 2017 at 9:02 am

    What is nonsense is that anyone, player or league, resorts to use my tax money to resolve a dispute in a game. It’s a game folks. We have real problems to solve out here.
    —————————–

    Your tax money is being spent regardless. Do you think Federal judges are on call?

    Besides, these cases are about labor law, and not some silly dispute.

    If the league wins this one, they will have a stranglehold on Conduct Detrimental to the Integrity of the Game, and Personal Conduct Policy. That’s not good.

  18. “…the union and Elliott could resubmit the claims once the arbitration process has played out.”
    ————————–
    What if the NFL then does what it did to Brady and submit to a court of its choice in NY virtually the same moment the NFL’s decision arrives in Dallas? – if their motion to dismiss succeeds could they then argue in NY that the Texas process had become null and void? If that is possible I’m certain it would be their plan.

  19. “Zeke did it. Innocent men don’t lawyer up.”
    _____________

    LOL, feel free to roll the dice and represent yourself if you ever become the target of an investigation. They need more guys in jail swearing they’re innocent.

  20. Veterans in Nevada says:
    September 5, 2017 at 8:37 am

    This was funny. The first line decries the tactic of the NFLPA doing a “footrace” to the court house. This complaint is from the same NFL that on the day they handed down their decision on Brady had lawyers positioned in the lobby of their chosen venue and everything coordinated so they could walk in and file right as the announcement was made.
    ——————

    They were in such a hurry, they forgot to sign it.

  21. streetyson says:
    September 5, 2017 at 9:23 am

    What if the NFL then does what it did to Brady and submit to a court of its choice in NY virtually the same moment the NFL’s decision arrives in Dallas?
    ———————–

    That plan actually backfired for the NFL, since they lost. It was only with the help of a couple of highly suspect Federal Appeals Court judges that Goodell finally won.

    I wouldn’t count on that again, since this case is even weaker for the NFL.

  22. Here we are as Parents teaching our Children, not to act like Children when situations don’t go their way. Then, we witness Millionaires doing the same thing, we teach our Children not to do. Is all this happening on our Earth or, are we watching other constellations trying to figure things out.

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