The NFL has won the latest round of legal wrangling over the Ezekiel Elliott suspension.
In a 2-1 decision, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals has vacated the preliminary injunction on Elliott’s suspension and remanded the case back to district court with instructions to dismiss the case.
The ruling finds that the NFLPA was premature in filing a lawsuit on Elliott’s behalf before arbitrator Harold Henderson ruled on Elliott’s appeal and that the district court “lacked subject matter jurisdiction when it issued the preliminary injunction” as a result.
As a result of the ruling, the NFL is free to reinstate the six-game suspension immediately with the intent of having it go into effect once the Cowboys bye week comes to an end. Elliott and the NFLPA could file to block the suspension again -- either in the same Texas district court or in New York, where the NFL filed a suit to enforce the suspension -- or petition the Fifth Circuit for an en banc hearing, so the legal maneuvering likely isn’t over.
As of now, though, the league has prevailed in their bid to impose discipline on Elliott.