NFL files motion to dismiss Ezekiel Elliott’s federal lawsuit

Ezekiel Elliott filed a federal lawsuit against the NFL alleging that a league conspiracy led to his six-game suspension for violating the league’s personal conduct policy. The NFL responded to that action on Tuesday by filing a motion to dismiss, according to USA Today’s A.J. Perez.

Just hours later, the NFLPA filed a response saying they will show at Tuesday’s hearing that “it meets requirements for (the) court to act,” according to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.

Elliott’s suspension stems from domestic violence accusations made against him in July 2016. Elliott was not charged with a crime, but after an investigation that lasted over a year, the NFL determined he had been violent toward his accuser. The baseline suspension for this kind of violation is six games, and that’s what Roger Goodell issued to Elliott.

Why did he file a lawsuit? Elliott doesn’t believe the suspension is justified. His attorneys called the investigation and suspension process “the most fundamentally unfair arbitral processes conceivable,” according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

Part of Elliott’s appeal strategy was to discredit his accuser. The woman lied about one incident of alleged violence toward her, and that was part of the reason the prosecutor decided to not charge Elliott. Still, the independent advisers appointed by the NFL to review the evidence in the investigation determined that she was being truthful about the other alleged instances.

Elliott’s representatives also cited the fact that the NFL’s director of investigations, Kia Roberts, did not recommend a suspension for Elliott because she had concerns about his accuser’s credibility. The league did not make Elliott’s accuser available to testify during Elliott’s appeal and Henderson denied a request from Elliott’s attorneys to share transcripts or notes from interviews with the woman.

What’s the NFL’s perspective? The league says Elliott doesn’t have legal standing to file a lawsuit. There has been no decision on his appeal yet from Harold Henderson, who was appointed by Roger Goodell to hear Elliott’s case.

But the NFL took it one step farther, attacking Elliott’s claim that players who are suspended do not suffer irreparable harm. This isn’t the NFL’s first rodeo when it comes to being sued by players over suspensions, and the courts have sided with players before on this specific issue. The U.S. District Court of the Southern District of New York ruled in Tom Brady’s favor on his Deflategate lawsuit. That ruling was later overturned on appeal.

What happens now? Harold Henderson, who arbitrated Elliott’s appeal, ruled Tuesday to uphold the six-game suspension.

The NFLPA also filed for a temporary restraining order that would delay any suspension until the court case is fully settled. A hearing was set for Tuesday, and Elliott is expected to attend, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The NFL conceded that it will not start Elliott’s suspension in Week 1, and the court expects to have a ruling on the restraining order by the end of the week.