A week before the 2011 NFL draft, Judge Susan Nelson lifted the NFL lockout sending the football world into a frenzy as we thought things like free agency and trades would soon be allowed.
NFL Lockout Remains As Courts Grant Stay
As it turns out, the league was only open for a few hours the weekend of the draft before the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals granted the NFL a temporary stay on the appeal. In other words, the lockout was back on -- temporarily.
That was over two weeks ago and along the way we learned that the NFL’s appeal to Nelson’s ruling would be heard on June 3 by the Eighth Circuit. The question was whether the lockout would be lifted leading up to that June 3 date which would mean the start of the league year or if it would remain in place during that time frame.
According to Albert Breer of NFL Network. the Eighth Circuit has granted the NFL a stay which means the lockout will remain in place until the appeal is decided. Of the three judges, one dissented in the ruling.
As a fan, this is very, very frustrating. The NFL has turned into a year-round sport so, even though no games have been missed, it’s disrupting the normal flow of the offseason. More importantly, we have yet to see free agency.
All of that will wait until at least sometime in June when the appeal is decided. Of course, it’s also possible the two sides come to an agreement before then but that seems highly unlikely.
Stay tuned for more NFL lockout news.
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