The NFL Tuesday suspended six players, including Vikings defensive tackles Pat and Kevin Williams, for taking a banned diuretic.
Normally, suspended players go quietly into the, well, wherever suspended players go to quietly serve their time.
This is likely to be an exception to that rule.
ESPN's Chris Mortensen, live on television Wednesday morning, indicated that a filing was coming, and he made it sound like all six suspended players would be filing for injunctions.
Peter Ginsberg is an attorney in New York, and he's either diplomatic or angry, depending on which newspaper is quoting him.
He told the Minneapolis Star-Tribune that he wasn't sure there would be any filing.
"We haven't made any announcement about filing," an injunction, said Ginsberg, a partner at the law firm of Crowell and Moring. "We're going to take steps but we're not sure what they will be yet. There are several options, but until we make a decision, it's not constructive to talk about the various options. It's not a given we'll end up in court."Ginsberg then told the St. Paul Pioneer Press that he will indeed file for an injunction to keep the Williamses eligible.
"The players will take proactive steps to correct a harm suffered as a result of actions by the league and its arbitrary and inequitable administration of the program ... It's the league, and not the players, that ought to be sanctioned for this kind of behavior."Obviously, Viking fans hope this move is a successful one. There's not really much precedent for it, and that would at least mean the players have a shot going in. However, Patrick Reusse of the Star-Tribune makes a point that will be difficult for the players to get past in court.
The NFL's Adolpho Birch conducted a conference call late in the afternoon. He was asked about the possibility of a suspended player or players going to court to seek an injunction to continue playing.Emphasis mine. I'll let the lawyers take over from here.
Birch said there was nothing to prevent this, but then casually played the league's trump card with this reminder to reporters: "Our policy has been designed under collective bargaining."
