From the Redzone

5/30/2011 5:23:00 PM


According to Sam Farmer of the Los Angeles Times, it's tempting to say June 3 is a key date when the 8th Circuit will hear oral arguments in the NFL's appeal of the lockout-lifting decision in District Court. But it's likely to take at least two weeks for that three-judge panel to issue a ruling, so a better key date is three weeks before the Sept. 8 kickoff game between New Orleans and Green Bay — say Aug. 15. At a minimum, teams would need that much time to train for the start of the season. If camps are still closed at that point, you can bet games will either be pushed back or scrubbed ..

Question for Av if you read this: Why would it have to take 3 weeks for a ruling? This is not rocket science, and both sides have had ample opportunity to articulate their perceived grievances. If, as has been intimated on more than one occasion that the courts/judges believe the owners and players should be at the bargaining table rather than trying to out-leverage one another through the legal system - isn't there a possibility this issue could be expedited? In other words: Get it worked out or we'll issue a verdict that neither one of you (owners/players) will like. Is this even a remote possibility, or will every single grievance of any consequence at all have to be adjudicated to the letter of the law?

One other question: Who picks up the tab for the court judges, stenographers, marshalls and any other employees associated with these proceedings when court convenes on these so very critical issues: billionaires vs millionaires squabbling over how to slice the pie of plenty ..