Minneapolis, MN (Sports Network) – The NFL is still back to work after a judge denied the league’s request for a stay to her decision to end the lockout.
U.S. District Court Judge Susan Richard Nelson granted the players’ request for an injunction to lift the lockout on Monday.
The NFL had asked her for a stay until the appeal process runs its course, but the Star Tribune reported Wednesday that Nelson denied the stay. However, the report said her ruling does not force the NFL to start its league year with signings and trades.
While Nelson ruled in favor of the players, the issue is far from settled. The league had already said it will file an appeal to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis, and teams have been told to refrain from contact with players since the lockout began.
One league event that will go on as scheduled is the NFL Draft, which begins in New York on Thursday night.
Owners instituted the lockout after talks toward a new collective bargaining agreement broke down on March 11, the day the players disbanded their union. A group of players — including quarterbacks Tom Brady of the New England Patriots, Peyton Manning of the Indianapolis Colts and Drew Brees of the New Orleans Saints — filed the injunction request along with an antitrust lawsuit against the league.
The NFL has maintained that the dispute will only end through collective bargaining. Discussions, with a federal mediator again present, are scheduled to resume May 16.
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