Judge grants motion, lifts lockout; owners' appeal coming

[BigHairedAristocrat]

Its my understanding that The teams can't agree on rules without violating antitrust laws. The judge ruled that the decertification of the union was legit; therefore 32 teams can't impose uniform rules on a non-unionized workforce.

Personally I'm hoping the circuit court grants a stay and the NFL wins an appeal. The players have too much power an the owners have none. The union can strike but the NFL can't lockout. It's not fair. This situation is just going to force the owners to make another bad deal.

[Lotus]

Originally Posted by BigHairedAristocrat

Its my understanding that The teams can't agree on rules without violating antitrust laws. The judge ruled that the decertification of the union was legit; therefore 32 teams can't impose uniform rules on a non-unionized workforce.

Personally I'm hoping the circuit court grants a stay and the NFL wins an appeal. The players have too much power an the owners have none. The union can strike but the NFL can't lockout. It's not fair. This situation is just going to force the owners to make another bad deal.

In an extreme, Jeff Kessler interpretation, you are correct about antitrust laws. But teams are operating as if such extreme interpretations will not win the day. Example: the draft, which involves teams agreeing upon uniform rules.

[Son Of Man]

Originally Posted by BigHairedAristocrat

Its my understanding that The teams can't agree on rules without violating antitrust laws. The judge ruled that the decertification of the union was legit; therefore 32 teams can't impose uniform rules on a non-unionized workforce.

Personally I'm hoping the circuit court grants a stay and the NFL wins an appeal. The players have too much power an the owners have none. The union can strike but the NFL can't lockout. It's not fair. This situation is just going to force the owners to make another bad deal.

Technically the owners do have the right to fire/release players. However, they don't wish to do that cause there is nothing stopping another club from picking them up. The lockout lets the owners retain their contract rights to players during the stopage which is probably why it was ruled illegal.