Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott suspended after losing appeal
The pendulum has swung back the other way and Ezekiel Elliott is suspended again, after the Second Circuit court in New York denied Elliott's request for an emergency injunction pending his appeal.
He is now suspended for the next six games, beginning immediately in Week 10 against the Atlanta Falcons.
The Cowboys running back will miss the next six games, but it is possible that he could be back on the field sooner, pending his appeal before the Second Circuit.
On Nov. 3, Elliott was granted a temporary stay of the suspension leading up to Thursday's hearing on whether or not Elliott would receive an injunction. That was today's hearing, and Zeke was denied the injunction, which means the stay was lifted.
In layman's terms: he is now suspended again.
The NFL is investigating several alleged physical confrontations in the summer of 2016 with Elliott's girlfriend at the time.
Let's look at some important factors heading forward both on and off the field.
What's next from a legal standpoint?
The court also ordered that Elliott would be granted an expedited appeal and that the Clerk of Court would set the expedited appeal as soon as available. So Elliott could potentially be back on the field if he wins that appeal, but given that the panel of judges quickly struck down his request for an injunction -- and I mean quickly, it happened less than an hour after the hearing -- it does not look good for Elliott.
As far as playing on Sunday, there are two very, very, very-very-very longshots. Elliott could try and hear an en banc hearing (which would be the full panel of Second Circuit judges), but it is unlikely he could have that granted before Sunday. Additionally, he could appeal to the Supreme Court, but, again, it is highly unlikely that he could receive some kind of emergency stay from the Supreme Court.
It is worth noting that Elliott wants to clear his name in this situation. That has been his primary goal throughout all of this. Do not expect Elliott to simply lay down here. He may serve the suspension but he will also exhaust his legal remedies.
Barring either one of those emergency options or Elliott winning the expedited appeal within the next six weeks, Elliott will next be eligible to play for the Cowboys on Dec. 24 when they play the Seahawks in Week 16.
Who wins and loses from a football standpoint?
The big winners here are the Eagles and Redskins. Philadelphia was slated to play the Cowboys twice late in the season and therefore did not appear to get a week without Elliott. Now they do. The Redskins are in a slightly dire situation, sitting at 4-4. They need all the help they can get in terms of trying to make the playoffs. Getting to play the Cowboys late in the year without Elliott is a big bonus.
This is also, obviously, huge news for the Atlanta Falcons, who are three-point favorites against the Cowboys at home on Sunday. (It makes you wonder just how much Vegas knows by the way, that they were favored over a better Cowboys team before the Elliott hearing.)
This article originally appeared on CBSSports.com.
