The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals will hold a hearing on the NFL's emergency motion for a stay in the Ezekiel Elliott case on Oct. 2, according to court documents.
The hearing will take place in New Orleans at 2 p.m. ET and lawyers for the NFL and NFL Players Association will each have 20 minutes of argument time before the court. With the hearing scheduled for the first week of October, Elliott will remain eligible to play Sunday and next week against the Los Angeles Rams.
The NFL requested an emergency stay last week on a preliminary injunction issued by a lower court in the Elliott case that put the Dallas Cowboys running back's suspension on hold. It had initially requested a decision on the stay by no later than this Tuesday.
If the 5th Circuit issues a stay on the injunction, Elliott's suspension could begin immediately. If not, Elliott stands a good chance of playing the entire 2017 season as his case makes its way through the court, according to Gabe Feldman, director of the Tulane Sports Law Program.
The NFL's appeal is part of an attempt to enforce Elliott's suspension this season and confirm NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell's authority to issue punishment based on "conduct detrimental" to the league as mandated in Article 46 of the collective bargaining agreement.
Goodell suspended Elliott six games after a year-long investigation into domestic violence accusations made by his former girlfriend, Tiffany Thompson. The league found he violated the league's conduct policy, which mandates a six-game suspension for first-time domestic violence violations. The suspension was upheld on appeal, prompting the NFLPA to file a lawsuit on Elliott's behalf to dissolve the ban.
Elliott, 22, was never charged and has denied wrongdoing.
