Ezekiel Elliott wins restraining order on NFL's 6-game suspension, will play Sunday

NEW YORK – Ezekiel Elliott won a surprising ruling as a federal court issued a temporary restraining order that halts the Dallas Cowboy’s six-game suspension for violating the NFL’s domestic violence policy.

The ruling from the Southern District of New York means Elliott can play against the San Francisco 49ers, the Cowboys’ next game on Sunday. The restraining order, issued by Judge Paul A. Crotty, will last 14 days, leaving Elliott eligible to also play in Dallas’ game against the Washington Redskins on Oct. 29.

Before Tuesday’s ruling, the league’s suspension of Elliott was reinstated Oct. 12 after Louisiana’s 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled, 2-1, that a federal judge had improperly issued a preliminary injunction on Elliott’s punishment from the league.

Ezekiel Elliott will play on Sunday as a federal court judge issued an injunction on his six-game suspension handed down by the NFL. (Getty Images)
Ezekiel Elliott will play on Sunday as a federal court judge issued an injunction on his six-game suspension handed down by the NFL. (Getty Images)

Losing that case was critical for Elliott. It forced him to take his argument to New York, a venue that has proved favorable toward the NFL in matters of due process and the league’s collective-bargaining agreement. It’s where the New England Patriots’ Tom Brady lost his case in the deflate-gate scandal, an issue that largely boiled down to the CBA-sanctioned powers granted to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell in the appeals process.

However, the court ruled in Elliott’s favor on Tuesday.

Elliott’s legal team and the NFL will meet again in a New York court, this time before Judge Katherine Failla, to argue whether a temporary restraining order will be granted to Elliott.

Elliott is scheduled to return to Cowboys practice Wednesday.