Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson was in court Friday as a judge ruled he will consider a lawsuit filed to get him reinstated.
A federal judge in Minneapolis said he would take under advisement a lawsuit filed by the National Football League Players Association seeking the immediate reinstatement of Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson.
In November, Peterson was suspended until at least April 15 by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell after he was charged with disciplining his 4-year-old son last May with a switch.
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In December, an arbitrator upheld the ruling.
According to ESPN.com, the NFLPA argued that Goodell acted outside his authority with the suspension and that arbitrator Harold Henderson, a longtime NFL executive, was biased in favor of the league.
Attorney Jeffrey Kessler, representing the union, argued that Peterson should not have been subject to the NFL’s new personal conduct policy—which calls for more severe punishment for players in domestic violence cases—since that policy wasn’t instituted until late August, almost four months after the incident Peterson was charged for.
Also part of the union’s argument was that Goodell did not have the authority to order Peterson into counseling and that the league misused the commissioner’s exempt list to prevent Peterson from playing. Peterson was kept on the exempt list for 12 weeks, with pay, before his suspension was handed down.
NFL attorney Daniel Nash began his presentation by reminding the court, “There is no dispute [from the union] that Mr. Peterson engaged in conduct detrimental [to the NFL].”
Peterson came out of the hearing satisfied his case had been fairly heard.
“I got a fair hearing, for once,” Peterson said.
U.S. District Judge David Doty has heard many of the most important labor battles between the union and the league in his courtroom over the last 20 years.
Peterson said Friday that “of course” he wants to return to the Vikings next season. He is scheduled to earn $12.75 million next season, with a cap hit of $15.4 million.
Coach Mike Zimmer and general manager Rick Spielman have both said they want Peterson back, but neither was willing to say that it is certain to go down that way.
Peterson, who will be 30 next month, would be the highest-paid running back in the league if he comes back under his current deal.
He told ESPN in December that he doesn’t believe a pay cut is warranted, making the somewhat odd argument that after being tackled only 21 times in 2014, he will be a better player in 2015.
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