The NFLPA. . .er, the NFL Players Trade Association or whatever it is they're calling themselves now. . .got exactly the ruling they wanted from Judge Susan Nelson today in Minneapolis.
Judge Nelson ruled that the NFL owners need to lift the current NFL lockout and allow player transactions to take place, as well as allow players to work out at team facilities and all of the other things that they would have been allowed to do had the lockout not taken place.
However, there will certainly be an appeal by the owners, who will not only appeal Judge Nelson's ruling, but also ask for a stay of the previous verdict. If the appellate court doesn't grant a stay, then the owners will have to put some sort of system in place to facilitate player transactions and player movement, whether it's based on last year's system or some sort of other arrangement. If the stay is granted, then basically nothing changes. . .the lockout will remain in place while Judge Nelson's ruling is being appealed.
For more up to the minute news on the NFL lockout and the fallout from this ruling, be sure to keep your eye on SB Nation's NFL Labor news stream, which is updated instantaneously when new news on the situation becomes available.