Buried within the pages of Judge Susan Nelson's 80-page ruling that (temporarily) ended the current NFL lockout is a citation that directly mentioned our Minnesota Vikings.
Now, if you'll recall correctly. . .and it might be hard, given the effort by so many of us trying to push the entirety of the 2010 season out of our minds. . .when the seriousness of Sidney Rice's hip injury was finally revealed, the Vikings made a strong play for San Diego Chargers' wide receiver Vincent Jackson. How serious?
According to Nelson's ruling (and brought to you courtesy of the nice folks at Access Vikings), Jackson's agent and the Vikings had agreed to terms of a contract that would have paid Jackson $8 million (pro-rated) for the remainder of the 2010 season, and $10 million in 2011. Chargers' general manager A.J. Smith chose to hold on to Jackson. . .and paid him exactly $280,824.
Nelson cited the Jackson example as proof that irreparable harm had been done to the players, saying the following:
"There can be no real dispute that all of the free-agent players have demonstrated a sufficient threat of irreparable harm warranting the issuance of injunctive relief," Nelson wrote.
"The Brady Plaintiffs have shown not only that they likely would suffer irreparable harm absent the preliminary injunction, but that they are in fact suffering such harm now. Irreparable harm occurs when a party has no adequate remedy at law, typically because its injuries cannot be fully compensated through an award of damages."
You can read the rest of Alex Marvez's story that the Access Vikings report is based on right here.