Fencer
Pro Bowl Player
- Joined
- Oct 2, 2006
- Messages
- 14,293
- Reaction score
- 3,986
I know that there are arguments to the effect:
That said, he has a lot of choices as to how he could find them in the wrong. The ones that come quickly to my mind are:
I'm assuming that Berman will not say "The Wells Report was wrong", but rather "The Wells Report is limited in what it said, because if it were read more expansively, then it would be wrong", so as not to confront head-on the Commissioner's and Arbitrator's nearly unlimited power to, as it were, choose their own facts.
- Berman, if he rules against the NFL, will likely craft his decision narrowly.
- It's not certain that Berman will rule against the NFL at all.
That said, he has a lot of choices as to how he could find them in the wrong. The ones that come quickly to my mind are:
- The Law of the Shop/essence of the CBA include notice provisions that clearly weren't followed. (I.e, the court in Minnesota was correct.)
- Same thing, but via collateral estoppel. (See other thread.)
- The final discipline ruling is badly inconsistent with the conclusions of the Wells Report, and hence isn't grounded in facts.
- There wasn't a fair hearing about bias issues (notably Pash's influence on the Wells Report).
- The independent/non-independent tap dance had the effect of not letting Brady properly defend himself.
- Any and all of the above show that the process was generally a clown show.
- Any and all of the above show that the arbitrator needed to rule about the process, and hence that Goodell was inherently too biased to fill the role.
I'm assuming that Berman will not say "The Wells Report was wrong", but rather "The Wells Report is limited in what it said, because if it were read more expansively, then it would be wrong", so as not to confront head-on the Commissioner's and Arbitrator's nearly unlimited power to, as it were, choose their own facts.