A day after a federal judge ended a 45-day NFL lockout, many NFL players showed up to team facilities on Tuesday only to be told that they are still not allowed to work out.
According to a report from the Associated Press, most of the players left soon after being told of the order, but a few stayed to work out. One such player was Giants defensive tackle Chris Canty.
"Got a chance to get a good workout in," said Canty. "I am going to come back as long as the door is open. There was no tension here. Coaches are excited to have guys back in the building."
The NFL issued a statement saying that all players should "treated with courtesy and respect" if they show up at team facilities. The statement also says that the league needs "a few days to sort this out" before "football activities" are allowed.
U.S. District Judge Susan Richard Nelson said that she will wait until Wednesday to rule on whether her order will be held or not. Meanwhile, the league is in limbo and many NFL players feel clueless about what to do next.
"It was a little weird," said Redskins wide receiver Anthony Armstrong, in reference to his being told that he could not work out at his team's facility. "It felt like you were sneaking into the club or something like that, and they knew you weren't supposed to be in there but they hadn't done anything about it yet. Just a little awkward."
But according to agent Drew Rosenhaus, the players are not the ones who are left up in the air by the judge's ruling. It's the teams.
"It's very chaotic for the teams right now," said Rosenhaus. "It's not chaotic for the players. Our position is the lockout is over, free agency should begin, signings should begin, offseason workouts should begin, everything should be going on. The longer the NFL doesn't do that and drags this out, the more there are concerns of collusion and violations of antitrust laws."
(Sources: ESPN.com, Associated Press)
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