After Monday's ruling that lifted the lockout, the NFL owners sought a stay on the ruling, but Judge Susan Nelson denied that request on Wednesday night. As a result, the lockout is still not in place, but the owners are still seeking a stay on the ruling from the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals, which has jurisdiction over Nelson's court.
As part of the ruling, Judge Nelson ordered the league year to start immediately. What this means is not immediately clear. Under normal circumstances it would mean that free agency and trading players would be allowed to occur. But with an appeal for a stay in higher court still pending teams may not want to rush into things. Adam Schefter mentions that the NFL has told teams to wait for the 8th Circuit decision before doing anything, which the players contend the teams should not be able to do. It would appear to be a case of collusion.
Will some teams jump ship and attempt to trade players for draft picks during Thursday's draft? It's going to be an interesting couple of days.
Stay tuned to this NFL Lockout 2011 stream as this story develops.