NFL spokesman Joe Lockhart on the latest Ezekiel Elliott suspension news:
"Mr. Elliott is now suspended. He will not play over the next six games unless there’s some other affirmative judgement."

The Cowboys are on a bye this week, which gives fantasy owners a week's reprieve of making any Elliott lineup decisions. Until there's an update on the situation, prepare for an NFL without Elliott until Week 13.

A federal appeals court overturned a district court's decision in the Ezekiel Elliott case Thursday, meaning the Dallas Cowboys running back's six-game suspension has been reinstated. The Cowboys have a bye this week.

The 5th Circuit ruled 2-1 in favor of the NFL that the district court did not have subject matter jurisdiction in Elliott case after hearing oral arguments from the league and NFL Players Association lawyers earlier this month. It vacates the preliminary injunction and directs an order to the lower court to dismiss the case.

However, the NFLPA is expected to re-file the case with the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York and seek a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction in order to keep Elliott playing, according to Gabe Feldman, director of the Tulane Sports Law Program.

Adam Schefter: As a practical matter, Ezekiel Elliott’s suspension goes back into effect but...his lawyers still can refile in Dallas or fight it in NY.

Jason La Canfora: Big win in court for NFL with Elliott suspension being vacated. Would expect NFLPA to appeal but timetable for that filing to be heard murky.

Related players: Alfred Morris, Darren McFadden, Rod Smith, Keith Smith

At this point, it's not clear if Elliott will be able to play Week 7 (after his camp files another temporary restraining order) or if he'll return in Week 13 after his suspension. Elliott owners should not cut him-he's too valuable for the fantasy playoffs-but it's not completely clear who the RB2 is in Dallas. Darren McFadden seemed to be slated that role for most of the summer, but he's been a healthy scratch for the last few weeks. Alfred Morris has been active on game days, has the second most carries on the team, and is the most likely to see lead back duties if/when Elliott misses time. McFadden could serve as a change-of-pace/third down back since he's much better than Morris in the passing game. In short, this is shaping up to be a Morris/McFadden committee, but it's possible that the Cowboys have a different plan in mind, involving McFadden as the lead back, or Rod Smith or Keith Smith serving as the passing down back instead of McFadden. Regardless, it's worthwhile to consider adding Morris or McFadden if they are available. Morris is the priority in all scoring formats, but the gap is narrower in PPR leagues.

Oral arguments for Ezekiel Elliott's hearing in his legal case against the NFL regarding his six-game suspension took place Monday at the 5th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in New Orleans.

Elliott himself did not attend the hearing, but NFLPA lawyer Jeffrey Kessler made arguments on his behalf against the NFL's attorney, Pratik Shah, in front of a three-judge panel. The NFL was seeking an emergency stay of a lower court ruling that allows Elliott to play while the appeal of his six-game suspension is adjudicated in the courts.

The hearing ended without a ruling, and it's not clear just yet when a ruling will come.

Judge Edward C. Prado did say it would come as soon as possible, according to Kate Hairopolous of the Dallas Morning News, the story went on to say. If there is no ruling by Tuesday, there was no decision on whether or not Elliott could play in Week 5, which is similar to the Week 1 situation where Elliott was allowed to play.

Cowboys Inactives
Darren McFadden RB
Cooper Rush QB
Bene' Benwilkere DB
Jay Elliott LB
Jonathan Cooper OG
Anthony Hitchens MLB
Orlando Scandrick CB

Related players: Alfred Morris, Ezekiel Elliott

Looks like Morris will again back up Elliott in Week 2.

Jerry Jones expects Ezekiel Elliott to be on the field Sunday when the Cowboys play the Denver Broncos. Beyond that, the Cowboys owner and general manager wasn't making his thoughts known Tuesday morning.

"We've got a good narration going with the media that are really doing, in my mind, a pretty good job of explaining it to our fans," Jones said on 105.3 The Fan [KRLD-FM] of Elliott's legal situation. "I'm not going to try to trump that, but the bottom line is, I do expect him Sunday."

Jones wouldn't commit to Elliott's longterm status because it's still possible he's suspended. But as long as the process is still being sorted out, Elliott will be allowed to play. Jones said expect a similar workload to the 24 carries he received in Week 1 as long as Elliott takes the field.

The six-game suspension the NFL handed down to Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott was put on hold when Judge Amos L. Mazzant III granted a preliminary injunction last Friday and the legal fight has moved on to its next step.

The league filed an appeal with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in hopes of getting that injunction overturned.

If the appeal is granted and the NFL succeeds in the next stage of the legal battle, Elliott’s suspension could go into effect. How quickly that will be decided is unclear, but chances are that it won’t happen immediately as the average time for a case to go from notice of appeal to decision is over eight months. There is the option for either side to ask for an expedited appeal, although doing that didn’t make things move much faster in the case of Tom Brady‘s appeal of his four-game suspension, the story went on to say.

Cowboys Inactives
RB Darren McFadden
QB Cooper Rush
WR Noah Brown
OG Jonathan Cooper
CB Bene Benwikere
LB Anthony Hitchens
CB Jourdan Lewis

Related players: Alfred Morris, Ezekiel Elliott

This is a bit of a surprise as McFadden was expected to be the backup to Ezekiel Elliott. Looks like Morris will at least have those duties in Week 1. It's also significant to note for those who wanted to handcuff Elliott in the event of injury or suspension.