New Orleans Saints Jonathan Vilma And NFL In Court Today – What’s Going On?

New Orleans Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma and the NFL had their day in court today. At the moment there was no ruling on a motion to dismiss Vilma's lawsuit seeking to overturn his season-long suspension. He seemed satisfied with that for the time being, but there was some reason to be optimistic in what Judge Ginger Berrigan had to say about the whole ordeal. Keep reading to find out!

From AP News:

A federal judge questioned the fairness of the NFL's bounty investigation of the Saints, then held off on making any rulings while urging all sides to settle the matter on their own.

U.S. District Judge Ginger Berrigan also said the season-long suspension of Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma was excessive and that she would be inclined to rule in his favor if she were certain she had jurisdiction to do so.

The judge could potentially rule at any time on Vilma's request to be allowed to temporarily return to the Saints while the case proceeds, but during Friday's hearing, Berrigan urged all parties to come to an agreement rather than wait for the court to make a decision.

Annnnd Vilma was surprised with a little support from someone...

When Vilma left the courthouse, he was greeted by a handful of Saints fans wearing black and gold jerseys and quarterback Drew Brees, who gave his teammate a hug and pat on the back. Brees had just flown in from Foxborough, Mass., after last night's preseason game against the New England Patriots but he said he didn't want to miss the opportunity to "support Jonathan Vilma."

"It really means a lot," Vilma told his teammate as the two shook hands.

LET HIM BACK IN!!! WHO DAT!?!?