Posted by Mike Triplett, The Times-Picayune December 04, 2008 2:22PM

Michael DeMocker/The Times-Picayune

Will Smith was one of the Saints who tested positive for a banned substance.

A hearing has been scheduled for 10:30 a.m. Friday in a U.S. District Court in St. Paul, Minn., to review the NFL Players Association’s lawsuit on behalf of suspended Saints players Deuce McAllister, Will Smith and Charles Grant, as well as suspended Minnesota Vikings players Pat Williams and Kevin Williams.

Lawyers for both the NFLPA and the NFL are expected to argue the merits of the lawsuit before Judge Paul Magnuson, who has been assigned the case. He could choose to offer a quick ruling or schedule further proceedings. If that’s the case, the NFLPA will ask him to grant an injunction to allow the players to resume playing until the matter is settled.

If Magnuson grants an injunction, McAllister and Smith would be eligible to play Sunday against the Atlanta Falcons. Grant is unable to play because he is on the injured reserve list for the remainder of the season with a triceps injury.

“I believe you will (see us back on the field Sunday),” said McAllister, who said he believes the players have a strong case, even if the NFL didn’t agree when it denied their appeal on Tuesday. “I think if we felt like we were wrong, we wouldn’t have even appealed it up to this point. But after not getting the appeal by the league looking at it, you still have other avenues you can take.”
Apparently, the Saints players have not filed any lawsuits on the local level. The Vikings players chose to file a lawsuit in Minnesota on the state level Wednesday, and they were granted a temporary injunction by the judge in that case, which allowed them to practice with the Vikings on Thursday.

The state case has since been reassigned to the federal court, but the injunction still stands pending Friday’s hearing.

Saints Coach Sean Payton said he’s aware of the possible change in McAllister’s and Smith’s status, but at this point, the only thing he can do is keep game-planning and practicing with the guys on the current roster.

“Really, after two days of practice (this week), that’s what it has to be now,” said Payton, though he added that McAllister and Smith “certainly understand and know the offense and defense” well enough that they could be inserted back into the lineup without great difficulty.

“If those guys are restored and allowed to play, then we’ll have a plan for that. And if not, then we already have a plan for that,” said Saints General Manager Mickey Loomis, who said he is disappointed for the players, but he also supports the league’s ruling on their suspensions.

“Listen, we support the league and the policies that we have. And the league ruled on the matter, so we support that,” Loomis said. “You know, I’m disappointed for our players, we’re all disappointed for our players, and we thought they made a strong argument. But the league made its decision, so as a member club, we have to abide by that.

“But I can tell you this, Deuce McAllister and Will Smith mean a lot to our team. They’re really good players. They’ve meant a lot to our franchise. They’ve been exemplary representatives of the NFL and our franchise, and I certainly wouldn’t be upset if they were able to play.”

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