Adrian Peterson GREEN BAY, WI – JANUARY 03: Adrian Peterson #28 of the Minnesota Vikings reacts after defeating the Green Bay Packers with a score of 20 to 13 at Lambeau Field on January 3, 2016 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)

In the aftermath of allegations of child abuse against Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson two years ago, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell suspended the star running back indefinitely and fined him for an amount equivalent to six game checks.

Peterson sued to block the loss of pay and reinstate him to the league, but ended up sitting out the final month or so of the 2014 anyway. He won the original appeal of Goodell’s decision in federal court. However, on Thursday, a nearly two-year long battle may well be over thanks to the 8th circuit court of appeals.

The court ruled in favor of the NFL and Goodell, saying that the commissioner did indeed act within the guidelines of the league’s collective bargaining agreement in his punishment of Peterson. At the time, the fine was the equivalent of six game checks.

In today’s ruling, the 8th district court of appeals made it very clear that the language of the player contract is pretty clear on this matter:

“The Commissioner is the chief executive officer of the NFL. Article 46 of the Agreement authorizes the Commissioner to impose discipline for ‘conduct detrimental to the integrity of, or public confidence in, the game of professional football.’ The standard NFL player contract further acknowledges that the Commissioner has the power ‘to fine player in a reasonable amount; to suspend player for a period certain or indefinitely; and/or to terminate this contract.’ The Agreement does not define ‘conduct detrimental’ or prescribe maximum or presumptive punishments for such conduct.”

Peterson won’t be sitting out any more games and his 2016 season won’t be affected in any way. He’ll just be forced to scrape together the amount of six game checks from the 2014 season, which may not be the easiest of tasks.

It is also interesting to note how this ruling affects the league as a whole, as it, along with the Tom Brady ruling, affirms Goodell’s ability to suspend players within the confines of the collective bargaining agreement currently in place.

We’re guessing the NFLPA is going to be pushing hard to get some reform measures in place to stop Goodell from having the kind of power he currently has over the players in the league. Perhaps more definition as to what “conduct detrimental” to the league means and some more definition to the system of punishment.

[Fox Sports]

About Andrew Coppens

Andy is a contributor to The Comeback as well as Publisher of Big Ten site talking10. He also is a member of the FWAA and has been covering college sports since 2011. Andy is an avid soccer fan and runs the Celtic FC site The Celtic Bhoys. If he's not writing about sports, you can find him enjoying them in front of the TV with a good beer!