Jimmy Johnson’s Lawsuit Against The New York Jets
Jimmy Johnson was not happy with the way his Tampa Bay Buccaneers played during the 2021 season. He made a lot of changes and the results were less than stellar. This was on his mind all the time, and he made sure to voice his opinion to those who were around him. Some of the things he said were defensive and meant to deflect blame from himself and the team. Some were more pointed and implied that changes need to be made in order for the franchise to return to the winning ways it used to.
The most telling comment might have been when he said, “We’re not a very good football team right now,” in reference to their loss to the hated Atlanta Falcons. Injuries are the primary issue that is cited as the reason why this team can’t win. However, they were hardly the only ones playing poorly. The loss to the hated Falcons was just one game and they were out of the playoffs. It was far from the worst loss that Johnson has experienced.
One of the things that caused the lawsuit is that there was a derogatory comment about the state of his team.
Johnson, apparently, felt some disappointment at the trade that sent his longtime quarterback, JaMarcus Russell, to Tampa Bay. A few days later, after the trade, the team released a statement saying, “We believe this transaction is in the best interest of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.” That statement implied that Russell was no longer wanted by the club.
The lawsuit was filed by a former team employee who claimed that the move was wrongful, malicious and based on discrimination.
She also claimed that the trade was made in retaliation for an event that happened earlier in the year. Her lawsuit, which was eventually filed in June, is a Class Action suit. Her attorney is asking that it be certified as a nationwide case because of the potentially huge impact it could have.
It is unknown what role, if any, JaMarcus Russell will have in this lawsuit.
He was traded to the Raiders this week. So, it would only be logical that he might be involved in some way with the lawsuit. It is also not clear whether or not the trade was voluntary or not. Most attorneys believe it was a forced one.
This lawsuit is a particularly interesting case study in the NFL.
There have been a lot of high-profile lawsuits and many of them have involved significant sums of money. This one appears to be a case where the potential damage is limited but the possible gains are not. Sports millionaires and celebrities are rarely sued for things that occur off the field. Usually, when something goes wrong, it involves things that happen on the practice or during games or events.
In terms of the case itself, there is not much that is really new. It is only new to the public.
The story does involve a former employee, but that is pretty much in the past. The basic story is also typical of these types of legal actions. A person becomes injured while at work and then there are a wrongful firing and personal injury lawsuit filed against the employer and that person.
It seems as if the lawsuit is mainly trying to pin the negligence on Johnson and to get it in court so it can be tried. Whether that will actually work remains to be seen. It is also unknown whether or not the judge will actually allow this lawsuit to proceed. He might toss it out or he might take it up himself. Jim Johnson’s lawsuit will most likely be settled out of court, though there are certain scenarios in which he could have more luck with it.
