NFLPA Slams NFL for Statement on Ezekiel Elliott Sex Videos Blackmail Report

The NFL and NFLPA traded barbs Wednesday regarding the league's decision to give Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott a six-game suspension for his alleged role in a domestic violence case. 

Earlier in the day, the NFL released the following statement, per Brian McCarthy of the league's public relations department: 

The NFLPA quickly shot back:

The war of words between the sides is the first salvo in what could be a long and ugly appeal process. The NFLPA will try to prove Elliott's ex-girlfriend, Tiffany Thompson, was not a reliable witness in the NFL's investigation and that she had hoped to profit off of Elliott. 

The union will point to the report from Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports that she "admitted to NFL investigators having a text exchange in which she discussed leveraging sex videos featuring her and Elliott for money from the player."

As Robinson noted, that doesn't necessarily disprove Elliott committed physical violence against his ex-girlfriend. The league claimed after a yearlong investigation that there was indeed suitable evidence to suspend Elliott for violating its personal conduct policy.

Robinson added, however, that "with Thompson being cited as the NFL's only firsthand witness to the events she is alleging, a source close to Elliott said his lawyers and the NFLPA have seized upon the exchange to question aspects of motive and credibility in an appeal filed on Tuesday."

That prompted the NFL's strongly worded response and the NFLPA's sharp rebuttal. 

Harold Henderson, the president of the NFL Player Care Foundation, will hear the appeal, per Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero of NFL.com. He's heard appeals in the past for the NFL, and he reduced Greg Hardy's suspension from 10 games to four in 2015.