ARLINGTON, TX - DECEMBER 18: Ezekiel Elliott #21 of the Dallas Cowboys warms up on the field prior to the game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at AT&T Stadium on December 18, 2016 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)

NFL lawyers make definitive statement on Ezekiel Elliott’s appeal status

This doesn't sound good.

If this isn't a jumbled up mess, then what is?

The latest development in the Ezekiel Elliott suspension story is a chapter that Dallas Cowboys fans would much rather skip with hope that it can be unwritten.

Sorry, lovers of Jerry World and Dallas fans everywhere, but you're not getting your star running back on Sundays for six games this season. According to ESPN, the NFL's lawyers believe Elliott's latest appeal to his six-game suspension has no chance. In fact, they said the NFL Players Association "has no likelihood of success on appeal."

So, where does that put us now? Well, Dallas could very well struggle to stay above .500. Forget winning the NFC East. Sure, crazier things have happened, but Carson Wentz and the Philadelphia Eagles aren't going to lose more than half of their remaining games. The division belongs to Philly.

The truly mind boggling aspect of this entire situation is that neither Elliott, nor the Cowboys, nor the league would have gone through this situation prior to March of 2014. But, hey, that's deeper conversation for another time thanks to Tom Brady's suspension.

Now, we get to watch the second half of the NFL season without last year's leading rusher — arguably the most exciting player on Dallas' whole team. It's not a good look.

The NFL might have won this battle, but this could dramatically affect the war.