Former Jets defensive end Mark Gastineau’s lawsuit has been, yes, sacked.
Last year, Gastineau sued ESPN, the NFL, NFL Films, and co-directors James Weiner and Ken Rodgers for The New York Sack Exchange, which included a clip of Gastineau verbally accosting Brett Favre for his gift to Michael Strahan that allowed Strahan to break Gastineau’s single-season sack record in 2001.
Via Zach Powell of The Athletic, a federal judge dismissed Gastineau’s lawsuit on Monday.
The defendants had argued that the complaint failed to state a claim on which relief could be granted. Which is a fancy way of saying that, even if every fact alleged is true, there’s no recognized legal theory that would make the conduct a violation of Gastineau’s legal rights.
Gastineau had argued that the inclusion of his words with Favre were used without Gastineau’s consent or permission, and that the clip portrayed him “in a manner which was maliciously false.” Gastineau argued that the producers “intentionally and maliciously” omitted footage of Gastineau and Favre shaking hands.
Regardless, the court decided it wasn’t enough to create a valid claim for relief.
Gastineau will have the right to appeal the decision. Sometimes, a plaintiff whose first crack at fashioning an actionable legal claim gets a chance to try again.