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I think we have a pretty good indication of how seriously the NFL and the rest of the sports world are taking the legal case of Minnesota defensive tackles Kevin Williams and Pat Williams.

Brian Murphy of the St. Paul Pioneer Press continued his excellent reporting on the case with this story: The NFL, NHL, NBA, Major League Baseball and the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency filed a joint motion Monday asking the Eighth District Court to consider their objection to the players' lawsuit. Like the NFL, the other leagues are asking that drug testing not be subject to state law.

That's the crux of the players' argument and it's clear that even a partial legal victory would overturn sports drug testing as it is currently constituted. The players claim the NFL's steroid testing violates Minnesota state law and are fighting to have their case heard in state court. If they can get to state court, even if they ultimately lose the case, the precedent could force sports leagues to change their policies to be in compliance with state laws in every state they have a team.

The leagues all agree with the NFL: That federal law should pre-empt state law in this scenario.

Again, there is a fair amount of legal mumbo-jumbo here. But overall, this joint motion illustrates that the country's entire professional sports world is now uneasily watching this case. Attorneys for Kevin Williams and Pat Williams have obviously hit on some valid points.

Continuing around the NFC North:

• Brad Biggs of the Chicago Sun-Times addresses the Bears' pass rush.
• Detroit linebacker Julian Peterson on the Lions' 0-16 record last season: "A real man comes out through adversity. I think this is the biggest adversity for anybody. For a team going 0-16, nobody's talked about it, but it's a big challenge for a lot of us. I think everybody has stepped up to the plate, want[s] to improve, want[s] to get back to the playoffs." Carlos Monarrez of the Detroit Free Press reports.
• Tom Pelissero of the Green Bay Press-Gazette wonders if former Packers tight end Bubba Franks has reached the end of his career. The New York Jets released Franks on Monday.