NFL players should now feel free to embark upon a walking tour of Europe or embark on a cruise around the world.

After all, there probably won’t be football any time soon.

That became apparent Monday following a legal decision allowing the NFL to keep its lockout in place indefinitely upon appeal of a previous ruling. The 8th Circuit Court announced that the league can continue its work stoppage until a final ruling is made on the matter. Such a verdict won’t be announced until weeks after a hearing in the Brady v. NFL antitrust lawsuit is held June 3 in St. Louis.

The longer the lockout remains in place, the more leverage the NFL has in the labor battle with its players. Team owners are far better heeled financially to survive a prolonged work stoppage — even if it means the postponement of games or the cancellation of an entire season.

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Capping one of the greatest postseasons for any quarterback, Aaron Rodgers led the Packers to their first NFL championship in 14 years Sunday, 31-25 over the Pittsburgh Steelers. Green Bay reclaimed the Vince Lombardi Trophy, named for its legendary coach who won the first two Super Bowls and is making his own star turn in New York in the play named after him.

Rodgers, the game’s MVP, thrilled his legion of Cheesehead fans with a spectacular six-game string that should finally erase the bitterness of the Brett Favre separation in Green Bay. After sitting for three long years before Favre left in 2008, Rodgers is now equal with the retired quarterback in Super Bowl wins, and he extended the Packers’ record of NFL titles to 13, nine before the Super Bowl era.

“You can stop it now,” Packers veteran wide receiver Donald Driver said. “Aaron’s proved that he’s one of the best, if not the best, quarterback in this game today.”

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