US District Judge who quietly rewired NFL money dies 2 days before turning 97

 Judge David Doty, who oversaw the settlement that helped create NFL free agency, the franchise tag and the salary-cap era, died June 27 at 96. The NFL, court officials and former colleagues remembered the Minnesota federal judge whose rulings shaped decades of labor battles between players and owners and still influence every offseason roster move. Judge David Doty, who oversaw the settlement that helped create NFL free agency, the franchise tag and the salary-cap era, died June 27 at 96. The NFL, court officials and former colleagues remembered the Minnesota federal judge whose rulings shaped decades of labor battles between players and owners and still influence every offseason roster move.