Greg Hardy's suspension was reduced from 10 games to four games on Friday afternoon, the NFL announced.
The announcement comes after a seven-week wait for the Pro Bowl defensive end, who appealed the ruling in late May. Independent arbitrator Harold Henderson heard the appeal and ruled for upholding the suspension -- albeit in reduced fashion.
Under the original suspension, Hardy wouldn't have been able to play until the Cowboys' Thanksgiving Day game against Carolina. After the reduction, Hardy would be available to play Week 5 against the New England Patriots.
It's possible Hardy could decide to continue to fight the sentence, taking the matter to court -- but that has yet to be determined.[embeddedad0]
Hardy was suspended earlier this spring for violating the league's personal conduct policy in connection to charges for assault and communicating threats against his ex-girlfriend last summer.
The charges were dismissed in February, but NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell deemed in a letter to Hardy that there was sufficient evidence to levy a suspension for personal conduct violations.
The Cowboys signed Hardy to a one-year contract in March after he spent most of the 2014 season on the commissioner's exempt list while his legal issues played.
Statement from Jerry Jones: **
"We are looking forward to the start of the season and having Greg be a part of the team."
