According to Jason Cole of the Bleacher Report, Patriots owner Robert Kraft’s decision to not appeal the fines and penalties handed down by the NFL for DeflateGate essentially undermines QB Tom Brady‘s appeal of his four-game suspension.
Cole mentions that Brady still plans to fight his suspension, which could ultimately end up in court. However, Kraft’s decision marks it a much harder for him and his lawyers to travel.
Another issue is that the court could still reject hearing Brady’s case because there is a collective bargaining agreement in place for matters such as this.
New England reportedly received hundreds of negative phones calls from Patriots fans following Kraft’s decision to not fight the league on this issue. Cole adds that by the Patriots doing so, they basically said that they’re fine with some labeling the franchise as cheaters.
The NFLPA announced that they had officially filed an appeal on Brady’s behalf Tuesday. Brady has a solid team of lawyers behind him, but it looks like the odds of him sitting out the first four games of the season are better than many expected just a few days ago.
We’ll have more updates regarding Brady and his appeal case as the news is available.
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If the arbitrator is worth half his salt, the settlement by the Patriots should have absolutely no bearing. As is often the case in settlements, neither party admits to liability and find the settlement the most expedient way to resolve a controversy in its entire context. I do not recall Bob Kraft admitting to liability and he, much more than Brady , has to look at the bigger picture which is what is best for the NFL.
Certainly, the Patriots’ concession should not be admissible in the hearing and should carry no weight.