Brady, Kraft Roast NFL’s Suspension Ruling; Belichek Mum
One day after the NFL and Commissioner Rodger Goodell upheld his four game suspension, Patriots Quarterback Tom Brady spoke out on Facebook regarding the allegations. Brady continued to deny any wrong doing in the AFC Championship or during the investigation. He outlines his side of the “destroyed” cell phone story that has been generated by the latest NFL report.
Meanwhile, Patriots owner Robert Kraft and head coach Bill Belichek each spoke at a press conference this morning and addressed the NFL’s ruling. Kraft, in his press conference, apologized to fans for accepting the penalties and called out the NFL for its mishandling of the “scandal.” Kraft said he was “wrong to put my faith the league” in that situation and also apologized to Tom Brady. He said this ruling by the NFL was never about being “fair or just.” Head Coach Bill Belichek would not comment on the issue, stating multiple times that “it has been addressed.”
Read the full Facebook post below:
"I am very disappointed by the NFL’s decision to uphold the 4 game suspension against me. I did nothing wrong, and no one in the Patriots organization did either.Despite submitting to hours of testimony over the past 6 months, it is disappointing that the Commissioner upheld my suspension based upon a standard that it was “probable” that I was “generally aware” of misconduct. The fact is that neither I, nor any equipment person, did anything of which we have been accused. He… dismissed my hours of testimony and it is disappointing that he found it unreliable.I also disagree with yesterdays narrative surrounding my cellphone. I replaced my broken Samsung phone with a new iPhone 6 AFTER my attorneys made it clear to the NFL that my actual phone device would not be subjected to investigation under ANY circumstances. As a member of a union, I was under no obligation to set a new precedent going forward, nor was I made aware at any time during Mr. Wells investigation, that failing to subject my cell phone to investigation would result in ANY discipline.Most importantly, I have never written, texted, emailed to anybody at anytime, anything related to football air pressure before this issue was raised at the AFC Championship game in January. To suggest that I destroyed a phone to avoid giving the NFL information it requested is completely wrong.To try and reconcile the record and fully cooperate with the investigation after I was disciplined in May, we turned over detailed pages of cell phone records and all of the emails that Mr. Wells requested. We even contacted the phone company to see if there was any possible way we could retrieve any/all of the actual text messages from my old phone. In short, we exhausted every possibility to give the NFL everything we could and offered to go thru the identity for every text and phone call during the relevant time. Regardless, the NFL knows that Mr. Wells already had ALL relevant communications with Patriots personnel that either Mr. Wells saw or that I was questioned about in my appeal hearing. There is no “smoking gun” and this controversy is manufactured to distract from the fact they have zero evidence of wrongdoing.I authorized the NFLPA to make a settlement offer to the NFL so that we could avoid going to court and put this inconsequential issue behind us as we move forward into this season. The discipline was upheld without any counter offer. I respect the Commissioners authority, but he also has to respect the CBA and my rights as a private citizen. I will not allow my unfair discipline to become a precedent for other NFL players without a fight.Lastly, I am overwhelmed and humbled by the support of family, friends and our fans who have supported me since the false accusations were made after the AFC Championship game. I look forward to the opportunity to resume playing with my teammates and winning more games for the New England Patriots."
Brady and the NFLPA will take the NFL to federal court to fight the issue. He will be allowed to attend participate in Patriots training camp, but is expected to take “less than 50% of the snaps” while Jimmy Garoppolo will get the majority of first team reps. Garoppolo is expected to take the field against the Pittsburgh Steelers and play the following three games.
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