Tom Brady and NFL players union seek 2nd Circuit en banc rehearing of Deflategate ruling
Tom Brady. Everett Collection / Shutterstock.com
When quarterback Tom Brady of the New England Patriots recently added superstar appellate lawyer Ted Olson to his team, it appeared that he might be anticipating a U.S. Supreme Court appeal of his four-game suspension imposed over the so-called Deflategate incident last year.
But, at least initially, Brady and the National Football League Players Association are going to seek en banc review by a federal appeals court of the penalty imposed on Brady over claimed underinflation of footballs during the American Football Conference championship game in 2015. Although Brady, who has maintained his innocence, wasn’t directly accused in an investigatory report, the NFL said Brady probably knew about the underinflation.
Olson, a former U.S. solicitor general, told ABC News on Monday that he planned to make a filing seeking an en banc hearing by the New York-based 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals later in the day.
And the players union told Fox News it intends to do the same.
“The facts here are so drastic and so apparent that the court should rehear it,” Olson said.
He said NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell should have imposed punishment according with a schedule of fines for equipment issues that is required by a collective bargaining agreement with the players’ union, according to ABC News, the Boston Globe (sub. req.) and the New York Times (reg. req.).
Olson also said that Goodell exceeded his authority as an arbitrator by changing the basis for discipline of Brady.
Related coverage:
ABAJournal.com: “NFL player Tom Brady adds superstar lawyer Ted Olson to his team to fight suspension”
