Tom Brady won't appeal Deflategate suspension; will the players association seek cert?
New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady has announced he will drop appeals of his four-game Deflategate suspension.
Brady said in a Facebook post that he will “no longer proceed with the legal process,” report the Associated Press, the Washington Post, NFL.com, USA Today and the New York Times.
Brady and the National Football League Players Association lost their bid on Wednesday for en banc review with the New York-based 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
The NFLPA said in a statement that it won’t seek a stay of the four-game suspension “after careful consideration and discussion with Tom Brady.” However, the association said it “will continue to review all of our options and we reserve our rights to petition for cert to the Supreme Court.”
The 2nd Circuit’s refusal to grant en banc review left in place a 2nd Circuit panel decision reinstating Brady’s suspension. The April decision found that a collective bargaining agreement gave the National Football League broad authority to discipline players, and procedural rulings by Commissioner Roger Goodell in the arbitration process did not deprive Brady of fundamental fairness.
Brady has not admitted any wrongdoing. An investigation had concluded he was probably aware that footballs were underinflated during a championship game.
