| Advertisement |
New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft reiterated his support for quarterback Tom Brady, whose four-game suspension was reinstated by a federals appeals court this week. Kraft, speaking at a draft party at the Optum Lounge at Gillette Stadium on Friday night, said the team will continue to have Brady's back.
Advertisement
"Number one, there is no finer ambassador for the game of football, and the New England Patriots, than Tom Brady," Kraft said. "We always have had, and will continue to have, Tom's back. Especially when he's being treated unfairly. He knows that. All the decisions that this organization and I personally have made throughout this ordeal have been focused on putting Tom in the best possible position for success.
"Number two, I have been in constant communication with Tom over the past 16 months and we've had numerous conversations this past week. We are both on the same page and he knows exactly where my allegiances, and the total team's (allegiances) are, relative to the extremely unfair discipline that he has been subjected to.
"I share in our fans' anger and frustration with the penalties the league has levied, and the entire process and how it was conducted. But please trust that I am always trying to do what I believe is best for this franchise, and pledge that I will always continue to do that."
Based on a 2-1 vote of a three-judge federal panel, the appeals court on Monday reversed a federal judge's ruling from September, siding with the NFL commissioner Roger Goodell in a battle with the players union over Deflategate.
Goodell has given no indication whether he would be willing to negotiate a settlement with Brady.
"We had a lot of discussions last summer," Goodell said Friday on ESPN Radio. "There were a lot of offers back and forth about what to do to settle the issue. They chose to pursue the issue and we chose to move forward and we are where we are."
Brady has 14 days to file an appeal after the ruling. If an appeal is filed, the suspension is stayed. If the appeals court then chooses not to hear the appeal, the suspension would stand. If the appeals court chooses to hear an appeal to the decision made by the three-judge panel, the appeal would be heard by the entire 13-judge court.
The NFL originally handed Brady a four-game suspension for his alleged involvement in the deflation of footballs before the AFC Championship Game against the Indianapolis Colts on Jan. 18, 2015.
In September, district judge Richard M. Berman vacated the suspension and Brady was able to play throughout the 2015 season.
Kraft did not appeal the Patriots' $1 million fine and the loss of a first-round pick in the 2016 draft and a fourth-rounder in 2017 as part of the penalties.
Brady is now slated to miss games against the Arizona Cardinals (Sept. 11), Miami Dolphins (Sept. 18), Houston Texans (Sept. 22) and Buffalo Bills (Oct. 2). He would be eligible to make his regular-season debut in Week 5 against the Cleveland Browns on Oct. 9.
