Brady's Suspension Should Concern All NFL Fans

Photo: ESPN

July 15, 2016
Peter Solari Follow @4PeteSakeNY
 

New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady announced that he will not be appealing his four game suspension to the United States Supreme Court on Friday, thus bringing the long Deflategate saga to an end. 

Brady was originally suspended for his role in the Patriots' use of deflated footballs in the 2014 AFC Championship Game against the Indianapolis Colts. The NFL's investigation determined that Brady was "more than likely" to have had knowledge of the deflated balls, but lacked any definitive proof. That didn't stop Commissioner Roger Goodell from suspending Brady for the first four games of the 2015 season anyway. A federal judge later overturned Brady's suspension and he appeared in all of the Patriots' games last season.

Feeling embarrassed, the power-hungry Goodell and the NFL appealed the judge's decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit, and got a favorable ruling last Spring. Brady and the NFL Players Association petitioned the court to re-open the case, but that request was denied on  Wednesday, upholding Brady's suspension. 

That left Brady with the option of appealing the U.S. Supreme Court, but after 18 months of exhaustive legal battles, the quarterback walked away from the legal process on Friday. Brady will miss the first quarter of New England's season, including games against Arizona, Houston, and division rivals Miami and Buffalo. Backup quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo is currently slated to start in Brady's absence. Read Brady's full statement, which was posted to his Facebook page, below, courtesy of ESPN:

Patriots owner Robert Kraft also issued a statement Friday, ripping the league and their investigation, and standing behind the quarterback who has led his organization to four Super Bowl championships since the 2000 season, saying:

"While I was disappointed with the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals' decision not to rehear Tom Brady's case, I am most frustrated that Tom was denied his right to a fair and impartial process. The league's investigation into a football pressure matter was flawed and biased from the start, and has been discredited nearly unanimously by accredited academics and scientists. The penalty imposed by the NFL was unprecedented, unjust and unreasonable, especially given that no empirical or direct evidence of any kind showed Tom did anything to violate League rules prior to, during or after the 2015 AFC Championship Game. What Tom has had to endure throughout this 18-month ordeal has been, in my opinion, as far removed from due process as you could ever expect in this country."

The players union has also been critical of the league and their disciplinary process. After their appeal was denied Wednesday, the Players association released a statement that read:

"We are disappointed with the decision denying a rehearing, as there were clear violations of our collective bargaining agreement by the NFL and Commissioner Roger Goodell. Despite today's result, the track record of this League office when it comes to matters of player discipline is bad for our business and bad for our game. We have a broken system that must be fixed."

The NFLPA's statement is a bit concerning, as it appears to indicate that another labor dispute could be looming when the collective bargaining agreement, signed in 2011, expires in 2020. After all, the court's decision doesn't conclude that Goodall's actions have been just, only that they're allowed under the current agreement. The statement calls for the system to be "fixed," meaning a dispute between the owners and players is almost certainly brewing. For fans, however, this whole situation should worry them for reasons beyond the CBA.

The Patriots' success over the last decade + hasn't made them the most popular team outside of New England, and a lot of fans around the league are happy that the league is sticking it to them, but personal feelings need to be put aside here, because any team, coach, and player be the commissioner's next target.

 If Goodell has the unilateral authority to come down this hard on Brady, coach Bill Belichick, and the Patriots, without any semblance of due process, then he has the same power to do it to Eli Manning, Ben McAdoo, and the New York, or any other player, coach, or team in the league, too. Will fans remain apathetic if Goodell goes after the Pittsburgh Steelers or Green Bay Packers next?

Under Goodell, the NFL and football are more popular than ever, but the commissioner also has a world's premier football association into the "No Fun League." With that, along with Goodell's authoritarian appetite, one can't help but wonder how much longer football will resemble the game we all love, and that should have fans across the country concerned.