But he also said there was no “smoking gun” showing Brady had direct knowledge that the balls were deflated for the first half of the Patriots’ 45-7 defeat of the Indianapolis Colts in the January 18 AFC championship.
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“I’m getting bad criticism that I made him look like Lurch”, Rosenberg told The New York Times on Wednesday. He says similar cases are usually resolved by a judge if they are not settled.
One particular sticking point of the case could be the cell phone that Brady destroyed, which the NFL claims contained potentially vital evidence of his connection with the Pats’ personnel who allegedly did the deflating. And 88 percent said that the NFL’s commissioner shouldn’t be the sole arbiter of discipline for the league.
The league sued the union to confirm Goodell’s decision and the union countersued to reverse it.
He also referred a “question in my mind” as to the independence of NFL investigator Ted Wells, whose report was used by the league as a basis to justify the suspension, which NFL commissioner Roger Goodell upheld on July 28.
Goodell walked out of a Manhattan courthouse about 10 minutes after Brady exited, with some spectators shouting “cheater, cheater” toward the Super Bowl MVP. Judge Richard Berman cautioned those in attendance not to read anything into his questions, which is important context.
Tom Brady smiled as he left court on Wednesday.
If there is no settlement, the two sides will be back in front of Judge Berman next Wednesday.
If Brady is forced to the sidelines, Jimmy Garoppolo, a second-year player, will likely start at quarterback.
Nash pointed to what he described as a mountain of circumstantial evidence.
The league asked the judge to declare that it followed its players’ contract properly when it punished Brady after Goodell concluded he “knew about, approved of, consented to, and provided inducements and rewards” to support a scheme in which a Patriots’ employee deflated balls on game day.
Brady is arguing against a four-game suspension leveled at him for the role he is alleged to have played in the scandal.
For the record, Rosenberg told The Times she doesn’t follow the NFL. “You might say [Brady] got no better advantage from the underinflation”, he said.
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But something happened to that smile, and Brady’s chiseled-good looks, in courtroom sketches of the New England Patriots superstar.
