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| FILE - In this Feb. 1, 2015, file photo, New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (12) throws a pass during the first half of the NFL Super Bowl XLIX football game against the Seattle Seahawks in Glendale, Ariz. |
NEW YORK (AP)
-- The commissioner pointed to concealed evidence. The team described
it as a folly. And the agent added sham to the lexicon of "Deflategate."
Then the players' union said it would take it all to court.
Tom
Brady's four-game suspension for his role in using underinflated
footballs during the AFC championship game was upheld Tuesday by NFL
Commissioner Roger Goodell.
Goodell said the
New England quarterback told an assistant to destroy Brady's cellphone
on or just before March 6. Brady met with independent investigator Ted
Wells on that day.
"He did so even though he
was aware that the investigators had requested access to text messages
and other electronic information that had been stored on that phone,"
Goodell said in his decision.
"During the four
months that the cellphone was in use, Brady had exchanged nearly 10,000
text messages, none of which can now be retrieved from that device."
Calling
the appeal process "a sham," Brady's agent, Don Yee, said Goodell
"failed to ensure a fair process" in upholding the quarterback's
four-game suspension.
The Patriots used the
words "folly" and "incomprehensible" in their statement, then said they
"unequivocally believe in and support Tom Brady."
Brady
acknowledged in his testimony he was aware of investigators' request
for information from the cellphone before he had it destroyed, the
appeal decision said.
After releasing the
report in May, Wells said he had told Brady and Yee he did not need to
see his phone and would have accepted a list of communications.
Wells' investigation had no subpoena power and Brady was under no legal obligation to cooperate.
The
NFL had some messages from Brady sent to an equipment manager's phone,
but investigators wanted to see if Brady's cellphone had other messages
related to footballs.
The four-time Super
Bowl-winning quarterback was suspended by NFL executive Troy Vincent in
May following the Wells report. The Patriots were fined $1 million and
docked a pair of draft picks. The team didn't appeal its penalty, but
Brady appealed.
The NFL Players Association said in a statement on Tuesday that it would appeal in court.
"The
NFL resorted to a nebulous standard of `general awareness' to predicate
a legally unjustified punishment," the union said, adding, "the NFL
violated the plain meaning of the collective bargaining agreement."
Moments
after announcing Goodell's decision, the league filed action in U.S.
District Court in New York against the union, saying the NFL
commissioner has the right under the labor agreement to hand out such
discipline "for conduct that he determines is detrimental to the
integrity of, or public confidence in, the game of professional
football."
Goodell mentioned exactly that in the conclusion of his appeal decision.
"Especially
in light of the new evidence introduced at the hearing - evidence
demonstrating that he arranged for the destruction of potentially
relevant evidence that had been specifically requested by the
investigators - my findings and conclusions have not changed in a manner
that would benefit Mr. Brady," Goodell said.
But
Yee argued that Brady's side was given only four hours to present a
defense, and when he asked for documents from Wells, that request was
rejected on the basis of privilege.
"We
therefore had no idea as to what Wells found from other witnesses, nor
did we know what those other witnesses said," Yee said.
Yee adds the electronic data presented in Brady's defense was ignored during the appeal hearing.
Brady
and the Patriots have denied knowingly using deflated footballs in the
AFC title game win over Indianapolis. The Patriots went on to beat
Seattle in the Super Bowl and Brady was the MVP. In its statement, the
team said "We cannot comprehend the league's position in this matter."
The
NFL announced in late January that Wells would head an investigation
into New England's use of underinflated balls against the Colts. More
than three months later, the 243-page Wells report was issued, saying it
was "more probable than not" that Brady was "at least generally aware"
that footballs he used were
improperly deflated by team personnel.
Brady
appealed and the union asked Goodell to recuse himself from hearing the
appeal because he could not be impartial and might be called as a
witness. But Goodell said it was his responsibility to oversee the
hearing to protect the integrity of the league.
Scientific
arguments were a major part of Brady's defense. Brady's lawyers tried
to shoot down the findings of an independent firm hired to provide
scientific analysis of the air pressure inside the footballs used by the
Patriots and Colts.
Brady, who turns 38 on
Aug. 3, took nearly every snap last season. But he'll miss the first
four games this season unless the case goes to court. Jimmy Garoppolo, a
second-round pick in 2014, would replace Brady, the two-time NFL MVP
and three-time Super Bowl MVP.
New England
hosts Pittsburgh on Sept. 10 to open the regular season. It then goes to
Buffalo, hosts Jacksonville, has a bye, and is at Dallas in the last
game of Brady's suspension. Brady would return against, yes, the Colts
on Oct. 18 in Indianapolis.
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