NFL Upholds Suspension Of Tom Brady Despite Rumors Of A Lessened Sentence

The NFL is upholding the suspension of Tom Brady despite rumors of a lessened sentence. Before recent evidence came to light, it looked like the commissioner might reduce the sentence from a 4-game suspension to a 2-game suspension. However, after Tom Brady deliberately destroyed his phone, the commission had no intentions of changing its decision.

The phone was destroyed in early March during the Deflategate investigations, but that evidence was not public knowledge until commissioner Robert Goodell released his statement Tuesday, releasing the final decision to suspend Tom Brady for four games. The official report said the following:

“The most significant information that emerged in connection with the appeal was evidence that on or about March 6, 2015 – the very day that he was interviewed by… [the] investigative team – Mr. Brady instructed his assistant to destroy the cellphone that he had been using since early November 2014, a period that included the AFC Championship Game and the initial weeks of the subsequent investigation.”

Goodell goes on to explain that despite repeated requests from the investigative team, Brady never relinquished the phone, displaying an utter disregard for cooperation.

When the NFL found out about the destroyed phone in mid-June, they interrogated him on the matter. His response was that it’s his custom practice to destroy every cell phone and SIM card when he gets a new phone.

However, no one is fooled. It’s pretty clear what Brady’s intentions were for this act. According to Goodell:

“[Brady] went beyond a mere failure to cooperate in the investigation and supported a finding that he had sought to hide evidence of his own participation in the scheme.”

When Brady’s team of attorneys realized that his lack of cooperation and blatant attempt to hide evidence was not going to hold up, they pleaded with the NFL to keep the information from going public in an attempt to preserve Brady’s image. Naturally, the NFL didn’t agree.

Brady’s agent and team of attorneys disagree with the punishment. Brady’s agent, Don Yee, released the following statement:

“The Commissioner’s decision is deeply disappointing, but not surprising because the appeal process was thoroughly lacking in procedural fairness. Most importantly, neither Tom nor the Patriots did anything wrong. And the NFL has no evidence that anything inappropriate occurred. The appeal process was a sham, resulting in the Commissioner rubber-stamping his own decision.”

The team also seems to believe that the NFL’s decision to uphold the suspension was unwarranted. A spokesman released the following statement:

“We cannot comprehend the league’s position in this matter. Most would agree that the penalties levied originally were excessive and unprecedented, especially in light of the fact that the league has no hard evidence of wrongdoing. We continue to unequivocally believe in and support Tom Brady. We also believe that the laws of science continue to underscore the folly of this entire ordeal. Given all of this, it is incomprehensible as to why the league is attempting to destroy the reputation of one of its greatest players and representatives.”

But not everyone agrees that the punishment was too much. Many believe that the punishment was fully justified and some believe that it wasn’t heavy enough.

Yee also shared that he believed the punishment would create a new precedent for NFL punishments from now on, and it’s going to set the stage for other disciplinary actions against NFL players.

What do you think of the NFL’s decision to uphold the suspension of Tom Brady despite rumors of a lessened sentence?

[Image via Business Insider]