Deflategate: Tom Brady Says He Will Drop Appeal

Image Credit: Andrew Campbell/Wikimedia

By Dan Libon and Alex Newman

Foxborough, MA – 544 days later, Deflategate is likely over.

Two days after Tom Brady's appeal for a new hearing in the Deflategate case was rejected by the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, the Patriots quarterback announced he would not pursue further legal action.

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Brady wrote on Facebook Friday that he is moving on, bringing an end to his year-and-a-half long battle with the NFL.

In January of 2015, Brady and the Patriots were accused of using underinflated footballs during the AFC Championship game against the Indianapolis Colts. An investigation into the matter known as the Wells Report determined that Brady was "more likely than not" aware that team equipment employees were deflating footballs below the legal limit of 12.5 psi.

Brady received a four-game suspension for his alleged role and the Patriots were fined $1 million and stripped of two draft picks.

In September 2015, the suspension was reversed by Judge Richard Berman, with the NFL appealing the decision in the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The suspension was reinstated in April, and a rehearing was denied this week.

Brady's last option was a long shot, an appeal to the Supreme Court and a request for a stay on the suspension. While Brady is no longer fighting, the NFL Players' Association may continue the legal process. In a statement, the union said "We will continue to review all our options and we reserve our right to petition for cert to the Supreme Court."

The NFLPA has 90 days from the day of the ruling to appeal to the country's highest court.

In a statement, Patriots owner Robert Kraft stood by the quarterback.

"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," he said.

The full statement can be read here.

Brady will be suspended for the first four games of the NFL regular season.