Tom Brady has decided to accept his four-game suspension and move on.
In a Facebook post Friday morning, Brady announced that he will give up his legal battle against the NFL.
“I’m very grateful for the overwhelming support I’ve received from Mr. Kraft, the Kraft family, coach Belichick, my coaches and teammates, the NFLPA, my agents, my loving family and most of all, our fans,” the three-time Super Bowl MVP wrote. “It has been a challenging 18 months and I have made the difficult decision to no longer proceed with the legal process. I’m going to work hard to be the best player I can be for the New England Patriots and I look forward to having the opportunity to return to the field this fall.”
The only option Brady had left after the Second U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals denied his request for a rehearing was to attempt to take the case to the Supreme Court. The odds of the Supreme Court hearing it would have been incredibly slim.
While some people will view Brady waving the white flag as an admission of guilt, that is hardly the case. He simply doesn’t have much chance of having the suspension overturned again, and dragging it out more could end up resulting in a four-game suspension later in the season. This way, the Patriots will turn to Jimmy Garoppolo for the first four games of the season and get Brady back on the field for Week 5 against the Browns.
It’s hard to believe Deflategate and all the crazy side stories — like the one involving Brady’s cell phone — started more than a year ago. The case eventually became a labor dispute between the NFL and the players. The NFL won.
