Tom Brady Deflategate appeal could begin week of Super Bowl

By the time Super Bowl 50 rolls around, it will have been more than a year since the term “Deflategate” was coined. Yet, somehow, we could still be talking about Tom Brady and his involvement in the New England Patriots’ alleged ball tampering scheme the week of the big game.

A federal appeals court on Tuesday granted a request from the NFL and NFL Players Association to expedite the Second Circuit appeal of U.S. District Court Judge Richard M. Berman’s decision to vacate Brady’s four-game suspension. The appeal could begin as early as the week of Feb. 1, 2016 with oral arguments.

What does this mean? For starters, it guarantees that Brady will not end up having to serve a suspension at any point during the 2015 season, despite what one recent report wanted us to believe. However, the timing also means that we could be talking about more Deflategate court proceedings in the days leading up to the Super Bowl — not that the topic wouldn’t have come up anyway.

Given how the Patriots have played through the first three weeks of the season and the way the rest of the AFC looks, Brady could wind up playing in his seventh Super Bowl in February. If that does happen, he’s probably not escaping the Deflategate discussion.