AFC East Notes: Gronk, Brady, Dolphins, Clay
Earlier this summer, an excerpt from Rob Gronkowski‘s autobiography revealed that the Patriots tight end claims he hasn’t spent a dime of his NFL salary, living off of endorsement money instead. As of July 30, Gronkowski has a little more NFL money to save up — according to Field Yates of ESPN.com, the Pats reworked their star tight end’s contract, converting $4MM of his $10MM end-of-year option bonus to a signing bonus. The option, which is due before the end of the league year, is now worth $6MM, and New England appears more likely than ever to exercise it.
Jason Fitzgerald of Over the Cap breaks down the unusual cap ramifications of the move, suggesting that the restructure should increase Gronkowski’s 2015 cap hit by $2MM before reducing his 2016 charge by $2MM. After that, the cap numbers for the rest of Gronkowski’s contract should remain the same.
Here’s more from around the AFC East:
- NFLPA executive George Atallah confirmed today (via Twitter) that Tom Brady and union reps will attend a conference in New York on August 12 to meet with the NFL and U.S. District Judge Richard M. Berman. Roger Goodell will also attend the hearing in person, tweets Ed Werder of ESPN.com. Meanwhile, Ben Volin of the Boston Globe notes (via Twitter) that NFLPA and NFL attorneys had a telephone conference yesterday with Mag. Judge James C. Francis regarding the Patriots quarterback’s case.
- Appearing on the Jose Rose Show on 560 WQAM in Miami, Dolphins VP of football operations Mike Tannenbaum didn’t rule out pursuing free agent guard Evan Mathis, as Andrew Abramson of the Palm Beach Post details. The Dolphins’ interest in Mathis has been downplayed recently, but I imagine they’d be very interested if one of their current guards struggles or suffers an injury.
- Having brought in Rex Ryan, LeSean McCoy, Percy Harvin, and Richie Incognito over the offseason, the Bills made plenty of newsworthy moves. However, no player received more guaranteed money from the team this year than tight end Charles Clay. Tyler Dunne of The Buffalo News examines how Clay is fitting in so far in Buffalo.
East Notes: Pats, Jets, Mathis, Goldson
As our first weekend of 2015 training camp action is upon us, let’s look at some of the matters emerging from the Eastern divisions.
- Adding to last night’s report of an August 12 conference involving Tom Brady and Roger Goodell, Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio notes the transcript from Brady’s June appeal hearing with Goodell will become available if the case isn’t settled. Florio views Judge Richard M. Berman’s action of getting directly involved in trying to settle this case quickly one of the more active attempts by a judge to do so in his extensive law history. The PFT scribe notes that Berman probably already knows which way he’ll rule should both sides indeed join him for this summit as opposed to settling this matter beforehand.
- The Patriots are not observing the latest Deflategate-related directive to tone it down, as Florio notes, and instead have launched a website aimed at uncovering what they believe is misinformation in the Ted Wells report. The first post on a site titled WellsReportcontext.com shows a chain of emails between Patriots general counsel Robyn Glaser and NFL general counsel Jeff Pash. While this means more Deflategate coverage more than six months after the story surfaced, it looks to now at least have created a job for a Patriots IT staffer.
- Evan Mathis‘ agent, Drew Rosenhaus, has engaged in preliminary talks with the Jets, reports Rich Cimini of ESPN.com (Twitter link) after speaking with Jets GM Mike Maccagnan. “We’ve had talks with Evan’s agent,” Maccagnan said, according to Justin Tasch of the New York Daily News. “They’re kind of getting a feel for where – they have a range for where they want to be. The other thing with a lot of teams honestly at this point in time, you almost want to kind of see what you have first to a certain degree.” The former All-Pro would certainly be an upgrade over Willie Colon, who’s battled a knee ailment all offseason before coming off the PUP list Saturday. Tasch, however, adds Nothing is imminent, with Mathis — who was slated to make $5.5MM with the Eagles this season before his release — searches for significant money. Gang Green has $5.5MM in cap room, per OverTheCap.
- Shortly after Rod Graves vacated his spot in the Jets’ front office to take a job with the league office, the Jets will replace him as director of football administration with Jacqueline Davidson, according to Randy Lange of NewYorkJets.com. Joining Cardinals assistant Jen Welter, Raiders play-by-play voice Beth Mowins and newly appointed official Sarah Thomas as one of the highest-ranking women in the league, Davidson already serves as the Jets’ lead negotiator in player contracts and played a key role in the Jets’ reacquiring of Darrelle Revis.
- Washington safety Dashon Goldson, as part of the renegotiated contract upon his trade from the Bucs, received a $2.3MM roster bonus today, per ESPN.com’s Field Yates (on Twitter).
Latest On DeflateGate
U.S. District Judge Richard M. Berman, who will decide whether to uphold the NFL’s four-game suspension of Tom Brady, has scheduled an Aug. 12 conference that will include both Brady and commissioner Roger Goodell, the Boston Globe’s Ben Volin tweeted. If the dispute isn’t settled then, the parties will meet again Aug. 19 for oral arguments, according to Gabe Feldman of the sports law program at Tulane University (Twitter link). Feldman tweeted that while Berman’s ruling will be subject to appeal, the process is moving extremely quickly and a decision will be made well before the season starts.
For his part, Brady filed his counterclaim Friday in the Southern District of New York, per Volin (via Twitter) – who gleaned from Brady’s lawsuit that he wanted his June 23 appeal to be done under oath (Twitter link).
Meanwhile, two owners told ESPN’s Jim Trotter that they’re unhappy with both the amount of money being spent on Brady’s case and the treatment of Brady, Trotter tweeted. The owners also told Trotter that a “molehill has been made into a mountain,” and said it never should’ve gotten to this point (Twitter link). They reiterated Patriots owner Robert Kraft’s point that lawyers are too involved in the process.
The reason the Brady case has gotten so ugly, according to Bleacher Report’s Jason Cole (video link), stems from discord between the league and the NFLPA dating back to the fight over the 2011 collective bargaining agreement – a fight the owners ultimately won. Given that outcome, NFLPA head DeMaurice Smith has to “fight tool and nail on every issue possible,” Cole said. Further, per Cole, owners are beginning to wonder if taking some power from the commissioner and switching to an independent appeal process would be better for disciplinary matters.
Brady Refused NFL’s Settlement Deal
Before Roger Goodell upheld Tom Brady’s suspension, he offered to reduce the quarterback’s suspension in exchange for an admission of guilt, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk writes. It is believed that the offer would have dropped the QB’s suspension to at least two games. If Brady was “sufficiently persuasive and profuse in his acceptance of guilt,” the suspension could have been reduced to one game. Ultimately, Brady refused and the suspension remains at four games, pending possible legal intervention.
A with knowledge of the situation told Florio the NFL was willing to drop the suspension by “at least 50 percent” if Brady was willing to meet three requirements:
- admitting to having knowledge of whatever John Jastremski and Jim McNally were doing to the footballs
- admitting to failing to cooperate with the Ted Wells investigation
- apologize
Brady, for unknown reasons, was unwilling to acquiesce to those demands. The Patriots quarterback likely faces an uphill battle in court after it was revealed that he destroyed his cell phone when asked to turn that information over.
East Notes: Brady, Philbin, Eagles, Beason
Tom Brady and the NFL Players Assocation are entitled to an independent decision on Brady’s appeal, so recent reports suggesting NFL team owners are trying to influence Roger Goodell’s ruling make it even more likely that the NFLPA will eventually take the league to court, writes Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk.
As Florio obseves, if a truly independent arbitrator were handling Brady’s appeal, it would be highly irregular for a team owner to lobby that arbitrator one way or the other. The fact that owners are apparently lobbying Goodell as he contemplates his decision could become a central issue in the looming litigation.
Here’s more from around the NFL’s two East divisions:
- Dolphins head coach Joe Philbin wants to win this year, but it’s “more for everybody else’s sake” than for his own job security, he tells Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald. “For everybody, I’d like us to reap the rewards of our labor. It’s time for all of us,” Philbin said. “But I haven’t really thought about playoff or bust for me.”
- It’s easy to realize that you have to fix a 4-12 team, but Chip Kelly‘s decision to revamp a 10-6 Eagles squad this offseason wasn’t quite so simple, as Reuben Frank of CSNPhilly.com writes.
- Giants linebacker Jon Beason, who spent most of the 2014 season on injured reserve, talks to Steve Serby of the New York Post about his recovery from last year’s toe and foot injuries, Jason Pierre-Paul‘s status, and the impact that free agent signee Shane Vereen will have for the Giants, among other topics.
Latest On Tom Brady’s Appeal
A month ago today, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell served as the arbitrator for Tom Brady‘s appeal hearing, at which point the Patriots quarterback and the NFLPA made a case for why Brady’s four-game suspension should be rescinded. With no official timeline in place for a decision, it’s no surprise that Goodell has yet to make an announcement — it took arbitrator Harold Henderson more than six weeks to announce a ruling on Greg Hardy‘s appeal.
While we wait to see if Brady’s penalty is upheld, reduced, or wiped away entirely, let’s round up the latest updates on the case….
- Settlement discussions for Brady have occurred between the NFL and the Players Association, a source tells Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. However, no progress has been made between the two sides, and it would be unexpected if they found common ground and worked something out.
- According to that same source, Goodell is being pushed by “a small handful of influential owners” to uphold Brady’s four-game suspension, writes Florio.
- However, there’s some concern that, if Goodell were to stand firm on Brady’s ban, the penalty would eventually be overturned by a federal court. According to Florio, attorney Gregg Levy, who participated in the appeal as a legal consultant to Goodell, has been warning the commissioner that it will be hard to make a suspension stick in court.
- A source tells Dan Graziano of ESPN.com that the NFLPA made a settlement offer to the league last week, but that proposal was met with “silence” by the NFL. According to Graziano, it is believed that Brady will continue to fight any suspension, even a reduced penalty, but would consider accepting a fine.
- Yesterday, NFLA president Eric Winston indicated that the union is prepared to take the next step on behalf of Brady if he’s not exonerated.
Goodell: No Timeline For Brady Decision
It has been nearly a month since Tom Brady‘s appeal hearing concluded, and the quarterback’s camp reportedly expects Roger Goodell to announce a decision this week. However, the commissioner himself, who served as the arbitrator for Brady’s appeal, tells Mark Kaboly of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review that there’s no strict timeline for a ruling.
“We are focused on it,” Goodell said. “We are obviously being very thorough and want to make sure we consider all aspects of his appeal. We will make a decision as quickly as possible.”
As we continue to wait for a formal announcement from Goodell, here a couple more items related to Brady’s appeal and DeflateGate:
- While it hasn’t been viewed as a probable outcome, a negotiated settlement remains a possibility for Brady, in theory, writes Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. Of course, any compromise would likely fall somewhere in between the maximum punishment and a full exoneration, and Brady continues to seek the latter.
- Appearing on FOX Sports Radio, Saints head coach Sean Payton was asked about similarities between the Patriots’ DeflateGate situation and his own team’s bounty-related saga. As Evan Woodbery of The Times-Picayune writes, Payton pointed out that he was in a much different situation than Brady, since he didn’t have the NFL Players Association to back him.
Patriots Rumors: Brady, Edelman, O-Line
With Roger Goodell‘s grade of Tom Brady‘s appeal expected soon, the Boston Globe’s Ben Volin examines who the future Hall of Fame quarterback can trust, considering the many agendas those around him have.
Brady’s intentions to exonerate himself play in the favor of an NFLPA motivated on diminishing Goodell’s power and establishing a new avenue through the appeals process. While it also is the recommended course of action of the association’s lawyers, who wouldn’t lose much if the quarterback’s suspension stands after a lengthy effort, per Volin. Should Deflategate progress at it looks like it will, the NFLPA’s attorneys will continue to clean up in legal fees to continue what’s been a banner stretch for such endeavors.
Volin also notes Bill Belichick would probably prefer Brady give up his fight should Goodell slash his suspension in half in an effort to avoid having key Jimmy Garoppolo cameos down the stretch. Robert Kraft‘s itinerary in this case, in Volin’s view, is one that Brady should greet with skepticism, with the owner preferring to do whatever he can to avoid the Patriots, more so than Brady, being tarnished in Deflategate’s aftermath.
The Globe’s top Patriots scribe notes that Kraft and Goodell were probably haggling on this suspension during an informal summit in Sun Valley, Idaho, recently, and that Kraft could still have the league’s best interests at heart should he advise Brady to accept a reduced suspension rather than make this battle more contentious.
Here are some other Patriots items as the days dwindle until training camps open.
- As Brady opts for a reclusive summer, his most frequent target helped explain the 16-year veteran’s mindset for those not privy to his dialogue post-Deflategate. “He’s fired up — we’ll say that. You don’t want a mad Tom Brady, and he’s a little ticked off,” Julian Edelman told Joe McDonald of ESPN.com. The 29-year-old wideout’s been Brady’s teammate for six seasons and has 197 catches the past two years.
- After Dan Connolly‘s retirement, Volin looks at who the Patriots will plug in at left guard this season, with a projection of rookie Tre Jackson out of Florida State becoming New England’s newest line cog. Volin views the college teammate of center Bryan Stork as a more refined prospect than rookie comrade Shaq Mason. A fourth-rounder, Jackson may even be an upgrade over Connolly, whose work Pro Football Focus detested, critically speaking, last season in rating the veteran as the Patriots’ worst offensive lineman (subscription required) for his efforts at left guard and center, respectively.
Goodell: Brady Decision As Soon As Next Week
10:37am: Gregg Rosenthal of NFL.com notes (via Twitter) that Goodell actually said the decision on Brady will “hopefully” happen soon. Asked if it could happen next week, Goodell replied, “I don’t know. Could be.” That sort of bet-hedging, non-definitive answer sounds more like the commissioner, and leaves the door open for the process to drag on a little longer.
10:27am: Commissioner Roger Goodell, who also acted as the arbitrator in Tom Brady‘s appeal hearing last month, said today that he expects to announce a decision on the case soon, perhaps as early as next week, according to Julia Boorstin of CNBC (Twitter link).
The appeal hearing for Brady’s four-game suspension took place on Tuesday, June 23, meaning we’ve waited more than two weeks so far for a ruling. Of course, the hearing for Greg Hardy‘s appeal of his 10-game suspension happened six weeks ago, and arbitrator Harold Henderson has yet to announce a decision in that case, so it would’ve been a surprise if Brady’s case had been wrapped up by now.
The NFL’s Collective Bargaining Agreement calls for the arbitrator for an appeal to make his decision “as soon as practicable,” which leaves some wiggle room to drag out the process. Still, I imagine the league isn’t eager to continue to extend a DeflateGate saga that has dominated headlines this offseason, so Goodell figures to announce his decision before training camps get underway.
Of course, the commissioner’s ruling won’t necessarily mean that the issue can be laid to rest. Brady and the NFLPA will have the opportunity to file suit against the league if they’re not happy with the decision, challenging Goodell’s role in the process and the NFL’s decision to suspend Brady without any hard evidence of his involvement in deflating footballs. Patriots owner Robert Kraft opted not fight a legal battle against the league over New England’s DeflateGate penalties, but there’s no indication that Brady will go that same route.
Latest On Tom Brady’s Appeal
As I detailed this morning, Tom Brady‘s appeal hearing finally got underway today, with Roger Goodell acting as arbitrator while Brady and the NFLPA make the case for the quarterback’s suspension to be reduced or removed. A handful of updates have trickled out in the hours since then, so let’s check in on the latest….
- After ten hours, Brady hearing has drawn to a close, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. No further hearings are scheduled.
- Brady’s appeal is ongoing and Ben Volin of The Boston Globe (on Twitter) guesses that both sides want to wrap things up today rather than have it drag into Thursday.
- The NFLPA called upon Troy Vincent, Ted Wells, and a scientific expert as witnesses, Tom Pelissero of USA Today Sports tweets.
- Schefter clarifies his earlier report (outlined below), noting that a June 15 letter from Levy referenced a four-hour time limit for Brady’s defense team. However, in a June 22 letter, Levy added that if “good cause” was shown, he’d grant up to one additional hour for the defense. In a tweet, Schefter provides a copy of that June 15 letter.
- According to Ben Volin of the Boston Globe (via Twitter), the NFL will get about two hours to give its own testimony, with today’s proceedings expected to end around 5:30pm eastern time.
Earlier updates:
- Brady is testifying under oath during today’s session, a source tells Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link). That’s the sort of thing you generally hear in actual court cases, but as former Packers executive Andrew Brandt notes (via Twitter), Goodell – as the arbitrator – sets the rules for the hearing, and Ray Rice‘s appeal also featured sworn testimony.
- Patriots owner Robert Kraft was unable to testify on behalf of Brady over the phone, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. Instead, per Schefter (Twitter link), Kraft wrote an affidavit to be introduced during the appeal, supporting Brady’s character.
- According to Schefter (via Twitter), Brady’s defense team was given four hours today to present its case, and the hearing is expected to wrap up today rather than continuing on Thursday. NFL spokesman Greg Aiello countered Schefter’s report, tweeting that there’s no strict four-hour time limit for Brady’s team, and their presentation is expected to go longer than that.
- Alongside Goodell, CBA expert and outside counsel Gregg Levy is heavily involved in overseeing Brady’s hearing, tweets Rapoport.