Tom Brady

AFC East Notes: Brady, Jets, Bills, Bush

July 15th, 2016 at 5:32pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

In response to Patriots quarterback Tom Brady abandoning his Deflategate fight on Friday and accepting his four-game suspension to begin the season, owner Robert Kraft issued a statement blasting the NFL for its handling of the matter. Kraft expressed frustration with the notion that Brady “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.”

Kraft continued: “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.”

Unsurprisingly, Kraft went on to pledge both his and the franchise’s full support to Brady, saying, “This entire process has indelibly taken a toll on our organization, our fans and most importantly, Tom Brady. His reluctant decision to stop pursuing further action and to put this situation behind him is what he feels is best for the team in preparation for this season and is fully supported by me and our entire organization.”

Here’s more from around the AFC East, whose three other teams are likely feeling a little better about their chances in light of the Brady news:

Defensive end Muhammad Wilkerson‘s stunning Friday extension with the Jets could spell trouble for Sheldon Richardson‘s long-term prospects with the club, opines CBS Sports’ Joel Corry, who wonders if the latter will end up on the trading block next year (Twitter link). Richardson, 25, is signed through the 2017 campaign at less than $10MM in combined salary, and he has palatable cap hits of $3.115MM and $8.069MM, respectively.
On the other hand, Albert Breer of TheMMQB (on Twitter) expects Richardson to stay with the Jets through at least his current contract. The Jets would then have an opportunity to decide whether to go forth with Richardson or Wilkerson, who has $37MM in guarantees coming his way through 2017, or even both. Gang Green will also have further time to develop fellow lineman Leonard Williams – its first-rounder last year – during that period, Breer points out.
Thanks to Karlos Williams‘ four-game suspension, Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports (via Twitter) looks for the Bills to pursue free agent running back Reggie Bush. With Williams set to miss a quarter of the season and fellow backup Jonathan Williams dealing with his own off-field issues, the Bills suddenly don’t look nearly as deep in the backfield, though they’re still positioned well with LeSean McCoy, 2015 breakout Mike Gillislee and Dan Herron in the fold. Bush, meanwhile, hasn’t yet found work since tearing his ACL as a member of the 49ers last November.

Deflategate Notes: Wednesday

July 13th, 2016 at 10:44pm CST by Sam Robinson

In case you missed it, Tom Brady‘s chances at again avoiding the four-game suspension for his role in the Patriots’ Deflategate controversy dwindled again on Wednesday, with the Second United States Circuit Court of Appeals denying the quarterback’s request for a rehearing. Here’s a look at the latest coming out of this unrelenting scandal.

Brady and the NFLPA plan to attempt to have this case heard by the Supreme Court under a certiorari petition, but that is being described as a Hail Mary by legal experts, including Jodi Balsam, a former NFL counsel for operations and litigation. “I expect [the Supreme Court] to [have] zero interest in this case,” Balsam told Lorenzo Reyes of USA Today. Although Brady is arguably the NFL’s highest-profile player, the Supreme Court receives between 7,000-10,000 requests each term to hear cases, granting around 80 in that time frame, Reyes writes. Four of the current eight justices must agree to hear the case, one that saw the Second Circuit rule against Brady twice now.
A slim chance exists for Brady to line up at quarterback for the Pats during their first four games this season, and that is for the Supreme Court to grant a stay should it agree to review the case. Before that can occur, however, the Second Circuit must deny one. Raffi Melkonian, a partner at the Houston firm of Wright & Close, told Reyes that should happen fairly quickly since it won’t expect SCOTUS to hear Deflategate-related arguments. Melkonian views this as another long-shot effort.
SCOTUS, though, will almost certainly decide whether or not to grant this stay by Week 1, Lester Munson of ESPN.com writes. The 39-year-old quarterback’s notoriety could benefit him in coaxing the Supreme Court to grant the stay. But that would be a calculated risk with the court possibly deciding not to take the case soon after, thereby finalizing Brady’s suspension but potentially postponing it until later in the 2016 season, Munson writes. As of now, Brady would miss games against the Cardinals, Dolphins, Texans and Bills — the latter three scheduled for Foxborough. The Patriots have contests against the Bengals and Steelers in October, the Seahawks in November and Broncos in December. But Munson categorizes these chances as slim as well, with Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg — who oversees the Second Circuit — likely only granting the stay if she knows the court will take the case. So, it looks like Brady’s suspension will begin in September if his side can’t pull off another escape.
These four games will go a long way toward determining Jimmy Garoppolo‘s status in New England, Doug Kyed of NESN.com tweets. Brady’s backup will enter the third season of a four-year contract, and with Brady likely playing through that deal, there might not be another opportunity for the 24-year-old understudy to prove he can be the long-term answer. A strong September showing could lead to extension talks, Kyed notes, or possible trade discussions if the Patriots believe Brady will be a viable option after he turns 41 in 2018.

Tom Brady Likely To Appeal To Supreme Court

July 13th, 2016 at 10:14am CST by Zachary Links

10:14am: The NFL Players Association has issued the following statement regarding Brady:

“The NFL Players Association is a labor Union that protects the rights of all of its members and pursues any violations of those rights by any means necessary. We are disappointed with the decision denying a rehearing, as there were clear violations of our collective bargaining agreement by the NFL and Commissioner Roger Goodell.

Despite today’s result, the track record of this League office when it comes to matters of player discipline is bad for our business and bad for our game. We have a broken system that must be fixed.

We will review all of our options carefully on behalf of Tom Brady and all NFL players.”

9:25am: Though there is no firm decision, the expectation is that Brady will attempt to take his case to the Supreme Court, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Brady will have 90 days to file an appeal with the SCOTUS.

8:45am: The Second United States Circuit Court of Appeals has denied Tom Brady‘s request for a rehearing, Daniel Kaplan of SBJ tweets. With that, it appears that his four-game suspension will stick. Brady’s only recourse now would now be to bring his case before the Supreme Court, but it’s very challenging for anyone to have their case heard on that level.

Still, it’s conceivable that Brady’s legal team could file an appeal with the Supreme Court if only to effectively defer the suspension until the 2017 season. A filing with the Supreme Court could also light a fire under the NFL and force the league office to engage in settlement talks. To date, Roger Goodell & Co. have been steadfast in their refusal to negotiate with Brady’s camp, but team owners have been putting pressure on the NFL to get the Brady story out of the headlines. If faced with another year of Deflategate talk and a possible airing of dirty laundry before the highest federal court in the U.S., the commissioner might finally acquiesce and offer to cut Brady’s suspension in half or nix it entirely.

Brady, of course, is slated to be suspended for the first four games of the 2016 season after a three-judge panel reinstated the ban that was incurred as a result of the Patriots quarterback’s role in the Deflategate controversy. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit overturned the 2015 decision by Judge Richard Berman, stating that Brady’s suspension should be upheld.

The Wells report commissioned by the NFL more than a year ago determined that Brady was “more likely than not” to have been aware of footballs being deflated below their usual levels during the AFC Championship Game against the Colts in January 2015.

If Brady’s four-game suspension is ultimately upheld, he won’t be eligible to return to regular-season action until Sunday, October 9th in Cleveland. The Patriots would be without their starting quarterback for games against the Cardinals, Dolphins, Texans, and Bills in that scenario. Understudy Jimmy Garoppolo would step into the starting role in New England if Brady is forced to miss the first month of the coming season.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

East Notes: Cousins, Brady, Lombardi, Jets

June 26th, 2016 at 9:58am CST by Rory Parks

The latest reports on contract talks between the Redskins and Kirk Cousins suggested that the two sides may not be reaching a long-term pact prior to the July 15 deadline, and that Cousins may consequently play out the 2016 season on the $19.95MM franchise tender. As Albert Breer of TheMMQB pointed out, Washington could be playing with fire if, as expected, Andrew Luck signs a record-breaking extension with the Colts and Cousins turns in another strong year.

Rich Tandler of CSNWashington.com echoes those sentiments. He believes that, as we are still nearly three weeks away from July 15, both player and team are exercising the appropriate amount of patience and are right to not rush into a deal, but he does note that the Redskins have to be worried about the pending Luck contract. As Tandler writes, Washington could lock up Cousins today for something in the neighborhood of $20MM per year, but if they wait until next season, the club could end up paying more than $40MM more over the life of Cousins’ contract than if it acts now.

Let’s take a look at a few more links from the league’s east divisions:

Tomorrow marks five full weeks since Patriots quarterback Tom Brady filed a request for an en banc hearing with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. As Mike Reiss of ESPN.com writes, legal experts anticipated that the Court would take no more than six weeks to make its decision, so Brady should know within the next few days whether he will get a second bite at the appellate apple.
Ben Volin of The Boston Globe hears that Michael Lombardi‘s recent departure from the Patriots was not as mutual as it was first reported. Volin writes that New England was happy to have Lombardi serve as the team’s assistant to the coaching staff the past two years, because most of his salary was still being paid by the Browns, but after Lombardi’s contract expired, the Patriots chose not to keep Lombardi on the books. Volin adds that head coach Bill Belichick was Lombardi’s only real ally inside the building, and that Lombardi’s role in bringing in former Browns like Jabaal Sheard and Dion Lewis was overstated.
In his ongoing examination of each team’s best and worst contracts, Jason Fitzgerald of OverTheCap.com writes that the best deal on the Jets‘ books is Brandon Marshall‘s, whereas Fitzgerald believes David Harris‘ deal is the team’s worst contract.

Goodell: Deflategate Settlement Unlikely

June 6th, 2016 at 6:31pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Settlement talks between the NFL and Tom Brady don’t appear to be gaining traction, as John Wawrow of the Associated Press writes. “At this stage, no,” commissioner Roger Goodell said today when asked if a settlement was likely. “The courts will make their decisions, and we’ll move forward on that basis.”

Brady, of course, will be suspended for the first four games of the 2016 season after a three-judge panel reinstated the ban that was incurred as a result of the Patriots quarterback’s role in the Deflategate controversy. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit overturned the 2015 decision by Judge Richard Berman, stating that Brady’s suspension should be upheld.

“We hold that the Commissioner properly exercised his broad discretion under the collective bargaining agreement and that his procedural rulings were properly grounded in that agreement and did not deprive Brady of fundamental fairness,” read the ruling from the Court of Appeals.“Accordingly, we REVERSE the judgment of the district court and REMAND with instructions to confirm the award.”

Brady and his legal team have since filed a petition for the case to be reheard, but reports have indicated that such appeals are rarely heard. The Wells report commissioned by the NFL more than a year ago determined that Brady was “more likely than not” to have been aware of footballs being deflated below their usual levels during the AFC Championship Game against the Colts in January 2015. The league issued a four-game suspension for Brady as a result of those findings, and that penalty was overturned by Judge Berman last summer, prior to the start of the 2015 campaign, allowing Brady to play the full season. The NFL appealed Berman’s decision.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

AFC East Notes: Brady, Jets, Watkins, Jordan

June 1st, 2016 at 5:17pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

Patriots quarterback Tom Brady has added a couple of powerful allies – the AFL-CIO and high-profile attorney Kenneth Feinberg – as he seeks to overturn his four-game suspension for his role in the Deflategate scandal, details The Associated Press. In a friend of the court brief filed Monday, the AFL-CIO asked the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to reconsider a three-judge panel’s April decision to reinstate Brady’s suspension. According to the labor federation, the panel made a mistake in regarding NFL commissioner Roger Goodell as a neutral arbitrator. Meanwhile, Feinberg claims that Goodell “impermissibly exceeded the scope of his authority” and “used the vehicle of arbitration as a mechanism to rewrite the underlying bargain between the parties, to the sole advantage of his organization.”

As for the rest of the AFC East…

There was a report last week that the Jets’ Eric Decker was skipping OTAs because of the team’s lack of progress in re-signing quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick, but the receiver issued a denial Wednesday. “That’s not the reason I wasn’t there,” he said (Twitter link via Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News). Decker also expressed confidence that Fitzpatrick will eventually re-up with Gang Green, according to Brian Costello of the New York Post. On the other hand, fellow wideout Brandon Marshall wouldn’t say whether his absence was on account of the Fitzpatrick situation (Twitter link via Costello). However, Marshall did acknowledge Wednesday that the Fitzpatrick-less Jets must “move forward and try to figure out how we can win some games.”
When news of a minor foot fracture surfaced earlier this month, the expectation was that Bills receiver Sammy Watkins would be ready for training camp. Based on the words of Watkins and head coach Rex Ryan, that’s now up in the air, as Kevin Patra of NFL.com writes. “The goal is the regular season,” said Watkins, whose walking boot will come off Thursday. “All I know is that Sammy won’t miss time in the regular season,” Ryan commented.
When asked about defensive end Dion Jordan applying for reinstatement, Dolphins coach Adam Gase said, “I’ll worry about that when it comes around” (Twitter link via Tom Pelissero of USA Today Sports). Jordan, the third pick in the 2013 draft, had to sit out last season after the league suspended him for violating its substance abuse policy. Jordan has missed 22 games because of suspensions during his short career and has totaled just three sacks in 26 contests.

Zach Links contributed to this post.

AFC East Notes: Brady, Dolphins, Ajayi, Jets

May 23rd, 2016 at 2:28pm CST by Zachary Links

Dolphins running back Jay Ajayi admits that he has been excited about the coming season ever since Lamar Miller left the team in free agency.

“I’ve been excited since I found out that Lamar was going to be moving on and that the position would be available,” Ajayi said, via the team’s website. “I’ve just been pushing myself through this offseason to prepare myself to have a great sophomore season. I was able to get a lot of opportunities last year when I finally started playing, and I felt comfortable. Now, I’m ready to elevate my game to a new level this season.”

After the Dolphins watched Miller sign a four-year deal with the Texans, Miami pivoted towards restricted free agent C.J. Anderson only to watch the Broncos match a four-year, $18MM offer sheet. Later on in March, the Fins missed out on Chris Johnson when he re-signed with the Cardinals on a hometown discount.

Recently, head coach Adam Gase admitted that Ajayi is the leading candidate to take over as Miami’s top tailback. With third-round pick Kenyan Drake standing as the team’s only meaningful addition at running back, the team will be banking on Ajayi for some major production.

Here’s more from the AFC East:

Tom Brady‘s new lawyer Ted Olson told ABC News today that the facts in his client’s case are “so drastic, and so apparent … the court should rehear it,” Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. The NFLPA will file a petition to rehear the Brady case today “en banc,” meaning that there will be a rehearing before a whole panel of judges (Twitter link via Adam Schefter of ESPN.com)
In an interview with SiriusXM (Twitter link), former Jets offensive tackle D’Brickashaw Ferguson made it sound as though he is comfortable with retirement. “Retirement is different but welcomed. Signs that times were changing. Didn’t want football to define my life,” Ferguson said.
Earlier today, Ryan Fitzpatrick reaffirmed his desire to return to the Jets. The veteran quarterback also dismissed the notion that he might retire if he does not find a suitable deal.
On Monday, the Browns released former Dolphins wide receiver Brian Hartline.

Patriots Notes: Belichick, Easley, Brady

May 18th, 2016 at 12:57pm CST by Zachary Links

Bill Belichick sees a “strong trend” in the NFL with hybrid defensive players, as Mike Reiss of ESPN.com writes. This year, the Patriots followed that trend when they selected Kamu Grugier-Hill of Eastern Illinois in the sixth-round, a player who played linebacker in college but could play safety in the NFL.

“I think that you are definitely seeing a strong trend in the league towards corners that play safety or corner-type athletes that play safety, bigger safeties that play linebacker. Both of those are trends,” Belichick said during the draft.

At 6’2″ and 215 pounds, Grugier-Hill is on the bigger side for a safety but light for a linebacker in the team’s base defense. The Patriots wil likely move him between both positions, depending on their needs throughout the season and during each drive.

Here’s more out of New England:

The Patriots have offset language on Dominique Easley’s $1.084MM salary, as Ben Volin of The Boston Globe (Twitter links) points out. The Patriots now only owe Easley the difference between that figure and what the Rams pay him. The minimum salary for Easley is $600K, so at most, the Patriots will owe him roughly $484K.
If Tom Brady and the NFLPA successfully get U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit to give them another hearing, then the quarterback will likely avoid any suspension for the 2016 season as the legal proceedings drag on. However, even if the Second Circuit denies the petition, the Pats QB still has a path by which he can further delay his suspension, Mike Florio of PFT writes. The first step then would be for Brady to ask the Second Circuit for a stay of the suspension while an appeal to the Supreme Court is prepared. If that request is denied, Brady would present the question of whether the suspension will be stayed not to the Supreme Court justice assigned to the Second Circuit, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. If Ginsburg were to issue a stay, Brady would not be suspended until 2017, at the earliest.
Earlier this week, Dwight Freeney told Peter King of The MMQB that he would not rule out joining up with the Patriots.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Latest On Tom Brady, Suspension

May 3rd, 2016 at 8:52pm CST by Zachary Links

The NFLPA and Tom Brady‘s legal team have been granted an extension and will now have until May 23rd to appeal the latest pro-NFL ruling on Brady’s Deflategate suspension, Mark Maske of the Associated Press tweets. Unsurprisingly, the NFL objected to the two week extension, as Daniel Kaplan of SportsBusiness Journal tweets.

Brady‘s four-game suspension related to the Patriots’ Deflategate incident, which was initially overturned in court last year, was been reinstated by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit late last month. In the immediate aftermath, it was reported that Brady was prepared to continue his fight and Pats owner Robert Kraft was quick to stand alongside him. Meanwhile, the NFL does not see any need to reignite settlement talks. Ultimately, this dispute being Brady and the league office will be settled by the justice system.

If Brady’s four-game suspension is ultimately upheld, he won’t be eligible to return to regular-season action until Sunday, October 9th in Cleveland. The Patriots would be without their starting quarterback for games against the Cardinals, Dolphins, Texans, and Bills in that scenario. Understudy Jimmy Garoppolo would likely step into the starting role in New England if Brady is forced to miss the first month of the coming season.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Extra Points: Brady, Cowboys, Panthers

April 30th, 2016 at 9:59am CST by Ben Levine

Robert Kraft addressed the reinstatement of Tom Brady‘s suspension on Friday night, and the Patriots owner certainly didn’t mince his words.

“Number one, there is no finer ambassador for the game of football, and the New England Patriots, than Tom Brady,” Kraft said, via Josh Alper of ProFootballTalk.com. “We always have had, and will continue to have, Tom’s back. Especially when he’s being treated unfairly. He knows that. All the decisions that this organization and I personally have made throughout this ordeal have been focused on putting Tom in the best possible position for success.”

“Number two, I have been in constant communication with Tom over the past 16 months and we’ve had numerous conversations this past week. We are both on the same page and he knows exactly where my allegiances, and the total team’s [allegiances] are, relative to the extremely unfair discipline that he has been subjected to.”

“I share in our fans’ anger and frustration with the penalties the league has levied, and the entire process and how it was conducted. But please trust that I am always trying to do what I believe is best for this franchise, and pledge that I will always continue to do that.”

The Patriots have seemingly started preparing for Brady’s absence, as the organization selected quarterback Jacoby Brissett during last night’s third round.

Let’s check out some more non-draft-related notes from around the NFL…

Cowboys linebacker Sean Lee underwent minor knee surgery yesterday, tweets NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport. Expected recovery time is two weeks for the 29-year-old. The former second-round pick finished last season with 128 tackles, a career-high.
The Cowboys are no longer pursuing veteran defensive end Jeremy Mincey, tweets Clarence Hill of the Star Telegram. The writer notes that the team also won’t be adding former-Lions defensive lineman Jason Jones.
ESPN.com’s David Newton believes the Panthers will pursue a veteran cornerback following the draft (Twitter link).

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