The New England Patriots have decided Deflategate has gone on too long, and will accept the NFL’s punishment over the investigation.
Patriots owner Robert Kraft was speaking at the NFL owners meeting on Tuesday when he said the team would “accept reluctantly what [commissioner Roger Goodell] has given us.”
“Although I might disagree what is decided, I do have respect for [Goodell] and believe that he’s doing what he perceives to be in the best interests of [the NFL as a a whole],” Kraft said. “So in that spirit, I don’t want to continue the rhetoric that’s gone on for the last four months. I’m going to accept, reluctantly, what he has given to us and not continue this dialogue and rhetoric. We won’t appeal.”
The Patriots were fined $1m and docked a first round pick in the 2016 draft and a fourth-rounder in 2017. A report commissioned by the NFL found that it was probable that New England Patriots employees improperly deflated footballs in the team’s AFC Championship win over the Indianapolis Colts.
The Patriots released a 20,000 word rebuttal of the NFL investigation last week, apparently paving the way for a possible legal challenge. On Tuesday, Kraft said he still disagreed with the punishment, calling it “unreasonable and unprecedented”.
However, Kraft said the process had taken “too long” and he could “extend [the saga] or end it”. Indeed, it appears the Patriots came to believe that a lengthy appeal wasn’t worth the negative publicity that has already surrounded the team since their Super Bowl win in February. ESPN reported earlier this week that Kraft and Goodell had been in talks to resolve their differences, and stop a story that has done no favors to the image of the league or the Patriots.
The NFL’s report also found that Tom Brady was “at least generally aware” of the wrongdoing. Brady was suspended for four games but has lodged an appeal against his punishment.
