When DeflateGate started, no one imagined the magnitude that it would become. However, it looks like DeflateGate is finally coming to an end, at least for the New England Patriots.
After Tom Brady was handed down a four-game suspension, he immediately appealed the NFL’s decision. On Thursday, the verdict finally came in and Judge Richard Berman sided with Brady, leaving the league embarrassed and acting like a kid who got sent to timeout. It has been reported that the league is ashamed that the sanctity of the game is being lost since Brady won.
Since the trial ended, both Brady and Patriots owner, Robert Kraft have released statements about the whole ordeal. Kraft’s statement was basically a praising of Brady and less about the trial: “As I have said during this process and throughout his Patriots career, Tom Brady is a classy person of the highest integrity. He represents everything that is great about this game and this league.”
But Brady was a little more emotional in his statement.
“While I am pleased to be eligible to play, I am sorry our league had to endure this. I don’t think it has been good for our sport — to a large degree, we have all lost. I am also sorry to anyone whose feelings I may have hurt as I have tried to work to resolve this situation. I love the NFL. It is a privilege to be a member of the NFL community and I will always try to do my best in representing my team and the league in a way that would make all members of this community proud.”
His full statement can be read here.
No matter what, though, the saga of DeflateGate is certainly a wake-up call for the Patriots, Brady, and the NFL.
