Tom Brady of the New England Patriots is planning to sue the National Football League in federal court if the NFL does not completely eliminate his four-game suspension for Deflategate. (ABC News and the Washington Post)
The suit would be filed by the Players Association or NFLPA.
The NFL is deciding on the SuperBowl winning quarterback's appeal of its decision which was based on Brady's allegedly being "generally aware" that footballs had been deflated in the first half of his team's 42-7 playoff victory over Baltimore.
Brady's legal team has excellent grounds to fight the suspension in court, including:
-- Being "generally aware" does not meet any legal standard for Brady's punishment. Either the Wells Report found direct evidence of his tampering with footballs, or it didn't.
-- The rules governing the handling of footballs is in the club manual and applies to club personnel, not players. Ipso facto, Brady would be unfairly suspended for violating a rule that does not apply to him.
-- The NFL commissioner participated in the suspension decision, and thus should have recused himself from the arbitration and appeal process, which he did not. He is thus not an impartial arbitrator.
-- The punishment is without precedent. Minnesota Vikings personnel had been caught placing footballs in a dryer. The NFL sent the Vikings a letter, but there was no punishment dealt.
An ESPN insider reports the NFL ruling on the Brady appeal could come in late July.
cccmedia