Another day, another report concerning New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady's appeal of his four-game suspension, handed down by the NFL in the wake of the Deflategate scandal. Despite a bevy of recent reports suggesting that Brady will put up his dukes and take the NFL to federal court should league commissioner Roger Goodell not exonerate him and throw out his suspension entirely, a new report suggests that Brady may be more willing to play ball than has been previously suggested.
Or, at least, that's what the NFL believes.
"In talking to sources close to the NFL who are aware of the negotiations between Tom Brady, the NFL Players Association and the league, the league is of the belief that they will be able to get a deal done with Brady and able to wear him down and get him to accept a deal that will include him missing games as a result of the Deflategate investigation," Bleacher Report's Jason Cole reported Friday.
This, of course, flies directly in the face of nearly every other report that has emerged in recent days. Brady was said to be willing to fight and fight hard and that not only was he adamant that he shouldn't have to serve any time on the sidelines - especially after Cowboys defensive end Greg Hardy had his own four-game suspension reduced to a matching four games - he wanted his name cleared of any and all wrongdoing. The league's owners, on the other hand, were said to be pushing Goodell to ensure that the suspension sticks, as a report late Thursday intimated that some owners believed Goodell's credibility was at stake in the matter.
Several reports suggested that settlement talks had been initiated by Brady and the NFLPA and while at least one suggested talks had actually occurred, another suggested that the union's attempt to engage the league was ignored by Goodell and Co.
As Cole notes, the actual wording of any penalty that actually sticks to Brady - should something, in fact, stick - will be interesting because, as previously mentioned, Brady's biggest worry in this whole ordeal is clearing his name. Brady is willing, per Cole, to accept a reduced suspension as long as it is made clear that the only reason for a ban is his unwillingness to cooperate with Ted Wells' investigation, not because he had anything to do with the deflation of footballs.
Ironically, the league may be dragging out a final decision on Brady's appeal because, per Cole, they believe that the start of training camp will be a "pressure point" that pushes the notoriously singularly focused and preparation-heavy Brady to strike a deal - quite possibly a less-favorable deal - to put the whole ordeal behind him.
