Denver Broncos safety TJ Ward took issue with the one-game suspension he was assessed this week, suggesting that if his last name were Brady - as in, New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady - he may have escaped punishment altogether for an off-field incident that occurred nearly 15 months ago.
"My last name's not Brady," Ward told Mark Kiszla of the Denver Post, when asked why he believes he's going to be forced to miss the Broncos season-opener. Brady, of course, a future Hall of Famer, was just able to escape a four-game suspension of his own, handed down by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell in the wake of the Deflategate scandal and the findings of the Wells Report.
Ward's suspension came as a result of the hard-hitting safety allegedly throwing a mug at a strip club bartender, resulting in an accusation of misdemeanor assault and disturbing the peace. Both charges were dropped after Ward agreed to four hours of community service. Brady, on the other hand, was slapped with his ban as a result of allegedly orchestrating a devious and extensive plan to remove air from footballs.
The cases are very different and while Ward's involved police, it didn't result in any charges. He apologized for the situation and vowed to take "full responsibility" for the suspension, which, he may not be doing by now bemoaning it.
Still, it's understandable that he would view his suspension, meted out the same week that Brady's own ban was vacated, as out of line. One of the biggest issues facing the league in the wake of Deflategate is the odd and seemingly ad hoc manner in which Goodell determines punishments for players who step out of line. Ward seems to have gotten the short end of the stick, though it's not quite fair to say that he would have somehow escaped punishment if he were Brady, considering it was a federal judge who nullified the Patriots quarterback's suspension.
"I feel it's really unfair," Ward said, via Kiszla. "I'm getting punished for being accused of doing something. Not doing something, but being accused. And I've got to pay the consequences."
