Tom Brady Returned from His Four-Game Suspension for the Deflategate Scandal 10 Years Ago. Whether It Needed to Happen Is Still Up for Debate
· Yahoo Sports
Credit: Maddie Meyer/Getty
NEED TO KNOW
- Tom Brady returned to the New England Patriots on Oct. 9, 2016 after serving a four-game suspension for his role in the Deflategate scandal
- The Patriots defeated the Cleveland Browns 33-13 in Brady’s return from suspension
- Several prominent sports personalities have said they disagree with Brady’s suspension
Tom Brady returned to the New England Patriots following a four-game suspension for his role in the Deflategate scandal on Oct. 9, 2016, in a 33-13 victory over the Cleveland Browns.
Visit mchezo.life for more information.
Brady and the Patriots were at the center of a 2015 investigation as to whether under-inflated footballs were used in New England’s AFC Championship win over the Indianapolis Colts in January of that year. In a probe led by Jeff Pash, the league’s general counsel and an executive vice president, and attorney Ted Wells, it was reported in May 2015 that the NFL believed it “‘more probable than not’ that Patriots personnel deliberately deflated footballs during the AFC Championship Game, and that Brady was probably ‘at least generally aware’ of the rules violation,” ESPN reported.
Brady was suspended for four games without pay. A federal judge struck down the punishment in September 2015, but it was reinstated in April 2016. Even after filing an appeal in May of that year, the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals denied the quarterback’s appeal, and the punishment eventually stuck, with Brady missing the first four regular-season games of the 2016 season.
But 10 years later, football fans are still questioning whether Brady, who denied wrongdoing throughout the controversy, deserved the suspension.
Tom Brady on Dec. 15, 2013 in FloridaCredit: Ron Elkman /Sports Imagery/ Getty
Follow your favorite athletes on and off the field with PEOPLE’s free sports newsletter — sign up now!
The NFL spent roughly $22 million on the scandal over the two years it took to investigate, litigate and discipline the New England organization, per ESPN.
Brady, now 49, joked about the suspension during his Netflix roast in May 2024, teasing the NFL for spending millions on the scandal. “If they had given me the $20 million, I would have just told them I f---ing did it,” Brady quipped.
Tom Brady on Aug. 29, 2019Credit: Maddie Meyer/Getty
But former NFL cornerback Darrelle Revis said Brady was “bawling his eyes out” when addressing the team amid the controversy. “When the Deflategate happened, and Tom was the headliner of the whole situation, he addressed us as a team. You can tell he was distraught,” Revis said on Apple TV+’s documentary The Dynasty.
Revis added, “He said, ‘This is something I wouldn’t do. I would not ruin the season for us. The allegations are false.’ He was actually bawling his eyes out in front of us.”
Brady’s father, Tom Brady Sr., shared on the Apple TV+ series how the scandal affected their family. “It was extraordinarily difficult in the life of the Brady family,” Tom Brady Sr. said in the documentary. “Not only did I suffer from it, but my wife, it crushed her. Because he’s not a liar.”
Tom Brady #12 of the New England Patriots runs on to the field before a game on September 10, 2015 in Foxboro, Massachusetts.Credit: Jim Rogash/Getty
Several prominent sports personalities have said they disagreed with the NFL’s decision to suspend Brady. On an episode of his New Heights podcast, retired Eagles legend Jason Kelce said, “I don’t even think Tom should have gotten in trouble for deflating footballs. I’m pro deflating footballs. I’ll say it. I’ll say it. I am pro deflating footballs.”
Kelce added, “He outsmarted people. Why the f--- does it matter how much air is in that motherf-----?” The current ESPN analyst continued, “If you’re throwing it and catching it, who the f--- cares?”
In 2015, legendary sportscaster Bob Costas suggested the league “overreacted” to the scandal and “turned a misdemeanor into a federal case, both figuratively and literally.”
Costas added, “To me, this seems more like watering down the infield or the playing field to slow down a speedy opponent or pine tar on a bat. It’s gamesmanship. It’s not awful, but it became awful because of the way the league perhaps overreacted and Brady himself didn’t say what he could’ve said.”
Read the original article on People