In the latest sign that this really is a “new” NFL, the Patriots were hit with major penalties for their apparent involvement in deflating footballs during the playoffs. Quarterback Tom Brady, who seemed to be less than cooperative in helping with the NFL’s investigation, was sacked with a four game suspension. In addition to that, the Pats were stripped of their 2016 first-round draft pick as well as their fourth-round selection in the 2017 NFL Draft. Here’s a look at some of the reaction and fallout to the NFL’s surprisingly stern decision..
- Brady was scheduled to make $8MM this season and, as a result, will lose about $2MM thanks to the suspension, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets.
- Any action by the NFLPA will be at the direction of Brady, so they’ll wait for instructions from him, Albert Breer of NFL.com (on Twitter) notes.
- Goodell may have lost Bob Kraft as an ally today, but he isn’t going anywhere, Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald tweets. Beasley posits that he couldn’t have made such a bold move without gauging the support of the league’s 31 other owners.
- At this point, the Bills are the only AFC East team that will directly benefit from Brady’s suspension, Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald tweets. The Bills now only face Brady once while the Dolphins and Jets have to deal with him twice.
- Giants quarterback Eli Manning told reporters, including Paul Schwartz of the New York Post (on Twitter) that he is “in no way…glad to see this happen.” However, he added that, “If someone’s breaking the rules I understand you’re gonna get punished for it,” (link).
- The cynic in Beasley (link) wonders if the NFL waited until after this year’s draft since the Pats will probably be picking higher than No. 32 next year.