Patriots owner Robert Kraft is not happy that the NFL has upheld their decision to suspend Tom Brady four games, and he didn’t hold back his disappointment. “Six months removed from the AFC Championship Game, the league still has no evidence of anybody doing anything to tamper with the psi levels of footballs,” Kraft stated. He also added that he “unequivocally” supports his quarterback Tom Brady.
Kraft did agree to pay the NFL a $1 million fine, along with giving up a 2016 first-round and 2017 fourth-round draft pick. Kraft now regrets the decision to agree with the penalties. “I first and foremost need to apologize to our fans because I truly believe what I did in May- given the actual evidence of the situation, and the league’s history on discipline matters would make it much easier for the league to exonerate Tom Brady. Unfortunately I was wrong,” Kraft explained. He added,”I have come to the conclusion that this was never about doing what was fair and just. Back in May, I had to make a difficult decision that I now regret.” The Patriots owner believes the NFL has treated Brady unfairly, and he called the investigation “frustrating and disconcerting.”
A report revealed that 11 of the 12 footballs the Patriots used in the game against the Indianapolis Colts were well under the required weight of the NFL’s requirement, but Kraft called the report “erroneous.” “I will never understand why an initial erroneous report regarding the psi level of footballs was leaked by a source for the NFL a few days after the AFC Championship Game, and was never corrected by those who had the correct information,” Kraft said. He added, “For four months, that report cast aspirations and shaped public opinion.”
In his statement yesterday regarding the upholding of Brady’s suspension, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell stated that the quarterback destroyed his cell phone after he was asked to provide the phone for evidence. Kraft also had an issue with Goodell’s statement. “It intentionally implied nefarious behavior and minimized the acknowledgement that Tom provided the history of every number he texted during that relevant time frame,” Kraft said. The owner continued,”We had already provided the league with every cell phone of every non-NFLPA employee that they requested including head coach Bill Belichick.” According to Goodell, more than 10,000 text messages were destroyed, and the NFL was not able to retrieve the messages. The Patriots organization has stated that Brady changes his cell phone every four months, and that’s why he destroyed the cell phone.