NFL to ask U.S. court to restore Brady's 'Deflategate' suspension

By Nate Raymond
NEW YORK, March 3 (Reuters) - The National Football League
will urge a U.S. appeals court on Thursday to restore New
England Patriots star quarterback Tom Brady's four-game
"Deflategate" suspension over an alleged scheme to deflate
footballs used in a playoff game last year.
The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York will hear
arguments over whether to reverse a federal judge's September
decision to throw out the suspension imposed by NFL Commissioner
Roger Goodell.
The case has become a test over how broadly to interpret
Goodell's disciplinary powers under the league's collective
bargaining agreement with its players union.
The NFL has said Goodell deserves broad authority to punish
conduct detrimental to sport's integrity, while the NFL Players
Association believes his power is limited.
U.S. District Judge Richard Berman in Manhattan sided with
the union, saying that Brady "had no notice that his discipline
would be the equivalent of the discipline imposed upon a player
who used performance enhancing drugs."
Brady had been suspended in May 2015, four months after
underinflated footballs were used in the Patriots' 45-7 victory
over Indianapolis in January 2015's AFC championship game.
That win took the Patriots to the Super Bowl, where they
defeated the defending champion Seattle Seahawks, giving Brady
his fourth championship title.
The NFL suspended Brady after Ted Wells, a lawyer hired by
the league to investigate the incident, said Brady was
"generally aware" that two Patriots employees had conspired to
deflate the balls, which could make them easier to grip.
Goodell upheld the suspension on July 28, prompting the
legal challenge on Brady's behalf. Brady has denied knowing
about any plan to deflate footballs.
Berman's decision allowed Brady to play the full 2015 NFL
season. The Patriots made the play-offs but did not reach the
Super Bowl.
It is unclear how quickly the three-judge panel hearing the
appeal could rule. The next NFL season is scheduled to begin in
September.