NEW: Brady’s Agent Responds, Calls NFL’s Appeal Process a ‘Sham’
Tuesday, July 28, 2015
Following the NFL's decision to uphold New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady's four game suspension, Brady's agent Don Yee released a statement detailing what he saw at fault in the league's appeal process.
Yee's statement reads:
"The Commissioner’s decision is deeply disappointing, but not surprising because the appeal process was thoroughly lacking in procedural fairness.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTMost importantly, neither Tom nor the Patriots did anything wrong. And the NFL has no evidence that anything inappropriate occurred.
The appeal process was a sham, resulting in the Commissioner rubber-stamping his own decision.
For example, the Wells investigative team was given over 100 days to conduct its investigation. Just days prior to the appeal hearing, we were notified that we would only have four hours to present a defense; therefore, we didn’t have enough time to examine important witnesses.
Likewise, it was represented to the public that the Wells team was ‘independent’; however, when we requested documents from Wells, our request was rejected on the basis of privilege. We therefore had no idea as to what Wells found from other witnesses, nor did we know what those other witnesses said.
These are just two examples of how the Commissioner failed to ensure a fair process.
Additionally, the science in the Wells Report was junk. It has been thoroughly discredited by independent third parties.
Finally, as to the issue of cooperation, we presented the Commissioner with an unprecedented amount of electronic data, all of which is incontrovertible.
I do not think that any private citizen would have agreed to provide anyone with the amount of information that Tom was willing to reveal to the Commissioner. Tom was completely transparent. All of the electronic information was ignored; we don’t know why. The extent to which Tom opened up his private life to the Commissioner will become clear in the coming days.
The Commissioner’s decision and discipline has no precedent in all of NFL history.
His decision alters the competitive balance of the upcoming season. The decision is wrong and has no basis, and it diminishes the integrity of the game.”
Related Articles
- NFL Upholds Brady’s 4 Game Suspension
- NFLPA Makes Letter to NFL Regarding Brady Appeal Public
- Brady’s Lawyer Has History of Winning Big Cases Against NFL
- NEW: Tom Brady, NFLPA Officially File Appeal
- Brady’s Agent Releases Statement on 4 Game Suspension
- NEW: Wells Report Released, Claims Patriots, Brady Cheated
- What Legal Steps Will Tom Brady Take to Fight 4 Game Suspension?
- NEW: Tom Brady Addresses Wells Report
- NEW: Tom Brady Suspended 4 Games
- REPORT: Tom Brady to be Suspended by NFL
- Nguyen: Appealing the Suspension: Brady’s Play Options
- GoLocalTV: Brady’s Future Uncertain as Patriots Begin Camp
- NEW: Belichick Responds to Deflate Gate, Puts it on Brady
- Brady Responds To Deflate Gate, Claims No Knowledge
- Decision on Brady Appeal Coming Soon, According to Goodell
- NEW: Tom Brady’s Appeal Hearing Will be Held June 23
- NEW: NFL Statement and Letters to Brady, Patriots Regarding Deflategate
- 5 Things to Know About Tom Brady’s Deflategate Appeal