Football Brady v. NFL: No Settlement; Judge Berman to Decide - Page 41

Amnorix · 08-31-2015, 01:45 PM

Can't find the old thread. Brady and Goodell were back in NYC today for settlement talks. No progress.

Judge Berman said he would likely decide "in the next day or two" and definitely before September 4th.

Interesting how the narrative among the national writers has evolved.

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/roger-g...180816187.html

NEW YORK – They arrived surrounded by lawyers, each wearing a blue suit and displeased expression. Here was Roger Goodell and here was Tom Brady back in federal court in a fight over power, ego and legacy, as much as whether the footballs were deflated in January's AFC championship game.

New York Giants owner John Mara came in an attempt to soften the face of the league's side a bit. Jay Feely, a long-time NFL kicker and friend of Brady's from back at the University of Michigan, arrived to stand by his side.

Once again, nothing worked. A private meeting in front of Judge Richard M. Berman yielded nothing. No one budged. No one backed down. No settlement was reached.
And now both sides roll the dice and sit and wait for a ruling.

"Tomorrow or the day after," Berman said of when he would likely announce whether to vacate Brady's four-game suspension. He assured it would come before Sept. 4, when both sides requested an answer so the New England Patriots can begin preparing for the season opener with or without their star quarterback.

So that's that, all or nothing, all or everything, all eyes on the court docket here.

For Brady it's either a quarter of the season lost or a measure of redemption gained. For Goodell it's either a reaffirmation of the totality of his authority or another humiliating public defeat.

There may be appeals and requests for stays and thus months still to go, what will be won, what may not be done. None of that minimized the tension and drama inside Berman's 17th-floor courtroom here on Monday, when a case that started as a curiosity on that playoff night boiled toward a milestone, if not a conclusion.

Berman clearly knows how he is going to rule and likely has much of the decision already written. He's read and heard it all over the past month. There were no new arguments on Monday. The chief attorneys, Daniel Nash of the NFL and Jeffrey Kessler of the NFL Players Association, both merely stood and praised the efforts of all sides even though, as sometimes happens, they just couldn't reach a settlement.

"This is a time Mr. Nash and I are going to agree," Kessler joked.

The inability to find common ground is not a surprise. Tom Brady was simply never going to admit he had any role in the tampering of those footballs, or even that the footballs were ever tampered with in the first place.

First off, after he said as much under oath and then introduced the transcript into federal court, doing so would risk a perjury charge. More importantly though, it would be a complete reversal, making him a liar and a cheat, crushing his image among not just fans but, most importantly according to those that know him best, his own children.

He also very well may be innocent. The NFL never produced much of a case against him, let alone that the footballs were even unnaturally deflated.

So the only way a settlement could go down was for Goodell to drop any demands for an admission of guilt. He'd have to settle for Brady merely acknowledging a failure to fully cooperate with the investigation. That, however, would be a serious concession from a commissioner who's built his career on cracking heads among misbehaving players.

So there was the irresistible force clashing with the unmovable object, each willing to lose in court as long as he could still save face.
It has been, if nothing else, a remarkable showdown of oversized personalities.

In court Monday, the two men, rich and famous and atop their chosen professions, refused to even look at each other.

When the session was adjourned, both were forced to awkwardly wait for the galley to clear out of media and observers, leaving them within a few feet of each other a couple table rows apart.

Brady stood first and wandered over to one wood-paneled wall of the ornate courtroom. He stuffed his hands in his pocket, looking as intense as any tight fourth-quarter drive. Feely stood by his side and the two eventually hugged.

Goodell, seated in front, stood slowly and also put his hands in his pocket, looking down and then turning in the opposite direction of Brady, trying to wear a face of nonchalance.

Eight months into this scandal, after swings of allegations and misrepresentations, of false media leaks and broadside-legal attacks, the distrust and disgust were clear: Two men known for their ability to smoothly glide through life, with fashion and fabulous hair, looked strangely uncomfortable.

No one ever wants to sit in this position, leaving it to another man, federal judge or not, to declare whether he or she is a cheat or a fraud or a bully or a bum.

Here these two are though, going down that awkward path together. Their lives are seemingly too charmed for this, yet they were like a couple of rivals on opposite sides of the schoolyard, unwilling to even acknowledge the other's presence in front of onlookers.

The stakes seem higher for Goodell, if only because his legal argument here is based on the 1981 Supreme Court decision MLBPA v. Garvey, which essentially prohibits judges from interfering with the decision of arbitrators even if they are horrendously flawed or based on inaccurate facts. Arguing you have the right to be a dictator isn't ideal in public relations terms.

As such, Goodell and the NFL could certainly prevail in front of Berman but do so via a ruling full of the same kind of harsh verbiage that the judge used during two prior public sessions.

It's clear that no matter which way Berman goes, he looked upon the NFL's judicial system in general, and the league's conduct in this case specifically, as lacking any semblance of fairness or competency. He could unload in the ruling and leave Goodell laid out, even if he's technically victorious.

That's the risk Goodell was willing to take. And one Brady is willing to go with, essentially entering the verdict stage with a two-pronged chance at redemption – either total or at least in the court of public opinion. A loss and a four-game suspension would hurt, but he could at least point to an impartial federal judge down in New York agreeing that Goodell is out of line.

It's certainly reasonable that the NFL initially erred when it failed to comprehend Ideal Gas Law and thus initially thought any Patriots football that measured below 12.5 pounds per square inch of inflation was a sign of nefarious conduct. It immediately went after a speeding ticket like a homicide case.

But by the time the league should've have dialed it back, it had already leaked prejudicial stories and begun building a case against Brady and two Patriots locker room attendants. The NFL never was able to find a smoking gun or much more than suspicions, but that didn't matter.

The NFL not only never backed down, it just kept doubling down, believing the full force of the league's power – both in the CBA and in its ability to manipulate national reporters – would overwhelm Brady.

The league may be correct and on the verge of a show-of-force victory. It may be wrong and headed for a comeuppance.

It's all up to Judge Berman now. Who knows what he thinks and who knows what he'll rule. On Monday he seemed eager to make it known though as he sent the two men in fancy blue suits off into the Manhattan morning, Goodell via a black Escalade, Brady in a Chevy Suburban. Each is left awaiting his word.

The QB v. the Commissioner, it's all or everything now.

TEX · 09-08-2015, 08:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chiefzilla1501

What Patriots fans believe:

The guy was nicknamed "the deflator" because he was fat (Pats didn't deny knowledge of the nickname. They actually gave an explanation)
Brady accidentally destroyed his phone coincidentally at the wrong time
Brady never knew that the footballs he was throwing were deflated

I'm not even embellishing. These are things you have to actually believe to deny the Pats/Brady had any knowledge this was going on. That doesn't even get into the fact that a controlling organization like New England never once caught on that there was a guy sneaking footballs into the bathroom. Scott Pioli flips out over gum wrappers (Patriot Way), but doctoring footballs....

No shit! Amnorix is such a special moron for believing it and even more of one for for trying to defend it...

Amnorix · 09-08-2015, 08:32 AM

Meanwhile, I'm sure that the timing of having this ESPN story come out just before the Commissioner admits he may be willing to change the way things are done is just a massive coinkydinky!

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So many bombshells today. Roger Goodell just said he's willing to take a step back as discipline chief and hardly anyone is talking about it

GloryDayz · 09-08-2015, 08:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BryanBusby

I smell a "we're salty about losing" leak from the league.
http://espn.go.com/espn/otl/story/_/...patriots-apart

This is some cartoon villain shit and it's great.

I pray we see this a LOT this going year. It's one of the few things fans can do to send the NFL a message that we're not OK with the Patriots and their cheating ways from RK to BB to TB to their water boys. No owner who cares would allow the stadium to suppress the activity until it has been shown on prime time television.

GloryDayz · 09-08-2015, 08:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GloryDayz

I pray we see this a LOT this going year. It's one of the few things fans can do to send the NFL a message that we're not OK with the Patriots and their cheating ways from RK to BB to TB to their water boys. No owner who cares would allow the stadium to suppress the activity until it has been shown on prime time television.

And signs calling Pats fans pieces of shit should be OK too, let's not forget, they all suck balls!

Reerun_KC · 09-08-2015, 08:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Amnorix

Meanwhile, I'm sure that the timing of having this ESPN story come out just before the Commissioner admits he may be willing to change the way things are done is just a massive coinkydinky!

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So many bombshells today. Roger Goodell just said he's willing to take a step back as discipline chief and hardly anyone is talking about it

But ballz were deflated.....

So many short sighted people focusing on the wrong part of the this issue... Having Brady win is HUGE for all fans of all teams in the NFL... Taking absolute power away from Goodell is never a bad thing.

Pasta Little Brioni · 09-08-2015, 08:38 AM

So they taped 40 teams from 00 to 07?. Lower than I thought but cool to see them exposed once again.

BryanBusby · 09-08-2015, 08:38 AM

I think the bigger issue here is how much effort Goodell went through to cover things up to avoid a Congress investigation.

Pasta Little Brioni · 09-08-2015, 08:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Amnorix

Yep, pretty much.

Kind of amazing, really. The NFL has its PR machine out in full force crucifying one of their own teams. Bitter, much?

Maybe that team shouldn't be a bunch of smug, lying, cheating sacks of shit. Taping 40 teams illegally....pathetic.

GloryDayz · 09-08-2015, 08:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Amnorix

Yep, pretty much.

Kind of amazing, really. The NFL has its PR machine out in full force crucifying one of their own teams. Bitter, much?

Not bitter at all, just sometimes a person has to make a decision to cut-out a cancer that's killing the body. In this case the cancer for the NFL is the New England Patriots and the rest of the body appreciates the effort...

Reerun_KC · 09-08-2015, 08:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BryanBusby

I think the bigger issue here is how much effort Goodell went through to cover things up to avoid a Congress investigation.

Pasta Little Brioni · 09-08-2015, 08:42 AM

Maybe Krafts squad shouldn't have blatantly cheated if they didn't want the truth to come out???

GloryDayz · 09-08-2015, 08:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Amnorix

Meanwhile, I'm sure that the timing of having this ESPN story come out just before the Commissioner admits he may be willing to change the way things are done is just a massive coinkydinky!

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Ben VolinVerified account
‏@BenVolin
So many bombshells today. Roger Goodell just said he's willing to take a step back as discipline chief and hardly anyone is talking about it

But just the other day the same ESPN's Pat's nut-sucking former Pats players we sucking the judge's dick because they're former teams was allowed to get away with breaking the rules.

So don't blame ESPN, they've done their part to suck-up to the Pats too.

GloryDayz · 09-08-2015, 08:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Reerun_KC

But ballz were deflated.....

So many short sighted people focusing on the wrong part of the this issue... Having Brady win is HUGE for all fans of all teams in the NFL... Taking absolute power away from Goodell is never a bad thing.

OK, I see that you're just being funny and dramatic. We all know Goodell was right in this case because the Pats are pathological cheaters. I thought you were serious that you would cut off your nose to spite your face.

BryanBusby · 09-08-2015, 08:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pasta Giant Meatball

Maybe Krafts squad shouldn't have blatantly cheated if they didn't want the truth to come out???

I doubt they give a shit. It got them successful, rich and famous.

I'm sure they will wipe their legacy tears off with 100 dollar bills.

GloryDayz · 09-08-2015, 08:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BryanBusby

I doubt they give a shit. It got them successful, rich and famous.

I'm sure they will wipe their legacy tears off with 100 dollar bills.

True... But the real test of this report's accuracy will come this year as the 31 other owners choose how to respond. It could be from allowing anti-Pats banners to fly, to allowing a part-time employee to spry-down the offense with Pam, to making sure the officials know the rules on offensive holding.

There's a lot they can do (and I'm sure the good judge will tell the Pats that there's no proof so he can't rule against the NFL...), and the world would begin to become right again.

We'll see what the reports say Friday morning after the Pats play.

08-31-2015, 01:45 PM
Amnorix In BB I trust Join Date: May 2003 Location: Boston, Mass. Casino cash: $10029808	Brady v. NFL: No Settlement; Judge Berman to Decide Can't find the old thread. Brady and Goodell were back in NYC today for settlement talks. No progress. Judge Berman said he would likely decide "in the next day or two" and definitely before September 4th. Interesting how the narrative among the national writers has evolved. http://sports.yahoo.com/news/roger-g...180816187.html NEW YORK – They arrived surrounded by lawyers, each wearing a blue suit and displeased expression. Here was Roger Goodell and here was Tom Brady back in federal court in a fight over power, ego and legacy, as much as whether the footballs were deflated in January's AFC championship game. New York Giants owner John Mara came in an attempt to soften the face of the league's side a bit. Jay Feely, a long-time NFL kicker and friend of Brady's from back at the University of Michigan, arrived to stand by his side. Once again, nothing worked. A private meeting in front of Judge Richard M. Berman yielded nothing. No one budged. No one backed down. No settlement was reached. And now both sides roll the dice and sit and wait for a ruling. "Tomorrow or the day after," Berman said of when he would likely announce whether to vacate Brady's four-game suspension. He assured it would come before Sept. 4, when both sides requested an answer so the New England Patriots can begin preparing for the season opener with or without their star quarterback. So that's that, all or nothing, all or everything, all eyes on the court docket here. For Brady it's either a quarter of the season lost or a measure of redemption gained. For Goodell it's either a reaffirmation of the totality of his authority or another humiliating public defeat. There may be appeals and requests for stays and thus months still to go, what will be won, what may not be done. None of that minimized the tension and drama inside Berman's 17th-floor courtroom here on Monday, when a case that started as a curiosity on that playoff night boiled toward a milestone, if not a conclusion. Berman clearly knows how he is going to rule and likely has much of the decision already written. He's read and heard it all over the past month. There were no new arguments on Monday. The chief attorneys, Daniel Nash of the NFL and Jeffrey Kessler of the NFL Players Association, both merely stood and praised the efforts of all sides even though, as sometimes happens, they just couldn't reach a settlement. "This is a time Mr. Nash and I are going to agree," Kessler joked. The inability to find common ground is not a surprise. Tom Brady was simply never going to admit he had any role in the tampering of those footballs, or even that the footballs were ever tampered with in the first place. First off, after he said as much under oath and then introduced the transcript into federal court, doing so would risk a perjury charge. More importantly though, it would be a complete reversal, making him a liar and a cheat, crushing his image among not just fans but, most importantly according to those that know him best, his own children. He also very well may be innocent. The NFL never produced much of a case against him, let alone that the footballs were even unnaturally deflated. So the only way a settlement could go down was for Goodell to drop any demands for an admission of guilt. He'd have to settle for Brady merely acknowledging a failure to fully cooperate with the investigation. That, however, would be a serious concession from a commissioner who's built his career on cracking heads among misbehaving players. So there was the irresistible force clashing with the unmovable object, each willing to lose in court as long as he could still save face. It has been, if nothing else, a remarkable showdown of oversized personalities. In court Monday, the two men, rich and famous and atop their chosen professions, refused to even look at each other. When the session was adjourned, both were forced to awkwardly wait for the galley to clear out of media and observers, leaving them within a few feet of each other a couple table rows apart. Brady stood first and wandered over to one wood-paneled wall of the ornate courtroom. He stuffed his hands in his pocket, looking as intense as any tight fourth-quarter drive. Feely stood by his side and the two eventually hugged. Goodell, seated in front, stood slowly and also put his hands in his pocket, looking down and then turning in the opposite direction of Brady, trying to wear a face of nonchalance. Eight months into this scandal, after swings of allegations and misrepresentations, of false media leaks and broadside-legal attacks, the distrust and disgust were clear: Two men known for their ability to smoothly glide through life, with fashion and fabulous hair, looked strangely uncomfortable. No one ever wants to sit in this position, leaving it to another man, federal judge or not, to declare whether he or she is a cheat or a fraud or a bully or a bum. Here these two are though, going down that awkward path together. Their lives are seemingly too charmed for this, yet they were like a couple of rivals on opposite sides of the schoolyard, unwilling to even acknowledge the other's presence in front of onlookers. The stakes seem higher for Goodell, if only because his legal argument here is based on the 1981 Supreme Court decision MLBPA v. Garvey, which essentially prohibits judges from interfering with the decision of arbitrators even if they are horrendously flawed or based on inaccurate facts. Arguing you have the right to be a dictator isn't ideal in public relations terms. As such, Goodell and the NFL could certainly prevail in front of Berman but do so via a ruling full of the same kind of harsh verbiage that the judge used during two prior public sessions. It's clear that no matter which way Berman goes, he looked upon the NFL's judicial system in general, and the league's conduct in this case specifically, as lacking any semblance of fairness or competency. He could unload in the ruling and leave Goodell laid out, even if he's technically victorious. That's the risk Goodell was willing to take. And one Brady is willing to go with, essentially entering the verdict stage with a two-pronged chance at redemption – either total or at least in the court of public opinion. A loss and a four-game suspension would hurt, but he could at least point to an impartial federal judge down in New York agreeing that Goodell is out of line. It's certainly reasonable that the NFL initially erred when it failed to comprehend Ideal Gas Law and thus initially thought any Patriots football that measured below 12.5 pounds per square inch of inflation was a sign of nefarious conduct. It immediately went after a speeding ticket like a homicide case. But by the time the league should've have dialed it back, it had already leaked prejudicial stories and begun building a case against Brady and two Patriots locker room attendants. The NFL never was able to find a smoking gun or much more than suspicions, but that didn't matter. The NFL not only never backed down, it just kept doubling down, believing the full force of the league's power – both in the CBA and in its ability to manipulate national reporters – would overwhelm Brady. The league may be correct and on the verge of a show-of-force victory. It may be wrong and headed for a comeuppance. It's all up to Judge Berman now. Who knows what he thinks and who knows what he'll rule. On Monday he seemed eager to make it known though as he sent the two men in fancy blue suits off into the Manhattan morning, Goodell via a black Escalade, Brady in a Chevy Suburban. Each is left awaiting his word. The QB v. the Commissioner, it's all or everything now.
Posts: 43,125

09-08-2015, 08:32 AM	#602
Amnorix In BB I trust Join Date: May 2003 Location: Boston, Mass. Casino cash: $10029808	Meanwhile, I'm sure that the timing of having this ESPN story come out just before the Commissioner admits he may be willing to change the way things are done is just a massive coinkydinky! User Actions Follow Ben VolinVerified account ‏@BenVolin So many bombshells today. Roger Goodell just said he's willing to take a step back as discipline chief and hardly anyone is talking about it __________________ "I love signature blocks on the Internet. I get to put whatever the hell I want in quotes, pick a pretend author, and bang, it's like he really said it." George Washington
Posts: 43,125

09-08-2015, 08:38 AM	#606
Pasta Little Brioni Consuming CP souls Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: U.S.A. Casino cash: $328880	So they taped 40 teams from 00 to 07?. Lower than I thought but cool to see them exposed once again. __________________ **Official TFWdemB Trivia Commisioner**
Posts: 72,942

09-08-2015, 08:38 AM	#607
BryanBusby In Search of a Life Join Date: Mar 2006 Casino cash: $3169900 VARSITY	I think the bigger issue here is how much effort Goodell went through to cover things up to avoid a Congress investigation.
Posts: 22,630

09-08-2015, 08:42 AM	#611
Pasta Little Brioni Consuming CP souls Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: U.S.A. Casino cash: $328880	Maybe Krafts squad shouldn't have blatantly cheated if they didn't want the truth to come out??? __________________ **Official TFWdemB Trivia Commisioner**
Posts: 72,942