The Facts: Patriots owner Robert Kraft may have raised the white flag on Tuesday, but there’s still fights to be had over the DeflateGate discipline the NFL handed down last week. Brady’s appeal of his four-game suspension is moving forward and the NFLPA is renewing its push to have someone other than NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell determine Brady’s fate. The union issued a statement “formally” requesting that Goodell step aside as the arbitrator in favor of a neutral party.
Diehards Line:In the wake of Kraft’s announcement Tuesday and reports of “back-channel” talks between the league and the team, many people, including PFT's Mike Florio, have wondered if those backroom talks led to an agreement that Brady’s punishment would be lightened or rescinded altogether. Greg Bedard of Sports Illustrated reported that the league denied any such arrangement, which would work out well for Brady but establish the kind of precedent that’s likely to make the union’s dissatisfaction with Goodell’s role as arbitrator even greater. It’s a right the CBA gives him, though, and there’s been no sign thus far that he’s willing to give it up in this case.