Robert Kraft: Tom Brady told me he was innocent
The lawyers have spoken. Now it’s Robert Kraft’s turn.
The New England Patriots owner sounded off on the Deflategate findings of investigator Ted Wells and the punishments levied by the NFL in an interview with TheMMQB.com’s Peter King published on Monday.
In his first interview since the NFL’s discipline was handed out last week, Kraft tells King that he remains convinced that Tom Brady had no role in any scheme to deflate footballs before the AFC Championship game against the Indianapolis Colts in January.
Kraft was asked if Brady told him personally that he was innocent. “Yes,’’ the Patriots owner said. “Because we had the discussion—if you did it, let’s just deal with it and take our hit and move on. I’ve known Tommy 16 years, almost half his life. He’s a man, and he’s always been honest with me, and I trust him. I believed what he told me. He has never lied to me, and I have found no hard or conclusive evidence to the contrary.’’
According to King, Kraft sounded “alternately defiant and angry’’ during the 50-minute interview conducted by phone on Saturday.
“This whole thing has been very disturbing,’’ Kraft said. “I’m still thinking things out very carefully. But when you work for something your whole life …
“I just get really worked up. To receive the harshest penalty in league history is just not fair. The anger and frustration with this process, to me, it wasn’t fair. If we’re giving all the power to the NFL and the office of the commissioner, this is something that can happen to all 32 teams. We need to have fair and balanced investigating and reporting. But in this report, every inference went against us … inferences from ambiguous, circumstantial evidence all went against us. That’s the thing that really bothers me.
“If they want to penalize us because there’s an aroma around this? That’s what this feels like. If you don’t have the so-called smoking gun, it really is frustrating. And they don’t have it. This thing never should have risen to this level.’’
Brady appealed the decision to suspend him for four games via the National Football League Players Association on Thursday. The Patriots were fined $1 million and docked a 2016 first-round draft pick and 2017 fourth-round selection.
When Kraft was asked about his relationship with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell — who he is expected to see at the NFL owner’s meetings in San Francisco this week — he replied: “You’ll have to ask him.’’
Kraft would not say whether or not he would fight the NFL in an effort to get the penalties —a four-game ban for Brady, a $1 million fine for the team, and the loss of first-round and fourth-round draft choices— overturned. “I’m not going to comment on that at this point in time,’’ Kraft said. “I’m going to leave it. I won’t say.’’
Regarding the team suspensions of employees Jim McNally and John Jastremski, Kraft would not comment for what he claimed to King were a “variety of reasons.’’
Read the full Kraft Q&A from MMBQ here.
Timeline of Deflategate
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