NFL should have never targeted Brady with so little evidence of involvement. If Goodell would have looked at things independently letting all statements and testimony be viewed in a fairly manner he would have dropped the suspension himself in the apeal. Clearly Goodell had sided with the bad investigation and didn't give Brady's legal team a fair chance to prove innocence or doubt. It's one thing to let owners gang up on another owner on little proof because all they had to state is balls were under and your staff took balls where they weren't supposed to, gas law or not you are punished. They have no proof of actual wrong doing by Brady himself except a failure to provide phone texts which proves nothing in terms on involvement.
The punishment was almost certainly born out of Brady's alleged failure to cooperate, rather than his wrongdoing.
Possibly. Or Goodell, once he realized he had scant direct evidence of Brady's involvement, took the "lack of cooperation" angle to try to save face.
Just reading some of today's coverage of this on ESPN, and I found this bit to be quite hilarious:
The Colts, according to a team spokesman, have no comment on the ruling. That’s been the franchise’s approach from the start because their focus has strictly been on getting better on the field, so they can try to surpass New England and the rest of the AFC to reach the Super Bowl.
First, this is, in fact, what their focus
should be.
But second ... Really? REALLY?!? How can anyone say, with a straight face, that the Colts' focus, from the start, has been on getting better so they can beat the Patriots on the field, when they're the ones who
started this whole circus, most likely because they
couldn't beat the Pats on the field? Ridiculous.