The Deflategate scandal soon could reach a resolution, but things are getting a whole lot weirder.
Stephen A. Smith reported Tuesday on ESPN’s “First Take” that the NFL likely will uphold Tom Brady’s four-game suspension, with the official announcement coming in the next day or two.
That bit of news, however, was overshadowed by Smith’s next revelation about the New England Patriots quarterback.
Yes, you heard that correctly. Smith reported Brady actually destroyed his cell phone, presumably to hide some sort of evidence.
In the 200-plus-page Wells Report, independent investigator Ted Wells concluded Brady failed to cooperate with the investigation by refusing to share relevant text messages and emails. The Patriots later contended in a document titled “The Wells Report In Context” that Brady didn’t supply his texts to the NFL because the league already had them.
There’s obviously a lot of speculation involved in Smith’s report. We don’t know when Brady would have destroyed his phone, if he did at all, and it’s unknown what potential evidence his phone might have held, if any.
Yet it does seem likely the NFL will uphold Brady’s suspension. ESPN’s Adam Schefter said Tuesday the league “does not appear inclined to budge” on its initial ruling, although settlement talks between the sides still are ongoing.
Check out Smith’s full comments in the video below.
UPDATE (11:32 a.m. ET): A Patriots source has denied Smith’s report, according to Charles Robinson of Yahoo! Sports.
[tweet https://twitter.com/CharlesRobinson/status/626051004983824385 align=’center’]
Thumbnail photo via Kevin Hoffman/USA TODAY Sports Images
