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Tom Brady “Disappointed” by NFL’s Deflategate Decision to Uphold Four-Game Suspension, Files Lawsuit

Tom Brady
Tom Brady released a statement via Facebook on Wednesday, July 29, criticizing the NFL's decision to uphold his four-game suspension after Deflategate: "I am very disappointed," he wrote.

Update: According to the Associated Press, Tom Brady has filed a lawsuit against the NFL, claiming that the league had no right to suspend him following Deflategate. Brady, along with the NFL Players Association, filed the lawsuit in Minnesota on Wednesday, July 29.

Original story:

Tom Brady released a lengthy statement via Facebook on Wednesday, July 29, ripping the NFL for standing by its suspension decision following the New England Patriots' Deflategate scandal. Several hours later, Patriots owner Bob Kraft defended the NFL superstar in a separate statement.

"I am very disappointed by the NFL’s decision to uphold the 4 game suspension against me," Gisele Bundchen's husband first wrote on Wednesday. "I did nothing wrong, and no one in the Patriots organization did either."

Related: PHOTOS: Tom and Gisele's most romantic moments

Brady reasoned that he complied with both the organization and investigators. "Despite submitting to hours of testimony over the past 6 months, it is disappointing that the Commissioner upheld my suspension based upon a standard that it was 'probable' that I was 'generally aware' of misconduct," he continued. "The fact is that neither I, nor any equipment person, did anything of which we have been accused. He dismissed my hours of testimony and it is disappointing that he found it unreliable."

A preliminary investigation report, commissioned by the NFL, was revealed this past May, and claimed that Brady had knowledge of two Pats staffers deflating footballs, which helped the team nab the AFC Championship in January. While there was no evidence that Brady directly tampered with the balls, the investigator found that he was "at least generally aware of the inappropriate activities of [locker room attendant Jim] McNally and [equipment assistant John] Jastremski."

Related: PHOTOS: Celebrity wives and girlfriends of NFL players!

The Super Bowl MVP wrote on Wednesday that he took issue with the current "narrative" and allegations that he supposedly destroyed his cellphone leading up to the ruling. "I replaced my broken Samsung phone with a new iPhone 6 AFTER my attorneys made it clear to the NFL that my actual phone device would not be subjected to investigation under ANY circumstances," he wrote. "As a member of a union, I was under no obligation to set a new precedent going forward, nor was I made aware at any time during Mr. Wells' investigation, that failing to subject my cellphone to investigation would result in ANY discipline."

Brady further argued that he had never exchanged communication with McNally and Jastremski about deflating the balls, as alleged in the report. "Most importantly, I have never written, texted, emailed to anybody at anytime, anything related to football air pressure before this issue was raised at the AFC Championship game in January. To suggest that I destroyed a phone to avoid giving the NFL information it requested is completely wrong," he wrote.

"To try and reconcile the record and fully cooperate with the investigation after I was disciplined in May, we turned over detailed pages of cellphone records and all of the emails that Mr. Wells [the lawyer tasked by League Commissioner Roger Goodell to prepare the report] requested. We even contacted the phone company to see if there was any possible way we could retrieve any/all of the actual text messages from my old phone," Brady wrote.

"In short, we exhausted every possibility to give the NFL everything we could and offered to go thru the identity for every text and phone call during the relevant time. Regardless, the NFL knows that Mr. Wells already had ALL relevant communications with Patriots personnel that either Mr. Wells saw or that I was questioned about in my appeal hearing. There is no 'smoking gun' and this controversy is manufactured to distract from the fact they have zero evidence of wrongdoing."

Related: PHOTOS: Kristin Cavallari's life as a mom with Jay Cutler

He concluded: “I authorized the NFLPA to make a settlement offer to the NFL so that we could avoid going to court and put this inconsequential issue behind us as we move forward into this season. The discipline was upheld without any counter offer. I respect the Commissioner's authority, but he also has to respect the CBA and my rights as a private citizen. I will not allow my unfair discipline to become a precedent for other NFL players without a fight."

Brady then expressed gratitude toward his supporters, including his supermodel wife and three kids. Patriots fans like Mark Wahlberg have also come forward to defend the beloved quarterback. "Lastly, I am overwhelmed and humbled by the support of family, friends, and our fans who have supported me since the false accusations were made after the AFC Championship game," Brady wrote. "I look forward to the opportunity to resume playing with my teammates and winning more games for the New England Patriots."

Like Brady, the New England team's owner Bob Kraft also voiced frustration about the suspension. "I was wrong to put my faith in the league," Kraft said via ABC News. The team owner added that Brady "is a person of great integrity and is a great ambassador of the game both on and off the field."

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