No settlement was reached in talks between the NFL and lawyers for Tom Brady at a New York Federal court house Monday morning.
Judge Richard Berman engaged the two sides in settlement talks for weeks, but he quickly announced Monday that those talks are over. The public portion of the hearing lasted only four minutes on Monday before Berman sent everyone home for the day. Berman then issued an order Tuesday afternoon stating that "the Court anticipates issuing its Decision and Order by the end of the week."
Brady was believed to be open to accepting a one-game suspension for not cooperating in Ted Wells' investigation as part of a potential settlement, a source briefed on Brady's thinking told NFL Media Insider Ian Rapoport. Brady was still willing to accept the potential settlement heading into Monday's hearing.
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and Tom Brady were both in attendance for Monday's session. NFL Media legal analyst Gabe Feldman, who was in the court room, relayed Berman's words that some cases are simply not able to be settled.
Brady was suspended four games on May 11 after a report by Wells, an investigator contracted by the league, asserted Brady's connection to the deflation of footballs used in the AFC Championship Game, which the Patriots won, 45-7. Goodell upheld the suspension on July 28.
The Patriots' franchise was also handed down discipline stemming from the incident, but owner Robert Kraft ultimately chose not to fight those sanctions, which included a $1 million fine and the loss of a 2016 first-round pick and 2017 fourth-round selection.
