The biggest surprise thus far in the Deflategate saga brought with it something that's no surprise at all. As Patriots owner Robert Kraft left the podium after announcing the team's decision to accept the NFL's discipline, a reporter hurriedly asked how it affects Tom Brady's four-game suspension.
The Brady angle lives on while the Patriots' fight shuts down. That reinforces the notion that nobody in this controversy is bigger than the quarterback.
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If the immediate speculation — the Patriots' surrender is a trade-off for a lighter Brady sentence — turns out to be true, it proves Brady is more important than either Kraft or commissioner Roger Goodell. You can make a case that, at least right now, Brady is more powerful than both.
For a chance to retain his quarterback sooner, Kraft accepted a $1 million fine, the loss of future first- and fourth-round draft picks, and a permanent stain on the franchise's reputation. In essence, the Patriots have been busted for cheating twice during their dynasty years.
Kraft took an Alford plea. For those who don't binge-watch "Law & Order" reruns, that basically means he accepted the verdict without officially admitting guilt. It’s still on the Patriots’ record, though, and they can't erase it. If you think it rakes the nerves of the team and its fans to have Spygate thrown in their faces all the time, imagine the trolling over two recent public scandals.
Right now, the Patriots are the NFL's version of John Calipari. The difference is, their wins aren't getting vacated.
For Kraft, it appears giving in to the league is a small price to pay for several Lombardi trophies ... and possibly for a few more games for Brady to help defend the latest Super Bowl win.
The whole quid-pro-Brady portion must be resolved, of course, but the Patriots sure did get fed their lunch. Kraft was perfectly composed and dignified in issuing his proclamation about "the best interests of the New England Patriots and the NFL," and about his desire "to truly not continue the rhetoric."
But just a day earlier he had vented to the MMQB about the injustice of the Wells Report. Last week he produced the 20,000-word takedown of the report, including the Patriots' version of what "The Deflator" means. They can't take that back.
Now they’ve blinked. Maybe they were stalling; were full of hot air from the start. Or maybe they're getting something good in return.
Brady's situation is complicated, and there are no so-called "back-channel" negotiations between the league and players union on his appeal. Whatever fracture there is or was between long-time pals Goodell and Kraft because of this, it’s a paper cut compared to the acrimony with the NFLPA.
But if the NFL defuses things by slicing Brady's suspension and convinces the union that its point (about the punishment not fitting the crime) was taken, then literally everybody gets what they want.
And make no mistake: Kraft and Goodell, as well as the networks, stadiums and fans, want Brady on the field. A week or two without him isn't ideal, but it's better than a month.
All things considered, NFL players are as powerless as any group of professional athletes. But if one player has ever had muscles to flex, Brady has them right now.
He may need the NFL and the Patriots as a vehicle for fame and riches, but they need him more.
