On the Tuesday airing of “First Take” on ESPN2, co-host Stephen A. Smith was asked if he thought New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady would win the appeal of his four-game suspension for the use of deflated footballs. He responded by saying that there is “no way on Earth that it is fair” to Brady should be suspended the same amount of games as domestic abuser Greg Hardy of the Dallas Cowboys.
Hardy was initially suspended 10 games for being found guilty of multiple brutal attacks of his then girlfriend Nicole Holder, but the suspension was later knocked down to four games.
“I’m on the record saying and I don’t care what anybody says, there is no way on Earth that it is fair to the great Tom Brady to have him suspended for as many games as Greg Hardy,” Smith began. “One has nothing to do with the other. We understand that, but this man was found guilty in the state of North Carolina via a bench trial by a judge for domestic violence. You can’t suspend Tom Brady the same amount of games as him. But you can send a message to Tom Brady.”
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