NEW YORK (AP) — The NFL suspended Super Bowl MVP Tom Brady for the first four games on Monday for his role in a scheme to deflate footballs used in the AFC title game.
The league also fined the Patriots $1 million and took away two draft picks, including next years’ first-round choice.
The NFL also indefinitely suspended the two equipment staffers who carried out the plan, including one who called himself “The Deflator.”
The league cited the integrity of the game in handing down the punishment five days after a report said Brady “was at least generally aware” of plans by two Patriots employees to prepare the balls to his liking, below the league-mandated minimum of 12.5 pounds per square inch.