Brady drops legal proceedings, accepts 4-game suspension

Deflategate is over.

In a stunning turn of events, Tom Brady announced Friday he's dropping the legal proceedings against the NFL and will accept his four-game suspension.

From Brady's official Facebook page:

I'm very grateful for the overwhelming support I've received from Mr. Kraft, the Kraft family, coach Belichick, my coaches and teammates, the NFLPA, my agents, my loving family and most of all, our fans. It has been a challenging 18 months and I have made the difficult decision to no longer proceed with the legal process. I'm going to work hard to be the best player I can be for the New England Patriots and I look forward to having the opportunity to return to the field this fall.

The decision comes just two days after the 2nd U.S. District Court of Appeals denied a request from the New England Patriots quarterback for a rehearing.

A statement issued by the NFLPA provided further insight into the thought process of Brady and his representation, who opted for the certainty that comes with bringing an end to the already drawn-out saga:

After careful consideration and discussion with Tom Brady, the NFLPA will not be seeking a stay of the four game suspension with the 2nd Circuit. This decision was made in the interest of certainty and planning for Tom prior to the New England Patriots season. We will continue to review all of our options and we reserve our rights to petition for cert to the Supreme Court.

Brady is permitted to play in all preseason games before his suspension officially begins heading into Week 1. The punishment requires he stay away from team facilities before returning ahead of Week 5 and being eligible to play against the Cleveland Browns.

In the absence of their star signal-caller, the Patriots will turn to 2014 second-round pick Jimmy Garoppolo for a challenging month of games against the Arizona Cardinals, Miami Dolphins, Houston Texans, and Buffalo Bills.

Though Brady's surprise decision effectively concludes his efforts to avoid the suspension, ESPN's Adam Schefter reports the NFLPA is still expected to take the case to the Supreme Court as a means of challenging commissioner Roger Goodell's power.