NFL, NFLPA have until Wednesday to select date for Tom Brady's appeal
Tom Brady's appeal of his four-game suspension for his role in the deflated footballs scandal won't be heard by Wednesday, two people familiar with the situation tell The Associated Press.
Both sources spoke on condition of anonymity Monday because no date for the appeal has been set. The collective bargaining agreement calls for the date of the hearing to be chosen within a 10-day window.
On the Brady appeal -- the 10-day rule is about setting the date, not holding the actual hearing. And if sides agree to push that, they can.
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) May 25, 2015
The union asked Commissioner Roger Goodell to recuse himself from hearing the appeal because it said he lacked impartiality and he would be called as a witness.
Goodell will not withdraw from what he considers his responsibility of hearing the appeal, according to several people with knowledge of the decision.
Troy Vincent, the league's executive vice president of football operations, handed down the suspension to three-time Super Bowl MVP Brady, one of the sport's biggest stars. Vincent also fined the Patriots $1 million and stripped them of a first-round draft pick next year and a fourth-rounder in 2017.
Patriots owner Robert Kraft said last week he will not appeal the team's penalties.
-with files from theScore