Judge who overturned Brady suspension says 'Deflategate finally put to rest'

Tom Brady and the New England Patriots got the ultimate revenge for the quarterback's four-game suspension when they won Super Bowl LI in improbable fashion in February.

The Patriots' championship triumph put an end to the Deflategate saga and closed the book on the story that began during the 2014 playoffs. Even a U.S. district judge believes it was a fitting end.

Judge Richard Berman, the man who overturned the initial suspension handed down by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, said he was pleased with the outcome.

"I always thought in the back of my mind when I had the case, that this is a case that should be settled on the field. Not in the courts, not with an arbitrator, and ultimately, that's what happened. And in such a dramatic way that it left no doubt," Berman said to Kalyn Kahler of The MMQB.

"I think Deflategate is finally put to rest by that Super Bowl."

Berman's ruling was eventually overturned by the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals and Brady's suspension was reinstated just two months before the start of the 2016 season.

Berman was asked if he was happy to see Brady win the championship in the end.

"Yes, for a lot of reasons," he said. "Settling it on the field was really the most important to me."