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New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft held an impromptu press conference at the owners meeting today in which he announced that his team will accept the NFL's penalties for the Deflategate scandal. This means that his franchise will be sanctioned as follows:
- The Patriots' 2016 first round draft pick will be forfeited.
- The Patriots' 2017 fourth round draft pick will be forfeited.
- The Patriots have to pay a $1,000,000 fine.
Kraft started his press conference criticizing the four month length of the investigation process before saying that he has two options: extend it or end it.
He then went on to talk about when he became owner of the Patriots and how he felt that the agenda of one team should not overshadow the other 31. Even though he disagrees with the findings of the report as well as the NFL's penalty imposed, he would reluctantly accept it in order to "end it".
While the Patriots as a team will accept the league's sanctions, Tom Brady will still appeal his four-game suspension.