Roger Goodell confirms he will not recuse himself from Brady appeal

Unsurprisingly, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell won’t recuse himself from the Tom Brady appeal.

Goodell officially informed the NFLPA of his decision Tuesday, confirming his decision to personally preside over the hearing regarding the New England Patriots quarterback’s four-game deflate-gate suspension.

"Our Collective Bargaining Agreement provides that ‘at his discretion,’ the Commissioner may serve as hearing officer in ‘any appeal’ involving conduct detrimental to the integrity of, or public confidence in, the game of professional football. I will exercise that discretion to hear Mr. Brady’s appeal,” Goodell’s letter reads, via NFL Network’s Albert Breer.

The NFLPA said in its appeal that the process followed to reach Brady’s punishment (namely Goodell assigning the duty to executive vp of football operations Troy Vincent) “contained procedural violations” of the collective bargaining agreement and that the commissioner “must designate a neutral party to serve as an arbitrator in this matter.”

In his letter, Goodell said the NFLPA’s arguments have no merit.

“Based on the unambiguous language and structure of the CBA, as well as common sense, I conclude that none of the arguments advanced by the NFLPA has merit,” Goodell wrote. “First, the NFLPA argues that I may not serve as hearing officer because Mr. Brady’s discipline letter was signed by NFL executive vice president Troy Vincent rather than by me. I disagree. The identity of the person who signed the disciplinary letter is irrelevant. The signatory’s identity does not influence in any way my evaluation of the issues; any suggestion to the contrary defies common sense.”

The NFLPA contends that Goodell is a “central witness” in the appeal hearing, and therefore should not preside over it. Goodell, of course, thinks otherwise.

“I have carefully considered this argument and reject its premise,” Goodell wrote. “I am not a necessary or even an appropriate witness, much less a “central witness” as the NFLPA contends. I do not have any first-hand knowledge of any of the events at issue. Nor did I play a role in the investigation that led to Mr. Brady’s discipline. Furthermore, there is no reasonable basis for dispute -- or for any testimony -- about authority for the discipline reflected in the letter signed by Mr. Vincent.”

Goodell also took umbrage with the NFLPA’s statement that he has “prejudged” Brady’s punishment and could not come to a fair decision relative to his “evident partiality with respect to the Wells report.”

“I have publicly expressed my appreciation to Mr. Wells and his colleagues for their thorough and independent work. But that does not mean that I am wedded to their conclusions or to their assessment of the facts. Nor does it mean that, after considering the evidence and argument presented during the appeal, I may not reach a different conclusion about Mr. Brady’s conduct or the discipline imposed,” Goodell wrote.

“That is true even though the initial discipline decision was reached after extensive discussion and in reliance on the critical importance of protecting the integrity of the game. As I have said publicly, I very much look forward to hearing from Mr. Brady and to considering any new information or evidence that he may bring to my attention. My mind is open; there has been no “prejudgment” and no bias that warrants recusal.”

According to Ben Volin of the Boston Globe, Goodell will hear Brady’s appeal on June 23.