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Deflategate saga far from over if Brady keeps fighting

FILE - In this Nov. 3, 2013, file photo, New England Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, right, talks to quarterback Tom Brady during the fourth quarter of an NFL football game against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Foxborough, Mass. A federal appeals court has ruled, Monday, April 25, 2016, that New England Patriots Tom Brady must serve a four-game "Deflategate" suspension imposed by the NFL, overturning a lower judge and siding with the league in a battle with the players union. (AP Photo/Steven Senne, File)
FILE - In this Nov. 3, 2013, file photo, New England Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, right, talks to quarterback Tom Brady during the fourth quarter of an NFL football game against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Foxborough, Mass. A federal appeals court has ruled, Monday, April 25, 2016, that New England Patriots Tom Brady must serve a four-game "Deflategate" suspension imposed by the NFL, overturning a lower judge and siding with the league in a battle with the players union. (AP Photo/Steven Senne, File)

By Associated Press 2 min read

Tom Brady won Round 1. The NFL won Round 2. Round 3, anyone?

The “Deflategate” saga will continue if Brady insists on fighting his four-game suspension. There’s no reason to think he’s willing to accept it despite long odds to win another court battle and the possibility that more litigation can drag on into next year.

Manhattan Judge Richard Berman overturned the suspension last September, allowing Brady to play the 2015 season. A three-judge panel of a federal appeals court ruled 2-to-1 on Monday in favor of the NFL and Commissioner Roger Goodell, reinstating the suspension.

But that doesn’t mean the New England Patriots definitely won’t have their four-time Super Bowl champion quarterback the first month of the season.

Here’s what can happen next: