NEW YORK (AP) – Nearly two dozen engineering and physics professors weighed in Tuesday with a federal appeals court being asked to review New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady’s four-game suspension for “Deflategate.”
Papers filed with the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said these experts believe the 2nd Circuit’s ruling upholding the suspension lacks any scientific proof and the appeals judges should reconsider an April decision that reinstated Brady’s suspension.
“In the name of science, we support the petition for rehearing,” the papers said.
The documents said it was no surprise to any scientist when the NFL discovered that the Patriots’ footballs had lost pressure when New England routed the Indianapolis Colts 45-7 in the 2015 AFC Championship game. They said deflation happens naturally when a closed vessel such as a football moves from a warm environment to a cold one.
“This is not tampering. It is science. And it pervades the NFL. Games routinely are played with footballs that fall below the league’s minimum pressure requirement,” the papers said. “Courts should not be powerless to consider the absence of scientific proof when a proceeding is so interlaced with laws of science.”