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Unless you have been living under a rock, you are aware of the ‘Deflategate’ scandal involving the New England Patriots, and the accusation that they intentionally deflated at least one of the footballs used in the Conference game against the Indianapolis Colts back in the 2014 postseason. Since then, there have been judgements, appeals, and finally a Federal Appeals Court case, in which Tom Brady tried to counter the decision that he would be suspended for 4 games in the 2016 campaign.

If Brady chooses to, he still has the right to appeal to the Supreme Court, but you have to wonder if he has had enough, and will finally accept his suspension. In order to appeal to SCOTUS, Brady must receive a stay from a lower court in order for his case to even be considered by them.

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The verdict came in this morning, and in a not-so-surprising turn of events, it appears that Tom Brady will in fact be suspended for the first 4 games of the 2016 season. What does this mean for the beginning of the Patriots’ season? Can Jimmy Garoppolo lead the Patriots to a positive, or even 2-2 record within those first 4 games? Does Tom Brady come back with a fire under him due to his suspension?

The Patriots start the season off with a relatively difficult first four games by facing the Cardinals in Glendale, a division rival (Dolphins), a J.J. Watt led defense and revamped offense in the Texans, and finishing against the Bills, another decent defense. If Jimmy G cannot lead the Patriots to victories in at least 3 of these games, there is a very real chance that we could see the Patriots topple from their perch on top of the division this year.