FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Coach Bill Belichick shed little light Friday in his first public remarks since the report was issued on the Patriots’ use of deflated footballs.
He avoided direct answers to most of the 10 questions he was asked about Tom Brady, backup quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo and how the team was handling the fallout from the investigation.
Brady, who is appealing the four-game suspension he received following the investigation, did not speak with reporters after New England’s organized team activity. A person familiar with the situation said Brady’s appeal will be heard on June 23.
Patriots owner Robert Kraft, meanwhile, has accepted the team penalty of a $1 million fine and the loss of two draft picks.
Asked if he agreed with that decision, Belichick said, “He made a statement on it last week.”
The rest of his answers focused mostly on the need to improve every day and to work hard.
Asked if he was preparing to start the season with Garoppolo as the starter, Belichick said, “I’m just going day by day right now. Everybody’s working hard trying to get better.”
How tough was it to watch the scandal unfold during the past month?
“We’re just working hard every day to come out here and get better – coaches, players, everybody in the organization,” he said.
Did the issue detract from the team’s enjoyment of its Super Bowl win over the Seattle Seahawks?
“That’s a long time ago,” Belichick said. “We’re on to next year.”
Brady spent the workout lofting passes, handing the ball off and waiting his turn while other quarterbacks got theirs.
In a 243-page report issued May 6, NFL investigator Ted Wells found that Patriots employees violated NFL rules covering game balls and that Brady was “at least generally aware” of plans to doctor the footballs to his liking.
The following night at an appearance before a friendly crowd at Salem State University, Brady said he hadn’t read the report and would reserve comment. He did say “absolutely not” when asked if the investigation tainted the Super Bowl win.
On May 11, the NFL announced its punishment. Brady and the players’ union had has asked Commissioner Roger Goodell to step aside from the hearing. But Goodell says he wants to hear the appeal himself.
It was business as usual on Friday, though, on the third and final day of OTAs this week.
“It’s cool being on this team and in this atmosphere just because you wouldn’t know (about) everything going on outside when you come in this building,” safety Devin McCourty said. “Every day we come in here, Coach Belichick has a list of stuff we need to get done in practice.
“Guys are so focused on those little things and trying to get better that we really don’t have time to focus on other stuff.”
Brady took nearly every snap last season. But he may not take any in the first four games this year.
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