It’s been nearly a month since Tom Brady appealed his four-game Deflategate suspension, and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has yet to announce whether he will uphold or modify the four-time Super Bowl winner’s punishment.

Speaking on NBC Sports Radio on Wednesday, the NFL Players’ Association president, Eric Winston, expressed frustration over the NFL’s handling of Brady’s appeal and said the union is prepared to “take the next step” if Goodell doesn’t overturn the suspension.

“It’s not even worth trying to guess what’s going on because it doesn’t seem like all the time that they know what’s going on,” Winston said. “I hope they do the right thing; I hope they exonerate Tom and overturn his suspension, but if they don’t we’re prepared to take the next step.”

It’s unclear what steps the players’ union might take if Brady’s suspension isn’t dissolved, but Brady, reportedly, is prepared to fight any suspension in federal court. To defend him in the Deflategate case, Brady retained lawyer Jeffrey Kessler, who has successfully fought the NFL on multiple occasions, including the New Orleans Saints’ Bountygate scandal in 2008.

The NFL suspended Brady in May after an NFL-commissioned investigation by lawyer Ted Wells concluded it was “more probable than not” that Brady was “generally aware” of team attendants deflating footballs prior to the AFC championship game against the Colts on Jan. 18. Brady has denied any wrongdoing.

BILLS: The foundation created by late team owner Ralph Wilson will deliver $1.2 billion over the next 20 years to causes in western New York and southeastern Michigan.

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The Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation is funded with proceeds from the sale of the Bills after the death of the franchise’s founder in 2014.

SAINTS: The Saints placed draft choices Davis Tull and Marcus Murphy, and rookie free agent Antonio Johnson on their non-football injury list.

BROWNS: The Browns signed offensive lineman Joe Madsen, and placed rookie draft picks Ifo Ekpre-Olomu and Randall Telfer on the active/non-football injury list.

Madsen signed with the Steelers in 2013 as an undrafted free agent. He spent three weeks last season on Green Bay’s practice squad and also played for the Los Angeles KISS in the Arena League.


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