NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has insisted that he has no plans to overturn the four-game suspension of New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady.
The 38-year-old was banned by the league for being generally aware that members of the Patriots' equipment staff had deflated footballs in their AFC championship win over the Indianapolis Colts, which was upheld on appeal by Goodell.
Brady authorised the NFL Players Association to take the matter to court where judge Richard Berman has urged the sides to come to a settlement, although Goodell has revealed he has no intention of reducing the ban.
"The integrity of the game is the most important thing," Goodell told The Repository. "The integrity of the game is something we will always protect. The rules apply to everybody.
"That is my job in particular, to make sure everyone from our players to our coach, to our fans and our partners, that they all recognize we're going to play by these sets of rules, and that's part of our values and standards.
"Listen, he's a great player and he's a great young man. We issued the decision just last week. We're in the midst of litigation to ensure that that's enforced the way we ruled on that, after a long process that is established in our collective bargaining agreement. That's something we'll play through."
The NFL and the NFLPA are due to meet in court with Brady and Goodell on August 12.
