FOXBORO — When Judge Richard Berman wiped out Tom Brady's four-game suspension last Thursday, there was a sense of both shock and relief in New England. Others didn't exude any doubt of the eventual outcome.
Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger belongs in the latter camp, as he said in a conference call today.
"I wasn't surprised at all," Roethlisberger said.
Big Ben, who will line up against the Patriots in the season opener Thursday night, expressed a common critique of commissioner Roger Goodell's ruling, wondering how the NFL chief allowed the whole thing get so out of control.