NEW YORK — A judge's ruling freeing New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady to play football erased his four-game suspension but failed to address the root question of the "Deflategate" scandal: What did Brady know about a plot to deflate balls before January's AFC championship game?
U.S. District Judge Richard M. Berman thoroughly trashed NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell's handling of the NFL disciplinary process in his Thursday ruling, but did little to cast aside the perception by some that Brady knew more than he was willing to reveal about the scheme the league has blamed on Patriots ball handlers.