New England quarterback Tom Brady was expected to file a formal appeal of the four-game suspension the N.F.L. gave him in response to a report on the Patriots’ deflated footballs for the A.F.C. championship game.
Brady, who is hoping to have the suspension reduced or thrown out entirely, was accused in the report, commissioned by the league, of being “generally aware” of a scheme to lower the footballs’ air pressure below the permissible range for the A.F.C. title game on Jan. 18 against the Indianapolis Colts. A part-time Patriots employee is accused of carrying out the deed.