Chris Mortensen of ESPN reports that Giants co-owner John Mara has declined a request that he participate directly in the talks, citing a competitive conflict of interest arising from New England’s Week Five game against the Cowboys. If Brady’s suspension is reduced by even one game, Brady will play in the post-bye contest against Dallas — and New England will be more likely to win.
Mara’s position is confusing, for various reasons. First, Mara is believed to be one of the owners pushing for the league to take a hard line with Brady. Second, if there’s any settlement of the four-game suspension, it surely would entail a reduction by at least one game. Third, perceived competitive conflicts of interest didn’t keep Mara from having direct involvement in cap penalties imposed on Dallas and Washington, or from stridently boasting that his pair of NFC East rivals were
lucky that the penalty wasn’t worse.
