McCann: 'Likelihood Is That Tom Brady Won't Be Playing In Week 1'
BOSTON (CBS) -- With Tom Brady's official appeal for a rehearing coming on Monday, WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Adam Kaufman talked with SI legal analyst Michael McCann about what to expect.
McCann made it clear in saying that the odds are not in Brady's favor.
"For Brady to continue the case at the Second Circuit level, it's probably 1 percent," McCann said. "It may be a little bit better because of some factors in this case, but not a whole lot better. He's fighting against the odds -- odds that are surmountable, but certainly not good."
However, as Kaufman noted, the unexpected outcome has become the norm for this case throughout the whole year-and-a-half ordeal.
"Yeah, both at the district court level and at the appellate level, the outcome that wasn't supposed to happen in terms of odds did happen," McCann agreed. "So, in that respect, Brady should feel good in that what's occurred so far -- which is Judge Berman vacating Roger Goodell's arbitration award -- that was unlikely to happen, and it did. And then of course, the three judges -- two of them at least -- reversing Judge Berman. That was unlikely to happen, and it did. So maybe the track record will continue for Brady."
What Brady needs to happen now is for seven of the 13 Second Circuit judges to decide that the case is worth rehearing again. That rarely happens.
"It's very hard to get, but there's no harm in trying," McCann said.
So if that plan fails, Brady's next step will be to appeal to the Supreme Court. That, too, is a long shot.
"It's extremely unlikely. Not zero, though. But extremely unlikely that this case will get to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court only takes about 1 percent of cases," McCann explained. "This case is certainly important for all of us sports fans and the like, and certainly important in New England, but it isn't that consequential in terms of the law and federal policy."
It's been reported that even if Brady doesn't win his appeal, he can be granted a stay of suspension while he continues the appeals process. But McCann indicated that such a granting is no sure thing.
"It just isn't likely, if we're looking at probability. Stays are very hard to get, [especially] stays without a showing of a likelihood of winning on the merits -- which is hard to show because Brady lost at the appellate court level. So if we're looking at likelihood, then the likelihood is that he won't be playing in Week 1," McCann noted. "That said, like we talked about earlier, this has not been a predictable case, and odds have sort of been thrown out."
Listen to the full interview for more from Michael McCann:
