Claim: Tom Brady is a quarterback in the NFL.

Deflategate was a National Football League -LRB- NFL -RRB- controversy involving the allegation that the New England Patriots deliberately underinflated footballs used in their victory against the Indianapolis Colts in the American Football Conference -LRB- AFC -RRB- Championship Game of the 2014 -- 15 NFL playoffs . The controversy resulted in Patriots quarterback Tom Brady being suspended for four games and the team being fined $ 1 million and losing two draft picks .   For his alleged part in the scandal , Tom Brady was originally suspended by the league for four games of the 2015 regular season , which was upheld by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell in an internal appeal . The matter moved to federal court , where Judge Richard M. Berman vacated Goodell 's four-game suspension of Brady , allowing Brady to resume his playing duties for the entirety of the 2015 season . However , following the conclusion of the season , the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reinstated Brady 's four-game suspension , which became effective for the 2016 regular season . After losing a request for a rehearing , Brady announced he would accept the suspension . The controversy remained a topic of discussion during the 2016 season , which concluded with the Patriots winning Super Bowl LI and Brady being named the MVP of the game . The season also saw the NFL change the process for monitoring football pressure .