Robert Kraft said he had two options when it came to the controversy swirling around Deflategate: He could end it or extend it.
In the end, he chose to end it.
In a statement to reporters at the owners meetings in San Francisco, the Patriots chairman and CEO announced that he would accept the punishment that the NFL had levied on his team.
"What I've learned over the last two decades is that the heart and soul of the strength of the NFL is that it's a partnership of 32 teams," Kraft said. "What's become very clear over those two decades is that at no time should the agenda of one team outweigh the collective good of the full 32.
"I have a way of looking at problems that are very strong in my mind. Before I make a final decision, I measure nine times and cut once. I feel like if I had made the decision last week, it would have been different than it is today. But believing in the strength of the partnership and the 32 teams, we have concentrated the power of adjudication of problems to the office of the commissioner. Although I may disagree with what has been decided, I do have respect for the commissioner and believe he is doing what he perceives to be in the best interest of the full 32.
"In that spirit, I don't want to continue the rhetoric that has gone on over the last four months. I am going to accept, reluctantly, what he's given to us."
The Patriots were fined $1 million and docked two draft picks -- a first-rounder in 2016 and a fourth-rounder in 2017 -- following the release of the Wells Report.
New England Patriots
Patriots quarterback Tom Brady was suspended four games for what the league deemed to be his role in the illegal deflation of game footballs. Brady has filed an appeal of his punishment through the NFLPA, and following Kraft's remarks on Tuesday, the players' association tweeted that it would not alter its course.
More to come . . .