Everything you need to know about the Wells Report

On May 6, Ted Wells released the findings from his investigation of the New England Patriots' alleged underinflating of footballs in their AFC Championship win over the Indianapolis Colts. Wells determined that it was "more probable than not" that Patriots personnel both participated in violations of league rules and were involved in a deliberate attempt to circumvent those rules.

Need to Know

• The report also states that quarterback Tom Brady was aware of the inappropriate activities and was uncooperative throughout the investigation, declining to turn over the required documentation and/or electronic materials.

• As a result of the report, the NFL suspended Brady for the first four games of the 2015 season and fined the Patriots $1 million. New England will also have to forfeit its first-round pick in the 2016 draft as well as a fourth-round pick in the 2017 draft.

Related: Everything you need to know about Brady's suspension

• On May 14, Patriots lawyers issued a lengthy, highly critical response to the Wells Report in an attempt to add what the team describes as "context" to the NFL's investigation into the "Deflategate" scandal.

• On May 19, Patriots owner Robert Kraft announced that New England "reluctantly" accepts the NFL's penalties, and will not launch an appeal with respect to the $1-million fine and draft-pick forfeitures.

• Ted Wells, author of the Wells Report, defended his findings following the backlash after the Patriots' punishment was revealed. Wells shot back at detractors, saying "I think it’s wrong to question my independence because you don’t like my findings."

• Once the report was released, newspapers were quick to poke fun at the findings, depicting everything from Brady as Pinocchio to Brady being physically deflated on their front pages.

• Patriots chairman and CEO Robert Kraft was quick to issue a statement in response to the report, expressing his disappointment and relative confusion with regard to its findings.

• Brady's agent Don Yee issued a scathing statement of the report questioning Wells' integrity and suggested investigators determined Brady's guilt before seeking facts and then built the report around that framework.

• The case began in January with the NFL looking into the possibility that New England deflated footballs during their 45-7 victory over the Colts.

• Even president Barack Obama took a jab at the Super Bowl champions when they visited the White House. "I usually tell a lot of jokes at these things, but with the Pats in town, I was afraid that 11 out of 12 of them would fall flat," Obama said.

Further Reading/Viewing

• Juliet Macur of The New York Times believes the incident will forever tarnish Brady's legacy as one of the game's best players. [The New York Times]

• Ian Crouch of The New Yorker examines the hit Brady's image will take not only from the revelation he likely cheated but the lies he likely told in the wake of his violations. [The New Yorker]

• Ian O'Connor of ESPN.com dives deeper into what this mess means for Brady's credibility moving forward. [ESPN]

• Dan Shaughnessy of The Boston Globe encourages the Patriots to come clean and start rebuilding trust, lest they tarnish their legacy irreparably. [The Boston Globe]

• Peter King of The MMQB says if NFL commissioner Roger Goodell decides to penalize Brady with a suspension or heavy fine, it will forever alter Brady's perception among peers and fans. [MMQB]

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