New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady is still banned to play in the initial four games of the upcoming season. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has decided to uphold the league's decision after Brady appealed the penalty, which stemmed from the "Deflategate" issue.

Brady's sanction resulted from independent investigator Ted Wells' findings, which stated that "more probable than not," the quarterback "was at least generally aware of the inappropriate activities" of Jim McNally and John Jastremski, members of the Patriots' crew. They were accused of deflating the footballs during the championship match with the Indianapolis Colts, NFL.com noted in May.

Rumored settlement discussions

The California-born football player appealed his "Deflategate" penalty last month, and it lasted for 10 hours at the at the NFL headquarters. In his appeal, a source told USA Today that Brady stood by his statements, as he maintained innocence on any "scheme to deflate footballs," during the AFC match.

Brady was said to have been in "settlement" talks with the NFL while Goodell has kept mum about the specifics of the appeal and its outcome, a source relayed to ProFootballTalk.

Goodell's verdict

Goodell stated that before he gives the decision on the matter, he wanted that "all aspects of his appeal" were considered and that they wanted to be "very thorough" on this, ESPN informed.

On Tuesday, the commissioner finally released the verdict and Brady's suspension was not lifted. In addition, new information about Brady put the star player in a bad light, NFL.com reported.

"The most significant new information that emerged in connection with the appeal was evidence that on or about March 6, 2015 -- the very day that he was interviewed by Mr. (Ted) Wells and his investigated team -- Mr. Brady instructed his assistant to destroy the cellphone that he had been using since early 2014, a period that included that AFC Championship Game and the initial weeks of the subsequent investigation," Goodell stated in the decision.

"During the four months that the cell phone was in use, Brady had exchanged nearly 10,000 text messages, none of which can now be retrieved from that device. The destruction of the cell phone was not disclosed until June 18, almost four months after the investigators had first sought electronic information from Brady," the commissioner wrote.

However, Brady's camp will take their chance on another legal procedure, which is to get an injunction so that the star quarterback can continue to play on the field while the case is being heard in court. The NFLPA reportedly plans to file the suit in Minnesota on Wednesday, according to NFL insider Ian Rapoport.

Related