NFL’s ‘Deflategate’ Investigation Almost Certainly Won’t Conclude In Time For Super Bowl Suspensions

If you’re hoping for some closure on the “deflategate” scandal by Super Bowl Sunday, tough luck. The lawyer hired by the NFL to investigate the controversy said Monday that he does not expect his investigation to conclude for “at least several more weeks.”

That means that even if there eventually are any suspensions, there’s little to no chance they will be instituted by this Sunday’s championship game between the New England Patriots and the Seattle Seahawks. The top investigator, Ted Wells, said in a statement that his team had worked through the weekend and will be “proceeding expeditiously” through Super Bowl Sunday.

Fox Sports’ Jay Glazer reported Monday that the NFL had “zeroed in” on a ball-carrying locker room attendant as a “person of interest” in the so-called deflategate controversy. A Pro Football Talk report later that night cited a source who said the attendant had carried both teams’ balls into a bathroom for roughly 90 seconds.

Wells acted as the key investigator during last year’s investigation of Richie Incognito, then of the Miami Dolphins, over his alleged harassment of Dolphins offensive lineman Jonathan Martin.

The Huffington Post