Tom Brady required to attend Aug. 31 hearing if no settlement

Jimmy Garoppolo can pencil in another heavy workload on Aug. 31.

U.S. District Court Judge Richard Berman said Wednesday that Tom Brady and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell will be required to attend another hearing Aug. 31 if no settlement can be reached on the New England Patriots quarterback’s suspension appeal, CSNNE.com’s Tom E. Curran reported. The sides reportedly are not close to reaching a settlement at this time.

Brady is with the Patriots in West Virginia on Wednesday, and Goodell also is not in attendance for the settlement conference in the Daniel Patrick Moynihan Courthouse. NFL Management Council Daniel Nash, Gregg Levy and Adolpho Birch are representing the league in court, while NFL Players Association executive director DeMaurice Smith, attorney Jeffrey Kessler and Brady’s agent Don Yee are present on the union’s side, Curran reports.

Berman said he intends to make a decision on Brady’s appeal by Sept. 4, but “you can’t hold me to it,” according to Curran.

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