Back in February, some NFL executives speculated that Robert Kraft could face a harsher punishment than Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay's four-game suspension.
It appears that sentiment has changed. A lot.
The MMQB's Albert Breer spoke to multiple NFL executives who now believe the league won't discipline the New England Patriots owner at all for his role in a solicitation of prostitution scandal in Florida.
Here's Breer:
Asked if he thinks Kraft will be sanctioned late Wednesday, one NFC team exec answered, "No, nor should he be." An owner from another NFC team, when asked the same question, said, "I’d be pretty surprised if he was."
Breer added that "most owners and team executives sure seem to have cooled" on the idea that the NFL should punish Kraft and quoted a source at the NFL Players Association as saying, "I’m not sure it’s really relevant for us."
The key to Kraft's case against his two misdemeanor charges for soliciting prostitution is video evidence from inside the Orchids of Asia Day Spa. As of now, Kraft seems to be winning the battle to keep that video out of the public eye, successfully filing a motion to have video evidence suppressed on the grounds that it was obtained illegally.
Breer notes the NFL has never punished someone for a misdemeanor charge without a conviction, so if Kraft has his case dismissed, it seems likely he wouldn't be disciplined, either.
New England Patriots
Prosecutors have appealed a Florida judge's motion to suppress the video, but that appeal won't be heard until Sept. 4 at the earliest, so it's looking more likely the Patriots owner will be in attendance when New England's latest Super Bowl banner gets raised at Gillette Stadium.
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