Agent Don Yee has been doing only what his job entails: protecting Tom Brady. But that doesn't mean he's immune to a sharp rebuttal from Ted Wells.
NFL.com reported that Wells took exception with Yee's comments over his report on Deflategate and Brady's role. It was a rousing defense of some outlandish charges.
"When I was appointed to be the independent investigator, no one at the Patriots or in Mr. Brady's camp raised any issue about my independence or my integrity to judge the evidence impartially and fairly," Wells said in his opening remarks in a conference call to reporters. "In fact, (Patriots owner Robert) Kraft, to my recollection, publicly said he welcomed my appointment. I think it is wrong to criticize my independence just because you disagree with my findings."
Tom Brady's agent accuses NFL, Colts of conspiring to bust the Patriots quarterback
The report added that Brady was cooperative with the Wells investigation - until the issue of Brady's cell phone came up.
"I said that I don't want to see any private information," Wells said. "I said, 'You keep the phone, you the agent, Mr. Yee. You can look at the phone, you give me documents that are responsive to this investigation and I will take your word that you have given me what's responsive.' And they still refused."
Wells' sharp retort makes Yee's comments sound even more confounding.
"The Wells report, with all due respect, is a significant and terrible disappointment" Yee's response read, according to another NFL.com report. "It's omission of key facts and lines of inquiry suggest the investigators reached a conclusion first, and then determined so-called facts later. One item alone taints this entire report. What does it say about the league office's protocols and ethics when it allows one team to tip it off to an issue prior to a championship game, and no league officials or game officials notified the Patriots of the same issue prior to the game?
"This suggests it may be more probable than not that the league cooperated with the Colts in perpetrating a sting operation. The Wells report buries this issue in a footnote on page 46 without any further elaboration. The league is a significant client of the investigators' law firm; it appears to be a rich source of billings and media exposure based on content in the law firm's website."
And as for the "more probable than not" wording, Wells also provided an answer.
"I believe the conclusions have been proven. I used the words 'more probable than not' because that is what's in the rules."
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