Kraft believes in Brady's innocence

May 18, 2015 - 4:27 PM (SportsNetwork.com) - New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft apparently believes quarterback Tom Brady did not have footballs altered in the AFC Championship Game four months ago as alleged in the Wells Report.

Kraft, in an interview with the Monday Morning Quarterback written by Peter King, said he believed Brady was innocent.

"We had the discussion -- if you did it, let's just deal with it and take our hit and move on," Kraft told King. "I've known Tommy 16 years, almost half his life. He's a man, and he's always been honest with me, and I trust him. I believed what he told me. He has never lied to me, and I have found no hard or conclusive evidence to the contrary."

Kraft and the Patriots issued a response to the 243-page Wells Report last week and the owner told King for the Monday Morning Quarterback publication he didn't think the league's penalties of a four-game suspension for Brady, the loss of two draft picks and a fine of $1 million were fair.

"I just get really worked up," Kraft said. "To receive the harshest penalty in league history is just not fair. We need to have fair and balanced investigating and reporting. But in this report, every inference went against us ... inferences from ambiguous, circumstantial evidence all went against us. That's the thing that really bothers me."

Kraft wouldn't comment to questions concerning the team's suspensions of locker room attendant Jim McNally and equipment assistant John Jastremski, both of whom were central figures in the investigation into "Deflategate." He also wouldn't discuss his often cordial relationship with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, telling King to ask Goodell.

The two will be together this week for the league's spring meetings in San Francisco.