PITTSBURGH — Tom Brady is free and Ramon Foster can't help but laugh. Sorry, the irony is just a little too delicious.
The Pittsburgh Steelers' guard remembers joining the rest of his teammates in declining to ratify the new collective bargaining agreement between the owners and the NFL Players Association in the summer of 2011 because of concerns it gave Commissioner Roger Goodell too much authority.
Now Foster was sitting in his locker Thursday night praising the New England Patriots' quarterback for making a stand against Goodell, a stand the Steelers felt obligated to make four years ago while the other 31 teams — the Patriots included — rushed to get back on the field and get paid following a four-month lockout.