FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Tom Brady appealed the four-game suspension he was given for his role in using deflated footballs during January’s A.F.C. championship game, and the players’ union urged N.F.L. Commissioner Roger Goodell to appoint a neutral arbitrator to hear the case.
The expected appeal was filed by the N.F.L. Players Association on Thursday about an hour before a 5 p.m. Eastern deadline.
The league’s collective bargaining agreement stipulates that it will be decided by Goodell or a person he designates. But the players’ union said in a news release that “given the N.