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New England Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman already addressed his four-game suspension for violating the NFL's policy on performance-enhancing substances once in the form of an Instagram post. But now, he’s finally done so in person.
Edelman expressed his disappointment with the whole situation, but he ultimately owned up to his actions and accepted his punishment.
“Obviously, you're disappointed with it, but I got to follow the protocols a little better and make sure this never happens again,” Edelman said per Mike Reiss of ESPN. “I'm accountable for my actions.”
Edelman also points out that he’s put the incident behind him and is now focused on getting back to full health for this year following the ACL injury which cost him all of last season.
“Ultimately, my focus now is getting my knee right and going out and trying to play football at a high level,” Edelman said. “It was a helluva year to just sit and watch your team go to a Super Bowl and play without you and you're on the couch. It was tough. But I'm excited to be out here, and I'm excited to work my game.”
Obviously, it’s not ideal for the Patriots to be without arguably their No. 1 receiver for the first quarter of the season. But the Pats did well without Edelman after he went down last season, and they should be ready to do so again this year.
With Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski capable of carrying the offense, New England should still be favored to win all four games with Edelman sidelined. And when he returns in Week 5, the Patriots could potentially reach an entirely different level.
