The ruling, handed down by U.S. District Judge Richard Berman on Thursday morning, nullified the four-game suspension levied against the Patriots quarterback back on May 11 when Ted Wells, an independent investigator hired by the NFL, asserted Brady's connection to deflated footballs used in the AFC Championship Game this past season.
The decision came after multiple attempts at settlement between Brady, his council, the NFL Players Association and the NFL. On Monday, Berman dismissed both sides after just a few minutes after realizing they were too far apart to reach a settlement.
There is no word yet on whether the NFL will file an appeal.
Eliminating Brady's suspension saves Patriots head coach Bill Belichick from dealing with the largest statistical drop off between starting quarterbacks in consecutive seasons since 1950. It also saves him from using another starter besides Brady for the first time since 2008, when Brady tore his ACL in the season-opener.
The ruling is a clear victory for Brady, who had considered accepting a one-game suspension according to NFL Media Insider Ian Rapoport. But Brady did not want to accept any responsibility for the findings of the Wells Report, and in the end he didn't have to.
The defending Super Bowl champions can now put yet another difficult offseason behind them.
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