Julian Edelman had his day in court, and he lost.
Official word from the NFL came down Tuesday afternoon that Edelman had his appeal denied and will therefore serve his four-game suspension for using performance-enhancing drugs.
Edelman reportedly based his appeal, which was heard on June 25, on the fact that the substance wasn't immediately recognized and that there was a problem with the collection and recording of the test results.
In the end, he was unable to convince the independent arbitrator that any problems were enough to overturn, or reduce, the suspension. Edelman could pursue an appeal of his case in federal court, as Tom Brady did during the Deflategate drama.
The 32-year-old wideout is coming off a torn ACL but is expected to be ready for training camp, which opens in Foxborough July 26. He is eligible to participate in all camp practices and the preseason but will then be forced to be away from the team for the first month of the season.
He will miss games at home against Houston, at Jacksonville and Detroit and back home against Miami. He is eligible to return to the team Oct. 1 and could make his 2018 debut Oct. 4 at home against Indianapolis in a Thursday night contest.
