As Robert Kraft's legal case plays out in court, there's another factor to monitor: how the NFL will choose to discipline the New England Patriots owner.
That topic apparently is generating buzz in NFL circles after Kraft was charged with two misdemeanor counts of soliciting prostitution last Friday.
According to Bleacher Report's Mike Freeman, there's a decent contingent of NFL people who believe the league could punish Kraft more harshly than Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay, who was fined $500,000 and suspended six games in 2014 after he pleaded guilty to an DWI charge.
From Freeman:
The general consensus I hear from speaking to people in the league (who are guessing) is that if the accusations against Kraft are proved accurate, the NFL will punish Kraft more severely than it did Irsay or (former San Francisco 49ers owner Eddie) DeBartolo.
That consensus, per Freeman, is driven by the belief that the NFL wouldn't want to be viewed as "going easy" on one of the league's most powerful owners. The NFL also could use a strong discipline of Kraft to reinforce its Personal Conduct Policy, which states owners and executives are to be held to a higher standard.
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The NFL's discipline of Kraft obviously hinges on his legal case, which still is ongoing. The 77-year-old owner denied any illegal activity in a statement Friday and has an arraignment date set for March 27, moved up nearly a month from its original April 24 date.
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If Kraft's charges hold up, they would technically be less severe than Irsay's; a DWI is a Class C misdemeanor, while soliciting a prostitute is a Class B misdemeanor. DeBartolo faced harsher punishment than Irsay, as the league fined him $1 million and suspended a full season in 1999 after he pleaded guilty to failing to report a felony in a corruption case.
The NFL released a statement earlier this week stating the Personal Conduct Policy "applies equally to everyone in the NFL" and that it will "take appropriate action as warranted" regarding Kraft once law enforcement concludes its investigation.
That's when we'll find out if the league takes NFL owners' past transgressions into account when dealing with Kraft.
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