Goodell to hear Brady request

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — Tom Brady grew from a sixth-round draft choice into one of the best quarterbacks in NFL history. Off the field, he's a celebrity with a supermodel wife and lucrative marketing deals.

All that has made the New England Patriots superstar the object of admiration and respect to some, jealousy and enmity to others.

On Tuesday, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell hears Brady's appeal of a four-game suspension for using deflated footballs in the AFC championship game.

Goodell's decision upholding, reducing or eliminating the punishment won't likely cause major changes in perceptions of a four-time Super Bowl champion — perceptions enhanced during a stellar 15-year NFL career, yet sullied in one game in which he may have knowingly used deflated footballs.

"He is a guy that I have said for a long time is the best in the business," said Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethslisberger, who faces the Patriots in the season opener Sept. 10, when Brady's suspension is set to start. "I have a lot of respect for him on the football field."

Buffalo coach Rex Ryan, a longtime nemesis, says Brady's legacy hasn't been tarnished.

"I just know the kind of quarterback that he is and what he's meant to me personally," Ryan said, smiling and sighing about Brady's success against him when he coached the New York Jets. "I've got nothing but respect for the guy."

Companies the boyishly handsome 37-year-old has represented in stylish ads — Under Armour sportswear, UGG footwear, Movado watches — haven't abandoned him.

Under Armour CEO Kevin Plank sat with him at ringside at the Floyd Maywe a t h e r - M a n ny Pacquaio fight May 2 in Las Vegas, where Brady