Julian Edelman loses appeal of 4-game suspension. What does it mean for the Patriots?

Julian Edelman reportedly argued the NFL mishandled its documentation and delivery of his failed drug test.

Julian Edelman will serve a four-game suspension for a violation of the NFL’s performance enhancing policy after his appeal of the punishment was denied, according to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network.

According to Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, Edelman positive test was “triggered by a substance that wasn’t immediately recognizable, and there are scientists analyzing it.” ESPN reported that as part of his appeal, Edelman argued the NFL made mistakes in the documentation and delivery of the test results.

On Instagram, Edelman apologized for the test result but said that he didn’t know what happened.

The positive test came after Edelman missed the entire 2017 season with an ACL tear. Tom Brady’s personal guru Alex Guerrero has previously worked with Edelman and seemed to throw the receiver under the bus by accusing the receiver of cutting corners in his rehab with other coaches.

With his unsuccessful appeal, Edelman is now set to miss the first month of the season and return in Week 5 for a game against the Colts. He’ll be sidelined for games against the Texans, Jaguars, Lions, and Dolphins.

That’s probably no sweat off the Patriots’ back as the team did fine without him during a Super Bowl run in 2017. New England also spent the 2018 offseason upgrading its wide receiving corps by adding Cordarrelle Patterson, Jordan Matthews, and Braxton Berrios.

Even without Edelman, it’s a crowded group with players like Chris Hogan, Malcolm Mitchell, Matthew Slater, and Phillip Dorsett all returning.

The real danger is for Edelman, who was already in jeopardy of getting left behind by the shifting roster. He’s due to count $3.7 million against the Patriots’ salary cap in 2018 — the most for any receiver on the roster — and then $4.67 million in 2019.

Edelman needs to show that he’s worth it, and that’s going to be really difficult when other receivers are getting targets from Tom Brady early in the year instead.