National Football League

Donald Trump explains why he passed on buying Patriots

Published Jul. 19, 2015 11:43 a.m. ET

foxsports

By David Cunningham

Donald Trump has supported Tom Brady since the NFL punished the New England Patriots quarterback with a four-game suspension and fined the organization $1 million for their alleged role in Deflategate. But the hotel billionaire almost was the man paying off the fine.

Former Patriots owner Billy Sullivan reportedly approached Trump about purchasing the team in 1988, per Boston.com writer Steven Levenson. With the team being $104 million in debt, Trump passed on the offer, as sources said the debt would be “too much for him to handle.”

Sullivan instead sold the Pats to entrepreneur Viktor Kiam for $84 million. Now, Forbes estimates the Patriots are worth around $2.6 billion today and are the second most valuable NFL organization.

Not your best idea, Donald.

Boston headlines have been littered with Trump stories of late, as he recently offended former Boston Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling and Boston mayor Marty Walsh with his remarks concerning immigration and U.S. senator John McCain.

The TV personality missed out on four Super Bowl rings and a substantial chunk of cash, but, hey, at least he (maybe) still has a shot at becoming the next president.

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