Can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm almost surprised that people are still giving any credence to the league or sources within on this matter, and I'm saying that without hyperbole. The on-field product may be more popular than it's ever been, and the tv deals more lucrative, but when it comes to peripheral issues, they've shown no ability whatsoever to properly assess or deal with them. I scoffed at the notion of some sort of sting when it first emerged, but thinking about it now, there's almost more reason to assume that the NFL would attempt a stupid undertaking like that and fuck it up entirely than to believe they'd dismiss such a silly idea outright.
The NFL been a shining beacon of incompetence for awhile now, and when you examine possible outcomes here, there's about a 99% chance they've fucked this up too. The Patriots have addressed this multiple times, while the league has allowed this farcical shitshow to continue unabated, generating a confrontational situation with one of its franchises heading into the biggest game of the season, in which that franchise is a participant. My best guess at this point is the league's stance is being driven by Goodell or an equally underqualified minion basically taking an "I don't care what we have, fuck those guys, they're going down" stance.