FOXBORO — Roger Goodell removed Jabrill Peppers from the commissioner’s exempt list Monday, clearing a path for him to play football after seven weeks away.

What happened next was up to the Patriots.

This is what happened.

Peppers returned to team headquarters Tuesday. He spoke with the media. He stretched at the start of a walkthrough practice. He went about his business like it was business as usual.

Of course, it wasn’t.

Peppers hadn’t participated in any team activities since facing charges of assault and battery, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, strangulation, and possession of a Class B substance (cocaine) that stemmed from a domestic dispute on Oct. 5. That morning, Braintree police arrived at a residential address around 4:15 after receiving a disturbance call that described an altercation between two people. The alleged female victim claimed Peppers “hit her, choked her, took off her clothing and put her outside,” according to the police report, and Peppers was arrested.

The woman accused Peppers of grabbing her by the neck and smashing her head against the wall before throwing her down the stairs of his apartment. Peppers told authorities he asked the woman to leave several times and denied putting his hands on her.  Peppers added she fell down the stairs by herself because she was intoxicated and claimed the woman made these allegations to destroy his career.

Peppers was arraigned on Oct. 7, when he posted $2,500 bail and was ordered to stay away from the victim. A jury trial date was later set for Jan. 22.

In his first public comments since the arrest, Peppers said, in certain terms, he looked forward to a trial.

“Under the advice of my attorneys, I’m not at liberty to discuss any details, but I look forward to doing so as part of the legal proceedings,” Peppers said Tuesday. “I hope (the media) will understand and respect that.”

Peppers also confirmed he has spoken with ownership about the charges, but did not detail any conversations. Asked if he knew why the NFL had chosen to reinstate him — something Goodell can do at any time — Peppers declined to expound there, too.

Fine.

The fact he held a press conference inside the Patriots’ facility less than 24 hours after being reinstated may have been more telling anyway.

New England Patriots safety Jabrill Peppers leaves his arraignment at Quincy District Court after being arrested Saturday morning in Braintree, charged with assault and battery, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, strangulation, and possession of a class “B” substance.

Since Peppers was arrested, the Patriots have had seven weeks to gather information about what happened that night. Under the Krafts’ ownership, the franchise has taken a hard stance against domestic violence; dating back to the 1996 release of fifth-round pick Christian Peter who, three days after being drafted, was cut for a previous assault of Miss Nebraska.

Shortly after Peppers was arrested, Robert Kraft said the veteran safety would also be cut if the allegations proved to be true.

“If what was reported is true, he’s gone,” Kraft said on the Breakfast Club podcast. “There have been some suggestions that this was a set-up and a lot of what was reported isn’t accurate.”

Well, Peppers is not only not gone. He’s back.

He’s back after speaking with the Krafts. He’s back after his legal team cooperated with the NFL’s investigation. He’s back after his attorney met with the plaintiff’s representation, and that attorney again claimed to have video evidence exonerating Peppers; evidence the NFL and Krafts have surely seen, if it exists. Who knows.

But the Patriots could have sent Peppers home as they wait for the legal process to play out. They haven’t. Armed with more information than is publicly available, this is the course they’ve chosen.

Officially, the Patriots have stood by the statement they released on Monday; which, like most statements in cases like these, said nothing new.

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“The league has removed Jabrill Peppers from the commissioner’s exempt list. After missing the past seven games, he will now return to the active roster,” the statement read. “We understand that the league’s investigation into the matter will continue, as will the legal process. We will await the outcome of both before making any further comment.”

Before Peppers spoke on Tuesday, Jerod Mayo also met with reporters. He twice deferred to the team’s statement and repeatedly cited Goodell’s decision to remove Peppers from the commissioner’s exempt list, as if the league hadn’t put the ball in the Patriots’ court but instead called a play for them to execute.

“It’s going to take time: the legal process outside the building and what we think happened inside the building,” Mayo said. “At the same time, the NFL has taken him off of that Commissioner’s Exempt List, and that’s what we have to roll with.”

Again, let’s be clear: the decision to let Peppers back in the building belonged entirely to the Patriots. And it may be warranted.

But whether this apparent confidence in Peppers’ innocence or future exoneration is, indeed, warranted remains to be seen. It’s impossible to know.

But it seems obvious, for now, where the Patriots stand.

Peppers is here, and he’s here for a reason.