Less than a month after being found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without parole, Aaron Hernandez is filing an appeal.

According to ESPN, attorneys for the ex-New England Patriots' star tight end have filed an appeal of his murder conviction, citing "improper speculation, conjecture and guesswork" as reasons why. It's important to point out that all first-degree murder convictions are automatically appealed under Massachusetts law.

The appeal, which was filed in Bristol Superior Court this week, adds that "no rational jury" could have found Hernandez guilty of murdering Odin Lloyd in June 2013 and points to insufficient evidence.

Part of the appeal also argues that if there was enough evidence to support a murder conviction, it should have been a second-degree murder conviction, which would allow Hernandez to be eligible for parole after 15 years.

Prosecutors now have 30 days to respond to Hernandez's appeal. The judge set a hearing for next Thursday, May 21.

Hernandez still awaits a separate trial for the 2012 double-murder of two Boston-area men.

Friday also saw a perjury charge against Shayanna Jenkins, Hernandez's fiancée, dismissed in Bristol County Superior Court as part of her immunity deal.

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(Photo: John Tlumacki/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)