If you think taking a pound of air out of a football is a big deal, you’re sorely mistaken. Deflate Gate is about so much more.
By Robby Sabo
It was the day the New England Patriots arrived in Arizona for Super Bowl XLIX.
The day that will be remembered for the brashness of the Patriots as a franchise. The team landed like rockstars.
Tom Brady and Bill Belichick were both mugged by familiar faces after touching down. They laughed, joked and smiled their way to the hotel for a week long Super Bowl stay.
Hell, even NFL Network’s Willie McGinest was feeling jovial with his former crew at that very moment – for the AFC Champions have arrived, and they had nothing to apologize for.
This organizational sentiment was capped off by Robert Kraft boastfully challenging Roger Goodell and the NFL.
So, okay, Kraft is defending his guys. That’s understandable.
What’s not understandable is to go on a rampage-like tirade about “how dare they accuse us of any wrongdoing.”
When we hear Patriots fans speak, we hear words such as frame-job, sting and set-up. We hear that the football world hates them because they win so much. They cannot understand why anybody would ever think their beloved Brady or Belichick would do anything wrong.
Where are is all the vitriol against the San Antonio Spurs for winning so much? Where were the cheating controversies against the Dallas Cowboys during the 1990s, or San Francisco 49ers during the 1980s?
The rationalization of this fan-base is beyond sickening.
And if they think they might have pushed the limits a bit, they start to spit out the phrase “if you ain’t cheating, you ain’t trying,” or “everybody does it.”
Here in lies the major problem. This is not the first time the Pats have been caught. In fact, it’s insulting to bring up the notion of “frame-up” due to the fact that Spygate was anything but.
Over a decade ago, Belichick and the Patriots were fined a half a million dollars (the maximum) and docked a first-round draft pick. We all wondered, was what they were doing so terrible?
Now, all these years later, we still don’t know. We feel like Goodell and the NFL kept the evidence from leaking out by destroying all the video tapes that were used in evidence. Perhaps “protecting the shield” remained the top notch priority?
I’m positive Goodell sternly warned the franchise not to ever get involved with another incident like this, and yet, here we are.
Why the Ted Wells report happened is squarely on the shoulders of Brady.
THE ABSOLUTE BRAZEN ATTITUDE THE ENTIRE FRANCHISE DISPLAYS ON A REGULAR BASIS ABOUT THE INTEGRITY OF THE GAME IS SHAMEFUL. IT IS INSULTING TO EVERYONE’S INTELLIGENCE.
All the All-American boy had to do was admit the truth, and walk away with his slap on the wrist. Instead, we heard “ah shucks” while witnessing that golden smile along the way.
We had to witness Belichick playing the role of scientist, acting as though this stuff wasn’t worth his time.
The absolute brazen attitude the entire franchise displays on a regular basis about the integrity of the game is shameful. It is insulting to everyone’s intelligence.
What most people don’t understand is this: it’s not about a pound of air from a football, it’s about a culture of cheating and lying when getting caught. Thinking you can outsmart the NFL along the way will get you in serious trouble.
Look what happened to Pete Rose.
It is probable that Rose would have been reinstated if he just admitted his wrongdoing from the get-go. Instead, he lied, deceived and was ultra aggressive the entire time.
The cover-up is always worse than the crime.
For years we’ve heard things about the culture surrounding the Patriots. There is so much statistical evidence and information to now raise our brows about.
The question I have on this day, is, what else will leak out once guys start retiring from the league?
