New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady once again faces a four-game suspension in DeflateGate after a federal appeals court ruled in favor of commissioner Roger Goodell. Each time this protracted fight between Brady and Goodell makes a new headline, football fans debate fundamental questions and ponder the overall fairness of the process.
Were the balls deflated in the playoff game against the Colts? Yes.
Did Brady have a hand in it? Even the most ardent Pats fan believes in his or her heart that he did or at least knew.
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Is the four-game suspension fair punishment?
Well, that’s the big question.
The NFL rules state that tampering with game balls results in a $25,000 fine per ball.
This penalty seems to have been ignored by Goodell. Instead, he levied a $1 million fine, loss of a first-round draft pick this year, and took out Brady.
On the surface, these penalties seem excessive. But are they really?
I believe one of the main issues Goodell has with Brady is the destruction of his cell phone. No one is buying that he routinely destroys his phone. Rather, the perception — and likely reality — is that Brady made a calculated effort to thwart justice by hiding the truth. Nothing infuriates a judge more than someone who deliberately impedes the process.
So Brady, if guilty, was faced with a dilemma: If he gives them the cell phone, his guilt could be exposed. If he gets rid of it, they can only speculate and he can say he never knew about the balls?
Brady may have made the criminal’s choice: Get rid of the evidence.
And for that, Goodell must take both swift and brutal action. His authority as commissioner has been challenged as well as the credibility of the league. Walk into any courtroom, put up your middle finger to a judge and see what happens. It won’t be pretty.
I’ve heard many times since this process began that the Deflategate punishments are a make-up call for Spygate. That may very well be true, in part.
After various articles came out that Spygate was far more widespread than people were initially led to believe, the league may be seen as too lenient, even complicit. See Michael David Smith’s piece on Pro Football Talk. Or how about Don Van Natta Jr. and Seth Wickersham’s ESPN expose? Spygate to Deflategate: Inside What split the NFL and Patriots apart.
I have lived in New England all my life. My father was a season ticket holder, as was my brother. I attended many games in Foxborough and always wished the hometown team success…until Spygate.
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After that, I felt like the New England Patriots were the Chicago Black Sox with one difference. They got away with it. New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Peyton would later be banned for one year with respects to “BountyGate,” which was definitely unethical, but not cheating.
Comparatively, Bill Belichick was basically handed a $500,000 traffic ticket and did not suffer suspension or ban.
Each time a harsher penalty has been handed down to others in the NFL, that little voice perks up saying: The Patriots got away with it.
I laud Goodell for fighting through the muck and mire on this. Having Brady sidelined for four games will cost the Patriots dearly. The penalty may not be equal to what should have been handed down for the combined infractions of both scandals. But at least something substantial goes on the books.
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At least non-Patriots fans can feel like the scales are getting closer to be balanced.
At least, parents can tell their children, “you see, cheaters do not prosper, they get suspended” instead of the current perception, that “cheaters get Super Bowl rings.”