The True Meaning of Deflate-Gate: Part 1

           With word just breaking that Tom Brady will be suspended for four games, the Patriots will lose their 2016 1^st round, 2017 4^th round draft picks, and will be fined 1 million dollars, we are left to try and digest this madness that has been known as ‘Deflate-Gate’. In order to do just that, we have to ask ourselves two important questions: Why did the league hand out such a hefty penalty? What does this do for Tom Brady’s legacy?

           There is little to deny that the league took this investigation very seriously, despite the fact that summary of the report read as “more probable than not". More probable than not? That is the justification? Since when does the NFL rule like an absolute monarch or a 7^th grade girl’s lunch table?

            But as quoted by Adam Schefter on ESPN, the league is going to start taking these situations that hurt the reputation of the league seriously, so the league “laid down the hammer.” “The league is not going to allow anything to impact the integrity of the game.”

Part 1: Why did the league hand out such a hefty penalty?

            So to answer the first question, why did the league hand out such a hefty penalty? The answer is simple: To protect the integrity of the game. But does the suspension of Brady, draft picks, and money protects the integrity of the game? No. Is the integrity of the game that fragile, that the hammer needs to be laid down over such little evidence? Yes. The integrity of the game has been shattered by 2014 recent incident of domestic abuse and the league’s inability to fix that image in a timely fashion, or at all.

Ray Rice was suspended two games for striking his wife, even though the league lied about having not seen the video, when they had seen the video, because we all had seen the video. Rice was then suspended for two games, the league revisited it later, after public outrage, and he was gone for the season. But the damage had been done. It was not longer a Ray Rice issue; it was an issue with the league, more notable commissioner Roger Goodell. Even though the evidence was always there, the undeniable evidence, the guiltiest person in this issue ended up being Roger Goodell. And here is some more food for though: even if the league had not seen the video at in a timely matter, can’t we all say, based on the evidence provided, that the NFL “more probable than not” had seen the video?

But is this a separate issue? These two incidents are directly linked with one another. Ask yourself this question, if the Ray Rice incident had never occurred, does Tom Brady and the Patriots get the ‘hammer’ laid down on them? Simply put, this is not an issue of the league’s integrity nowhere near as much as it is about the integrity of Roger Goodell. Goodell has taken this opportunity to get back in the good graces of public opinion. The Patriots, with Tom Brady at the helm, has been the quintesstinal villain of the league, and with his hammer, Goodell is doing his best ‘Thor’ imitation.

            Despite the blond hair, Goodell reminds us more of Loki than he does his demigod brother Thor. In almost a jealous, irrational sense of ‘duty’ in regards to protecting the league, Goodell needed to wield justice at an issue with very little clarity. Now despite my love affair for the character, and the quarterback, I am not suggesting that Tom Brady is actually Captain America (despite my Facebook pictures) But in cases where the league did have evidence in other issues that also jeopardized the integrity of the game, Goodell’s hammer, apparently was absent:

Isn’t this cheating?

2015: Cleveland Browns did not lose a draft pick for front office officials sending text messages to the sideline

2015: Atlanta Falcons lose 5^th draft pick for pumping artificial noise into the stadium for two seasons.

2014, 2007, & 2005: Indianapolis Colts pumping artificial noise into their stadium, no punishment (due to lack of evidence).

            Now I am not attempting to open a debate as to which crime is worse, pumping in artificial noise or deflating footballs, but isn’t it a bit misguided and irrational to punish somebody more severely without proper evidence compared to somebody who actually has evidence of wrong doing?  Or were the Falcons, Browns and Colts not punished due to the fact they are not as publically relevant or vilified as the Patriots?

"Well Brady never gave up his phone or emails! Doesn't that make him pretty guilty?"

It absolutely does! But looking guilty and being guilty are two totally different things. Isn't it up to the integrity of the league, to find the damnable evidence to make Brady and the Patriots guilty without a doubt? Isn't that your job as the commissioner? If we are so quick to say that Brady 'had' to have some sort of involvement, then why do we not have the apparent evidence to make it so? Why would the investigation not be extended or why would the transcript from the interview of Tom Brady by the Wells investigation be included? Wouldn't their be evidence based on what Brady said that can be contradicted by the evidence found in the text messages by the two trainers? And if all of the answers to these questions are 'no', then why would you not just extend the interview until you find something more credible. What was the hurry? If it is such a slam dunk that Brady is guilty, why does it feel like Goodell traveled on the attempt. 

            Now I will openly admit that I am a die-hard, passionately biased Patriots fan on more than one issue. Do I feel Brady had something to do with the footballs? Like the Wells Report says, maybe. Do I absolutely know he did? How can any of us say that with the evidence we have? So in that case, absolutely not. And finally, do I feel that this ruling protects the integrity of the league? Unequivocally no. The integrity of the league is not in question over the issue of competitive fairness. If it was, why wouldn’t the aforementioned teams be punished more severely than they were? This is an issue of the integrity of the commissioner and his inability to handle the situations and discretions of 2014. Despite what are feelings are on Tom Brady and the New England Patriots, whether a lover or hater, does this ruling truly restore the integrity that was lost in 2014?