Political Football

I'm not a Patriots fan but this one time it doesn't bother me much that they won. Why? Well, this article pretty well sums it up. Even though I avoided most media in the week leading up to the Super Bowl I was still aware that various sports personalities criticizing Brady and the rest for having ties to Trump. I find this despicable. I still don't like Brady or the Patriots but he made all the right people angry, and that's something.

It begins.

The Lions have a new general manager, Bob Quinn, formerly director of scouting for the New England Patriots. I suppose bringing in someone from such a respected franchise should be encouraging but I find myself wary. First, I think the success of Tom Brady and, to a lesser extent, Julian Edelman gives an inflated impression of the Patriots' drafting prowess. Here's the history. Obviously they have their fair share of hits but I'm not sure the overall record is quite as impressive as people would think. Second, Bill Belichick is the only one who's been able to make the Patriots system work. So far none of his assistants or former executives from the organization have been able to replicate anything near the success he has had. What do you think the chances are that the Lions are the ones who learn all the right lessons?

"If it don't fit, acquit."

I'm not sure the punishment fits the crime. Wait, no, I'm sure it does not and we all know this will be appealed and probably knocked down to 2 games.

Brady is going to drop Tecmo Super Bowl-like numbers on the Colts when he returns Week 6 at the Colts. You can imagine Al Michaels is going crazy right now because he knows it will be the SNF game of the week on NBC. HUGE ratings. Unfortunately for him, it will not mark Brady's return because he'll be back sooner than 4 games.  Nice knowing you Indy.

I believe Brady is guilty and lied. I'm still wondering why the equipment managers seemed to be jerks about deflating the balls. I read something about exchanged text messages requesting favors from Brady for doing this for him. Like signed footballs, cleats, etc. Really? It's that big of a deal he has to give you signed merchandise? My goodness. Do you work for the Patriots or the CIA? Aren't you all on the same team? Don't you all have the same goal, TO WIN?!? Why are you equipment managers being so uptight? Your star player wants a little air let out of the ball. JUST DO IT! Who do you think you are? Isn't your job to help prepare and get your team whatever it takes to win a game? It's the freakin' AFC Championship! Now, I do realize these texts may have actually taken place in October or November, which is obviously far from the AFC Title game, and was probably going on all year, especially cold weather games, not just the AFC Title game.

But, just so I'm clear, tell me what Tom Brady actually DID to the balls. Was Tom Brady the one who deflated the footballs? If he's not...

Crime and Punishment

It should go without saying that I'm not a fan of Tom Brady or the Patriots. I absolutely think he was involved in breaking the rules and then he lied about it. If he had come clean back before the Super Bowl I probably would have been satisfied with a "small" fine, maybe $50,000 or so? Since he lied about it I think a one-game suspension and a fine would have been reasonable. But a $1 million fine, a four-game suspension, a first-round draft pick, and a fourth-round draft pick? That's harsh. It doesn't bother me, and after listening to ex-players talk about this story over the past few months I'm convinced they're all a bunch of dirty cheaters and it is satisfying to see a major penalty for even a minor infraction, but it's still harsh.

The Story That Won't Go Away

The Boston Herald is reporting that the Patriots filmed the Rams' last walthrough before the Super Bowl in 2002. The Patriots deny that this happened and the NFL seems uninterested in verifying the story, if there's anything to verify at all. This stuff is never going to go away, especially in the Patriots win tonight. The sports media will try to forget it as their heaping praise on the Patriots, but the team has such a polarizing effect that these rumors will persist. Add that to a 24-hour news cycle and you've got a zombie story that will never quite go down.

Running It Up

Did the Pats run up the score on the 'Skins? Undoubtedly. The conventional wisdom is that Belichick is pissed about getting caught red-handed stealing defensive signals and has instituted a scorched earth policy with the rest of the NFL, which only serves to further the impression that the Patriots are bullies. So will good guy Tony Dungy and his Colts stand up and punch the bully in the mouth? I hope so.

You Can't Handle the Truth

I can't really add anything to all the talk about the Patriots videotape scandal. However, I really liked this article about it. Why? Because I love that Trent Green compared Bill Belichick to Col. Jessep in "A Few Good Men." Funny 'cuz it's true. Also, it gives me a perfect excuse to post this:

Hatable

Bill Simmons of ESPN, a Patriots fan, finds himself asking a terrible question in this article: Wait a second ... am I rooting for the football version of the Yankees? He goes on to explore the question and of course finds that, while some the hatred is earned, a large part of it has to do with the current 24-hour sports world. It's a good read from a great writer, but I don't think he's 100% right.

I've often asked myself why I dislike the Patriots so much. As Simmons points out, they don't buy wins like the Yankees have been known to, they're free of T.O.-type players, and they do the little things right to win. I ought to love the team. But I really, really don't. Like many things in football, it's starts with the QB. Brady went to Michigan, which I can (mostly) forgive, but it's still a strike. There's probably a bit of jealousy involved as well since there have been QBs at MSU that I've rooted for that were better college QBs but haven't had anywhere near the amazing success Brady has enjoyed. Plus, he's a pretty boy who dates movie stars. I'd rather hang with Peyton Manning any day. That said, I like Brady more than I used to. I mean, he did have his O-line in a commercial with him.

I don't think you can discount the effect of all the media attention either. Simmons says you can shut it off and just watch the game on Sunday, but it's not quite that easy. If you're going to follow football you have to see some of it, and you can't escape it during the telecast either. You can only hear so many superlatives about Belichick, Brady, and the rest before your ears start to bleed. And I'm sorry, but no one who dresses in a hobo-style hoodie can actually be a genius.

There's other things, but I'll make one final comment. Simmons says that because Patriots fans endured four decades of "futility and embarassment" that "we earned this." Pffft. Unless you've followed the Lions your entire life, don't you dare try and play the "futility and embarassment" card because you don't really know what those words mean.

UPDATE: As I'm watching the game I'm reminded of another annoying thing about the Patriots: they always get lucky. Going into the endzone the RB fumbles the ball and a Colts player looks like he has it, but it squirts out and is recovered for a Patriots TD. So often, they don't look like the better team, or even a great team, just a team that enjoys everything going their way. That's frustrating.