DEFLATEGATE
A cranky opinion for
CRANKY OPINION SATURDAY
The following is the opinion of a
cranky old man with limited knowledge on the subject opined. Opposing opinions are welcome, but please, no
name calling and that means you, you big stupid-head!
Disclosure – I don’t hate Tom Brady, though people with that much talent
should not also be so good looking; I hate Bill Belichick because he cheats and
I wanted him to coach my Jets; and I root against all teams north of Connecticut
because of a totally unreasonable and childish personal vendetta…otherwise I
would like Boston.
Warning – This is a sports related post, but
come on ladies (Not Arkansas Patti, she likes sports) I read your flower,
cooking, parenting, and knitting posts.
The NFL has
ruled against the New England Patriots in the deflated football scam. Tom Brady has been suspended for the first
four games of next season (may be overturned on appeal) and the club has been
penalized monetarily and by losing some draft picks.
Is this
fair?
What was the
crime? A little pressure taken out of a
football? How much of an advantage could
that be? I’ve never been a quarterback,
a receiver or a ball carrier so I don’t really know, but if there was no
advantage to be gained why would the team conspire to doctor the footballs?
A ball with
less air pressure can be easier to grip and for some, easier to throw. A ball with less air pressure can be easier
to catch. How much easier? It is hard to quantify, but historically
Brady has been the most effective passer in the league and New England receivers
have been among the most sure-handed receivers in the league.
There have
been studies regarding NFL team proficiency in not turning the ball over on
offense. Over the last several years,
New England is the best in the NFL in holding on to the ball. They fumble almost one time less per game than
the rest of the league. Perhaps it is
easier to hold on to a slightly softer ball.
It seems
clear that New England has cheated and played the game with the advantage of a
softer ball. It amazes me that the
league would even make this possible.
Why are teams responsible for ball maintenance? An independent party
(referee) should control the balls.
When I had
to hire a babysitter, no matter how much I trusted the person, I did not leave
liquor or cash out in the open. It is
not fair to tempt dishonesty. New England is probably not the only team to
cheat by deflating footballs. If the opportunity
to cheat is present, people and teams will avail themselves of that
opportunity. The league should take away
this temptation.
Other teams
probably also cheat, but New England got caught and New England has been the
most successful team in the NFL for the last 15 years.
New England
should be penalized.
Is
suspending Tom Brady an adequate penalty?
I think not.
The first
four games of the year are important, but New England will still make the
playoffs and those missed games will not mean a hill of beans. If I were king of the NFL, I would not suspend
Brady, I would make him and the team play the entire season with footballs
pumped up slightly higher than the specifications.
If they still
have a successful season and go far into the playoffs or even win the Super Bowl
then it will erase any stigma placed on their recent success. If Brady’s passing proficiency dips, if
receivers have more drops and if the running backs fumble more and the team has
a mediocre season, then a pall will be fairly cast over their last fifteen
years.
There are
those who say this football scandal is much ado about nothing (and in the great
scheme of life they are right). I say let’s find out. Give the New England footballs a little extra
pump next season and let Brady and the Patriots demonstrate if a little air
pressure is important or not.
The preceding was the opinion of a
cranky old man and not necessarily that of management…Mrs. Cranky.
I don't care about football, but I like your title!!
ReplyDeleteHonestly, I think it is truly blown so much out of proportion. I don't think he should be suspended for those games; I hope his appeal wins and he plays. I don't care for the team, but I'm not sure that was much wrong doing here.
ReplyDeletebetty
It was cheating. It gave them an advantage and they probably did it all year if not many seasons.
DeletePerhaps the ball wasn't softer in the beginning, but developed a slow leak as the game went on. Will we ever really know? Banning the team from play seems a little unfair, just make sure a referee checks the ball before and during play from now on.
ReplyDeleteAll of the pats balls were deflated. Ten of eleven or so. None of the colts were deflated. They did cheat and it does matter.
DeleteAll were deflated? I did not know that. Punishments for all!
Deleteif there was no advantage to be gained why would the team conspire to doctor the footballs?
ReplyDeleteExactly. Doctored equipment in baseball draws severe penalties. I assume the same for other sports. The arrogance cannot be cured, but cheating sure can.
A better penalty would be to forbid the Patriots offensive linemen from blocking on passing plays for the first four games.
ReplyDeletei like your idea. :)
ReplyDeleteYes, i scan the sports section of the paper each day, and i read your and other blog's sports talk.
ReplyDeleteThat's actually a fair idea. They play with slightly inflated balls for the next season, while the opposing team has regular balls when they are on offense.
When this story broke I was surprised to discover that each team maintained it's own balls. (I hear you snickering) I wouldn't have thought this to be the case, for exactly this reason--tampering. I don't believe Brady didn't know what was going on. Too bad this black mark is now hanging over Brady; he would have won that Super Bowl even without cheating. I think the punishment should stand. See you in three weeks.
ReplyDeleteI was also surprised to hear that the teams maintain their own footballs. What the what?! It's like asking the fox to guard the chickens!
ReplyDeleteI like 'uncle' Skip's suggestion above.
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting, a clearly superior team seeking additional leverage. I wonder if it's like Watergate....remember that? Nixon was favored heavily going into the '72 election, and in fact won in a near landslide. In the face of that he and his minions still went ahead with breaking into the demo's headquarters. I don't know if it's insecurity or what that drives these kind of things.
Interesting and accurate comparison.
DeleteYeah, you know I love sports posts. I am still chuckling at your idea to make New England play with over inflated balls all year. Perfect solution !!! Hope the NFL is listening.
ReplyDeleteI am not fond of Bill Belichick. He gets caught cheating one way or another almost every year. With him as the coach, no wonder Brady thought it was OK to tamper. I'm with you, pump em up and lets see what happens:))
My take on the subject will be in tomorrow's Boston Herald (op-ed pages). Stephen Hayes has part of it in his comment.
ReplyDeleteI think they should play with Nerfs.
ReplyDeleteMy 13-year-old self is quite disappointed that you did not have the words Tom Brady's Balls in your title.
ReplyDeleteWhat fishducky said!
ReplyDeleteWhy Brady? Because he might have "generally been aware" that someone else did it? Why not the center or an end? How about this for a solution. Have them replay the game and give Brady a bowling ball. Then the Pats would only win by three TDs.
ReplyDeleteI'm going to take a guess here and say that there are many teams that do or have done this. I mean they handle their own balls and I'm sure this isn't anything new. The Patriots still won the super bowl and we all know those balls must have been watched carefully so really I don't think they needed to deflate the balls to win. I think it's really dumb that there was a kickstarter to help pay the fine. Give me a break! Like the team doesn't have the money.
ReplyDelete