Deflategate

Now this I agree with. They acted like the arrogant assholes that they are and THAT and that alone is why they're being punished like this.
The only equivalent I can think of would be a linemen laughing at a ref that called him for holding and the ref throws another flag for unsportsmenlike conduct, awards the opposing team 45 points and ejects both the linemen, the rest of the starting lineup and the team's coach.

 

That's about right. The only reason Belichick got hammered with the big fine in Spygate was Goodell's perception he had warned teams about such taping and Belichick did it anyway right under his nose. No one is more prone to overreaction than a weak tyrant.

 

Where's the collective stonewall? Kraft maintained innocence. Belichick said to 'Ask Tom.' Brady was incredulous, then awkward.

For the last, there's no chance that said awkwardness had anything to do with uncertainty over the erroneous 2 PSI report?

That report made tampering a foregone conclusion, only the culprit needed identification. Imagine having to defend yourself when everyone thinks you did it, you think someone must have done it, but you have no way of explaining away the damning evidence. Then imagine that four months down the road the "evidence" was proven as deliberate misinformation.

 

You forgot the part where jealous rival organizations think the punishment is too lenient and then cite a non-existent culture of unsportsmanlike conduct as rationale.

 

They had been violating the rules regarding filming. The league warned everybody that such violations would no longer be tolerated and the Patriots went on doing it anyway. That was stupid, arrogant or a combination of the two, but they absolutely got caught.

The balls were doctored. You can question who did it and how much Brady knew if you like, but the Patriots were caught on that one, too.

 

You got one thing right. You are making yourself sound like a homer stooge.

I could absolutely compile a similar list from the perspective of a Steelers fan, but I won't because I'm not paranoid about my favorite team being persecuted. This is not because I trust the league office. It is because I realize the league as a whole does not benefit from such a thing.

 

I haven't claimed a culture of cheating by the Patriots, fanboy. I have held Spygate against them, but I don't think they cheat any more than any other franchise.

But your theory comes down to arguing that Goodell felt he needed to flex his muscles and he chose to do so by calling into question the integrity of a team about to play in the Super Bowl? Seriously?

 

That information is already on this thread. If somebody wants to claim the league would persecute the Patriots, they need to back that up. No Patriots fan has come close to offering any reasonable response.

 

Why did they let the erroneous 2 PSI report float around for four months?

And doesn't blatantly lying about testimony at least sniff persecution?

 

Again, provide a reasonable explanation of why the NFL would want to smear arguably its most recognizable player and one of its premier franchises just as said team is about to play in the Super Bowl. And no, the one you presented earlier doesn't even come close.

Also, what exactly did the NFL blatantly lie about? I'm not saying it didn't happen, but you should back that up and show your work.

 

Ask Chris Mortensen and Peter King.

 

I knew there was a reason I hadn't clicked on this thread for a while.