DeflategateHate

In the battle of Roger Goodell vs. Tom Brady for Deflategate, the winner is... Tom Brady

When it comes to the four major sports in the U.S (football, baseball, basketball, hockey), there seems to be a flaw with all of them in terms of the league itself.  The NFL has concussions and too many off the field issues, baseball has steroids and cheaters, the NBA product had cheating at one point and the product itself is usually not as compelling until the postseason, while hockey has too many injuries, as well as the concussion issue.  Personally to me, these are all bothersome and hurt all the major sports, but like most fans, we put up with all this and more because we love sports and the feeling it gives us to watch them and be a part of it.  I was never into sports growing up or athletic, but I got into it as I got older, I now follow/watch it religiously.  It's a good hobby/passion, and being so close to it makes you really feel connected, whether your team wins or loses.  Being in Boston, I'm spoiled because our teams have won so many titles in the past decade.  I should be used to it, but I'm not, of course, so when the Patriots beat the Seahawks in this year's Superbowl, obviously, I was rejoiced, but then Deflategate started, which took away from the game and really tested the patience of fan and people everywhere.

I remember the first time I heard about Deflategate, I didn't think it was a big deal, initially, because it supposedly happened during the Colts in the AFC title game, which the Patriots won handily.  "What's the big deal?" I thought, only a few psi (whatever that was), would that have made a difference?  Probably not, since the Patriots were the better team, regardless, and won by such a large margin, but the fact it happened at all, caused the league to act.  They had to, after all the mishaps they had had in the past year plus.  Tom Brady had to give a press conference, which I admit, he did not come off good in, but it was before the Superbowl; the man had other things on his mind.  And even when he won the Superbowl, it didn't stop there.  More information came out, there was the Wells report, which said things he did and didn't do, as well as information about other employees.  And of course, the big one, Roger Goodell suspended Tom Brady for 4 games.  Four games, are you serious?!  This from the guy who only gave Ray Rice a 2 game suspension, initially, for hitting his fiance in an elevator, on tape, which everyone saw.  You messed that decision up bad, but don't take it out on us.  You're the commissioner; it's your job to get decisions right and admit when you're wrong, but Goodell did neither of that, because he knew he didn't have any substantial evidence on Tom Brady, and the league had to win a case after how bad it looked during the domestic abuse cases, as well as losing during Bountygate.  But justice prevailed, because with how Goodell handled everything, as well as having little evidence, Tom brady got his 4 game suspension revoked and will be back starting the season opener in less than a week from now.

Now, I know I left a lot of things out about the case, but that's because we won't know more until more is done.  And this case has been beaten to death, to the point that is has become tiresome to even waste energy on.  Everyone has talked about it so much the past few months, that we forgot football is a sport and the Patriots won the Superbowl.  But now that it's over, we can get back to focusing on football, which is so close to starting it's regular season.

A few final thoughts, though.  I think the NFL should count its blessings.  Yes, they lost Deflategate for now, and look like a laughingstock, once again, but no other major sports league in the U.S. makes as much money as they do or gets the ratings they do.  They can afford to look bad, because NFL fans will never leave them, which is a luxury I think they often overlook.  Do you remember how bad the NBA and NHL were after their lockouts?  Or baseball in 1994 after the strike?  It was in a bad state that I think it is still recovering from.  The NFL has so many off the field issues, it is ridiculous, if you count domestic and drug abuse, as well as neglect with concussions in the past, but it doesn't matter sadly, because the fans will never stop watching it.  The demand for it has never been higher, with the amount of good teams, profit from games, sales, fantasy football, etc.  That is why, like I said, everyone hated Deflategate, because it took away from the game that no one wants to see go away.  And of course, started mainly because of Roger Goodell.

Roger Goodell, it's ironic how his name has become synonymous with parody and jokes.  I remember a few years ago, before I graduated, he gave the commencement speech at my university, which was a big deal, since he was the commissioner of arguably the biggest sports league in the world.  At the time, I remember him having an actual good approval rating with fans alike because he took over for Paul Tagliabue, who left him with a mess to clean up, and handed out fair punishment on head hits.  But look at him now, he has fallen so far.  You hate to see that happen to anyone, especially when he is probably not a bad guy.  And he has a difficulty job having to appeal to both the owners and players, but that's what happens when you have no consistency/credibility, as seen by his past decisions, and face Tom Brady.  Now, he's just another loser and Tom Brady is back, ready to lead the Patriots on another Superbowl defense.  Hopefully, this chapter of controversy is over, but if not, as least we have something to distract us from it the way it did before.  "Are you ready for some football?"  I think... we all are