by Gus Griffin
(Image via BleacherReport.com)
I hate the Patriots…….but not for the reason you might think. I hate them for the same reason I hate Notre Dame, the Dodgers, Duke, and the Celtics. I HATE THE PATRIOTS BECAUSE AT SOME POINT IN THE PAST THEY BEAT MY BOYS! PERIOD!
I couldn’t care less why they beat my boys. Whether due to cheating, being better, or a combination of the two. Even if it were primarily due to cheating, I still don’t care. All cheating is not created equal. If a prosecutor withholds evidence and as a result wins a conviction to send an innocent man or woman to prison, I care about that cheating. If a person hides income in a divorce proceeding to reduce his/her child support obligation, I care about that cheating. But if Tom Brady and/or Bill Belichick spy on the opponent and/or take air out of some balls to give them and edge at winning some football games, it just doesn’t make my short list of things about which to be outraged.
I am not suggesting that there should be no penalty. If they broke the rules, they absolutely need to be held accountable. But the moral indignation being pontificated is laughable. The citing that this explains the Patriots’ success doesn’t even deserve a response, but I’ll try to provide one nonetheless: “Spygate” was revealed in 2007. Brady went down for the season in the 2008 opener. The Patriots still won 11 games that year WITH MATT CASSEL AT QB! If winning 11 games with Matt Cassel at QB doesn’t convince you that Belichick can flat out coach independent of cheating, I give up. And speaking of 2008, make no mistake about this: if it were revealed tomorrow that the 0-16 Lions both spied and deflated balls as the Patriots have, no one would give a damn. Integrity of the game, blah blah blah…..GTFOHWTBS.
Gus Griffin, for War Room Sports
Tags: All's Fair in Sports and War, Bill Belichick, cheating, Deflategate, Football, Gus Griffin, New England Patriots, NFL, Spygate, Tom Brady, War Room Sports, WRS