Is Tom Still Terrific? How Incompetent is Goodell?

Will Rommell
Sep 24, 2015
3 min read

From the time of his emergence in 2001, Tom Brady has always been one of the most popular names not only in sports, but in the entire country. Up until this past season, he had won three Super Bowls, been a two time NFL MVP, a ten time Pro Bowler and arguably the best quarterback to ever put on an NFL uniform. This past season Brady won his fourth Super Bowl and third Super Bowl MVP. Then of course there is his Ugg sponsorship and his marriage to supermodel Gisele Bundchen. Since January 19th, 2015, Tom has been in the news for different reason than his elite skills and being America’s “Golden Boy.” Tom Terrific is no longer America’s Golden Boy, but now one of the most hated athletes in the country.

This is undoubtedly for what is known as “DeflateGate.” The instance where a Patriots team assistant and a locker room official allegedly released air from Tom Brady’s footballs below the legal limit so they were more to his liking during this year’s AFC Championship game against the Indianapolis Colts. From the first accusation, to the ones still going on now, Tom Brady and the Patriots have denied having any involvement with how much air was in the footballs that night. Regardless if the balls were truly deflated or not most likely did not have an effect on the game, seeing the Patriots won 45-7 and predominately ran the football.

However, how it affected the game isn’t primarily the reason everyone is up in arms. It is more so the fact that Tom Brady and the Patriots have supposedly cheated once again. Although there is no evidence that proves Brady is guilty without a doubt, Ted Wells’, the NFL’s independent investigator in this case, report found that it was “more probable than not” Tom knew about the deflation of the footballs. Therefore, the Patriots and Mr. Brady were punished accordingly with the organization being fined $1,000,000 and losing a first and fourth round draft pick. While Tom Brady was suspended for the first four games of the 2015-2016 season. Brady, obviously disagreeing with the discipline, appealed the decision and the NFL decided to use its own commissioner as an arbitrator and as expected, he upheld the suspension. Brady again appealed, but this time it was brought to a court with an authentic judge. After over a month of hearings and decision making, Judge Richard M. Berman lifted Tom Brady’s suspension and New England’s most prized athlete could return to the field on September 10th for the season opener.

This, as expected, sent the rest of the country up the wall crazy. Nevertheless, the real questions are: Did Tom Brady deserve to get off with no punishment and is Commissioner Rodger Goodell truly incompetent? There are plenty of reasons to why the answer is yes to both questions. Before I start, let me get it across that I do not think Brady is completely innocent, but I do believe that he did not deserve the four game suspension originally handed down. Let’s start off with the fact that there are other quarterbacks that illegally alter game balls. Aaron Rodger’s, quarterback for the Green Bay Packers, told CBS’s Phil Simms he likes to “to push the limits of how much air we can put in the football, even go over what they allow you to do.” Also, seeing that the normal punishment for game ball altering is a $25,000 fine, a four game suspension seems even more ridiculous than it already does.

Cowboys Defensive End Greg Hardy was suspended ten games earlier this year for his involvement in a domestic violence case, which Hardy then appealed and got it reduced to four games. Tom Brady had four games for maybe knowing about a little air being let out of some footballs. What’s wrong with that scenario? The fact that, from a punishment standpoint, abusing your wife is equivalent to possibly having knowledge about deflated footballs in the eyes of the commissioner. Goodell butchered the Ray Rice situation only suspending him for two games for knocking his fiancée out and dragging her out of an elevator. Then claiming he had not seen the incident on video until months after it happened. Goodell has also acted childish not showing up to the Patriots vs. Steelers season opener just days after losing his appeal to Tom Brady.

In the end, Rodger Goodell runs a dysfunctional association, is oblivious when punishing players, and Tom Brady got what he deserved when he got off of his suspension. Brady is now in pursuit of a fifth Super Bowl and through the first two games he seems to be on a mission, which the rest of the NFL knows, a Tom Brady on a mission is frightening Tom Brady.