Haven't we all had enough of spygate, already?
I don't condone cheating, in sports or otherwise, but this is just getting ridiculous.
Doesn't Senator Specter have anything else to worry about? While I do care about fair play in the NFL, I am much more concerned about some of the awful officiating this season than whether or not the Patriots may or may not have benefited from video taping signals.
What's lost in this "controversy" is that while the Patriots did indeed cheat, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has conceeded that opposing coaches are seen waving at the camera on these recently destroyed video tapes. If this is indeed the case, then this means that coaches within the NFL knew that New England was video taping them. If this was such a big deal, why wouldn't opposing teams blow the whistle on the Patriots before now?
The truth is that there is a very odd, anti-Patriots bias that has developed over the past year or so. We know that in this country, people will build you up until you get to the top, and attempt to tear you back down. With the Patriots, though, I don't get the hate. It seems people loved the 2000 Baltimore Ravens more than the 2007 Patriots. A Ravens team that, in the past decade, has been sued and lost over stealing the original helmet logo (the logo changed from the winged, shielded "B" emblem to a Raven head due to a court ruling).
During their Superbowl run in 2000, Ravens' linebacker Ray Lewis was indicted on murder and aggravated assault charges.
And in 2004, then running back Jamal Lewis was charged with conspiracy and intent to distribute cocaine charges, while also setting up a drug deal using his cell phone.
And yet, I wonder if the Patriots are more despised than the Ravens ever were?
I don't remember any hate and vitriol aimed towards the Dallas Cowboys of the 1990's. That was a team that dominated and won all the time, too. However, the Cowboys were also a team that was constantly in the news due to players being arrested. And when they weren't adding to their rap sheet, players like Deion Sanders and Michael Irvin were talking
trash and being anything but humble.
So why is New England singled out? Because of the head coach? Because the Patriots win? Since when did winning become a bad thing? Call me weird, but I actually love to see quality football when I sit down to watch a game for three hours. The Patriots, all season long, played quality football.
And unlike other teams, the Patriots didn't run their mouths. There were no Terrell Owens' or Chad Johnsons' in the New England locker room. There were no guys creating division within the team, or unable to buy into the team concept. The Patriots, to me, always seemed like the perfect blue collar team. Sure, they wanted to win, but they never gloated off the field. No player on the team was conceiving of endzone dances for the week, or in ad after ad on the television during the game.
There were and are great players on the Patriots team that, to me, make it almost impossible not to root for them. Amidst all the animosity towards to Patriots, does everyone forget that linebacker Teddy Bruschi suffered a stroke just three years ago?
Or the always classy Junior Seau has, despite his dominance in the league over the many seasons, has yet to win a Superbowl?
Or the fact that players like Tom Brady and Randy Moss restructured their deals and signed for less money, respectively, so that they could be a part of a successful team in New England?
I think many fans are missing out. It may be a very long time before you see a football team not only win three Superbowls in four seasons, but see a team who also had a legitimate shot at being able to call themselves the greatest team ever. Instead of rooting against the Patriots on Superbowl Sunday, more football fans should have been hoping they got to witness something that they will certainly never see accomplished again in the NFL during their lifetime.
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