Honestly, folks, nobody to be trusted in “Spygate” affair

Posted on September 19, 2007 
Filed Under Direct Snapp



logo 9 19by Dan Snapp
dan@patriotsdaily.com

Be honest, Patriots fans. Were you angry the team cheated, or that they got caught?

I know, I know, everything’s happening so fast, it’s tough to grasp the real issue. Is it cheating or is it gamesmanship? Does everybody do it, and does that make it alright? Stealing signals is OK, but videotaping signals isn’t? Why is Mike Ditka, of all people, talking about class? It’s all so confusing.

We’re fickle in the way we support our teams: So willing to defend the indefensible, going beyond all reason if given only one teensy shred to prey (and pray) upon. Right up to the last minute, we expected Belichick to pull out some miracle - Eric Mangini’s wedding video, the commissioner’s tax returns, whatever - something to prove his innocence, and maybe show a little Jets culpability as a toss-in.

So we lost that one. Now commissioner Roger Goodell is going after all the Patriots tapes back to 2000, and the fans are tossed in the shredder again (hopefully along with some of the more incriminating stuff). We’re back hoping the team did no wrong, but more realistically hoping any wrongdoing won’t be discovered.

When did being a sports fan turn into such a morality play?

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Be honest, rival fans. Are you truly this righteously indignant about the besmirched integrity of the game, or are you basking in this glorious opportunity to stick it to the Pats? And are you certain things are so lily white in your back yard?

OK, we’ll be fair. We’d be living it up, too, and will be when your turn comes.

It’s true, Eric Mangini is a genius. Who else loses games and gets ticker tape parades the next day? He’s nearly got Patriots fans rooting for the Jets to win each week so there won’t be a new scandal the following Monday. If the Jets are winless by week six, it’ll be hookers and blow. By week ten, he’ll be writing to Penthouse (”I never used to believe these stories were true, but back when I was an assistant coach for the New England Patriots…”).

By the way, good news! The Pats’ forfeited pick is going to the Jets after all. You’ll be picking 32nd instead of 33rd.

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Be honest, sports media. When you say, “Think of the fans, think of the children” aren’t you really saying, “Think of us”? Is this the karma payback for all those cold shoulders, all those soundbite-free press conferences?

The Providence Journal’s Jim Donaldson told us if Belichick had Ron Meyer’s car salesman slickness, he’d be “easier to forgive “. Sports Illustrated’s Paul Zimmerman wagged his finger at the “smug, arrogant” Belichick, then waxed poetic on the ways teams cheated in the good old days. Ah, those playful scamps! Dr. Z’s colleague Peter King said he hopes Belichick ” had a come-to-Jesus moment” (whole lot of good that it did Michael Vick). Are these people for real?

The message couldn’t be any clearer: give us that to which we’re entitled, and you’ll be treated fairly. Is it any wonder he shuts these people out in the first place?

It’s become a race now to see who can top each other on the ridiculousness scale. Richard Nixon comparisons were last week; this week, it’s ” Michael Vick has more dignity than Belichick.” They’re trying out Rae Carruth analogies on test audiences as we speak.

Oh, and guys, if this thing keeps going, can we please retire “brazen”? Try “impudent”, “insolent”, “audacious” or - you’ll love this - “shameless”.

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Be honest, Bill Belichick. A “misinterpretation” of the rules? Really? That little Eddie Haskell routine probably sealed your fate with the commissioner more so than the actual offense.

Be truthful, Robert Kraft, because your poker face stinks. Don’t tell us you just found out about it. Where were you when the complaints came down last year?

Incidentally, Kraft blew an opportunity to help this thing blow over. After the commissioner gave his punishment, Kraft should have levied one of his own, suspending Belichick for two or three games.

Bear with me here.

Belichick has created a culture in New England that says “Everybody is treated the same.” This is why he suspended Terry Glenn twice in 2001, despite having a painfully thin receiver corps and in the middle of a playoff race.

Suspending Belichick would show the players that he’s one of them, susceptible to the same punishment they would serve. They know the fines mean nothing, and the lost draft pick is a team burden, not a Belichick one.

A suspension would also allow Kraft to save face for the embarrassment Belichick brought to his organization. That’s the penalty that’s going to linger longest, the doubt cast over every achievement of the past seven years. For his own sake, his investment’s sake, he should have done something about that.

A suspension would quiet much of the crowd that’s now saying, “He got off easy.” Sure, some - OK, Bill Polian - will shriek for something harsher (forfeitures, entire drafts, banishment, the stockades, etc.) but those cries would be muffled. Moreover, the Patriots could weather Belichick’s absence, maybe even come back stronger.

After the suspension was served, then leak the story that Belichick’s been re-upped through 2013. Leave no room for doubt. The actions of the coach hurt the the organization, you took measures beyond what the commissioner laid down, and now you welcome him back with open arms to lead your team into the next decade.

Kraft is served, the team is served, justice is served. Ass-kicking resumes.

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Finally, tell us the truth, Commissioner Goodell. Have you thought this through?

What’s the point of seeking all the Patriots tapes? You’re either going to find something, or not find something and think you should. You’ll punish the Pats, and reinforce the word “Cheat” as part of the NFL brand.

You could have been done with it. You could have said, “The penalty was harsh and just, and will deter the Patriots and all other teams from engaging in this sort of behavior again,” and that’s that.

Besides, you’re not really going to find anything anyway.

Trust us on this.

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