WASHINGTON — Congratulations; you鈥檝e fallen for it. You鈥檝e been duped. The NFL got you again.
With two full weeks to try to keep you entertained before the Super Bowl, the powers that be have聽manufactured the non-story of the New England Patriots allegedly deflating game balls during the AFC Championship Game to stay at the top of the sports-headline heap. With rampant speculation abounding and new information coming to light every few hours, who even needs the Pro Bowl anymore?
Let me state an important caveat before we go any further — I am not a Patriots fan. I don鈥檛 care what happens to them next weekend in Phoenix, and I only had a casual interest in seeing them advance past the Colts. As a Cal football fan, I root for Golden Bears in the NFL and generally against former Stanford players (hey, college rivalries die hard). With Shane Vereen in the New England backfield and Andrew Luck behind center for the Indianapolis Colts, my decision last Sunday was easy, but that鈥檚 as far as I was invested.
Now that we鈥檝e got that out of the way, do me a favor and ask yourself a few questions: Do you believe that under-inflated footballs are the reason that the New England Patriots have gone to six of the past 14 Super Bowls? Do you believe that under-inflated footballs were the difference in their 45-7 disemboweling of the Colts last Sunday, in which LeGarrette Blount ran the ball 30 times for 148 yards and three scores?
If the balls were , why wasn鈥檛 the issue rectified then? Oh wait; . And after only outscoring Indianapolis 17-7 in the first half, the Pats steamrolled the Colts 28-0 after the break with the up-to-code replacements. As such, why is there even an investigation? While we’re at it, why is this left in the hands of teams in the first place?
鈥淚t鈥檚 stupid that each team supplies their own balls,鈥� says Dr. Corinne Farnetti, professor of sports management at Mount St. Mary鈥檚 University. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 know why the NFL doesn鈥檛 supply their own balls for each game. It鈥檚 just giving them an opportunity to cheat.鈥�
Do you mean to tell me the NFL might lack institutional control over its codes of conduct and punishments for breaking said codes? You don鈥檛 say.
Back to the issue at hand, though — whether or not it really makes a difference, do you believe that none of the other 31 NFL teams inflate or deflate footballs to their preference?
鈥淭here鈥檚 a precedent for this, because there is a standard and rules for this,鈥� explains Steve Dressner, a producer at NFL Network who has covered the league for 24 years. 鈥淢y answer when I first heard the story break is that I wouldn鈥檛 be surprised that this has been going on for a very long time.鈥�
As , most of the quarterbacks he has spoken to adjust the ball to their liking one way or another, the same way pitchers do in baseball.
To that last end, Jim Nantz and Phil Simms casually shared on the air just a few weeks ago that Aaron Rodgers . The Tampa Bay Times reported Wednesday that former Buccaneers quarterback Brad Johnson to make sure the Super Bowl XXXVII footballs were scuffed up so he could get a better grip (the Bucs won that game, by the way). And hey — never mind that Tom Brady was one of the men that allowed visiting quarterbacks to break in their own footballs, where it had previously been done by the home signal-caller, removing a piece of home field advantage.
Beyond that, if the under-inflation was so dramatic, how did it go unnoticed by the officials in charge of spotting the ball, the same officials put in charge of maintaining quality control in the first place? The Patriots ran a total of 75 offensive plays, and at least one official touched the ball on each and every one.
Oh, and there鈥檚 the whole science aspect. , air pressure in a football reduced from 13.5 PSI to 11 PSI. Under the 20-or-so degree difference between a roughly 70-degree interior and the 49-degree temperature at kickoff, especially with a giant low-pressure front moving in, that would account for at least some of the difference.
This case is so thin it would never even get an indictment in an actual court of law, much less earn a conviction. But hey, it makes for great fodder, right?
鈥淓veryone searches for that very juicy story going into the Super Bowl,鈥� says Dressner. 鈥淲ell, here you go.鈥�
And yet, some people are calling for the NFL to force the Patriots to forfeit the game. Mind you, even if the NFL decides the balls were intentionally deflated, the stated punishment in the league rule book includes, but is 鈥渘ot limited to, a fine of $25,000.鈥� It seems that the next stage would be a larger fine or the loss of a draft pick or two, but that doesn鈥檛 seem to be good enough for those out for blood, calling on Belichick to be , or .
Why wouldn鈥檛 a be good enough punishment? Because the Patriots find ways to win without them anyway, finding gems in later rounds and off the scrap heap? So now we鈥檙e punishing them further for being better at operating within the rule structure? Really, think about that argument for a second.
Of course, when you have a reputation, people will take their shots. The Patriots were caught in 鈥淪pygate,鈥� a videotaping scandal, and fined back in 2007. That painted them with the scarlet 鈥淐鈥� as cheats. But even when you don鈥檛 have a history, when you stand on the pedestal, people will look for any excuse to try to knock you off of it.
鈥淎re people like Tom Brady and Bill Belichik put under a microscope? Absolutely,鈥� says Dressner. 鈥淎re they targeted? Maybe 鈥� When it comes to the rule book, it鈥檚 no secret that Bill Belichick knows how to toe that line. But any coach will tell you that鈥檚 the sign of a good coach.鈥�
You probably didn鈥檛 even know that the inflation level of the ball made any difference before this week. And despite what any of us may have researched in the past 72 hours, we should stop to ask ourselves whether any of it makes any real difference.
鈥淚n the grand scheme of things, this is nothing,鈥� says Farnetti. 鈥淚t鈥檚 great for the league that they鈥檙e talking about this.鈥�
So cancel your outrage and open your sports-watching eyes. There鈥檚 a ton of great college basketball to watch, with UVA ranked #2, Maryland in the Top 10, VCU in the top 20 and Georgetown in good shape to crack the Top 25 next week. The Wizards are flying high as a legitimate threat to make the NBA Finals. The Caps have risen into contention for a playoff spot.
And there鈥檚 a great Super Bowl matchup between the top two seeds in the game coming up. Save your energy for something that deserves it.
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