Of all the takes to come out of Deflate-Gate and the Wells Report, perhaps no singular force has been as blisteringly hot as Tom Brady’s agent Don Yee.
After the Wells Report was, Yee issued a rather puzzling statement in which he asserted that the Colts and the NFL worked in cahoots with each other before the AFC Championship game:
What does it say about the league office’s protocols and ethics when it allows one team to tip it off to an issue prior to a championship game, and no league officials or game officials notified the Patriots of the same issue prior to the game? This suggests it may be more probable than not that the league cooperated with the Colts in perpetrating a sting operation.
He would later take a somewhat softer stance on 98.5 The Sport’s Hub, however Yee still couldn’t help but insinuate that the NFL had it in for Tom Brady and the New England Patriots prior to the publication of the report:
“In every instance where there was a choice between believing the credibility of league officials or Colts officials versus Tom or the Patriots officials, it appeared to me that they chose always to minimize the credibility of the Patriots or Tom,” Yee said. “They’re just doing a job. The report, and the way it was written, that’s how it appeared to me.”
However patently absurd the idea of an anti-Patriots conspiracy appears to those who don’t root for the Pats (or take money from their star quarterback), the above assertions look almost reasoned compared to what Yee had to say after the NFL decided to suspend Brady for the first four games of the season.
Here’s the full statement via Adam Schefter. Emphasis added.
“The discipline is ridiculous and has no legitimate basis. In my opinion, this outcome was pre-determined; there was no fairness in the Wells investigation whatsoever. There is no evidence that Tom directed footballs be set at pressures below the allowable limits. In fact, the evidence shows Tom clearly emphasized that footballs be set at pressures within the rules. Tom also cooperated with the investigation and answered every question presented to him. The Wells Report presents significant evidence, however, that the NFL lacks standards or protocols with respect to its handling of footballs prior to games; this is not the fault of Tom or the Patriots. The report also presents significant evidence the NFL participated with the Colts in some type of pre-AFC Championship Game planning regarding the footballs. This fact may raise serious questions about the integrity of the games we view on Sundays. We will appeal, and if the hearing officer is completely independent and neutral, I am very confident the Wells Report will be exposed as an incredibly frail exercise in fact-finding and logic. The NFL has a well-documented history of making poor disciplinary decisions that often are overturned when truly independent and neutral judges or arbitrators preside, and a former federal judge has found the commissioner has abused his discretion in the past, so this outcome does not surprise me. Sadly, today’s decision diminishes the NFL as it tells its fans, players and coaches that the games on the field don’t count as much as the games played on Park Avenue.”
Yes, because nothing helps the integrity of the game like a conspiracy to sully one of the league’s most popular stars. I have to admit though, the idea of Roger Goodell and Jim Irsay cackling maniacally while framing Tom Brady over Deflate-Gate is so ridiculous that I almost hope that it’s true. Almost.
