Coltrane, I agree that people now think of the Patriots' accomplishments as tainted, and I think Pats fans think that is horribly unfair. E.g.,
here is John Madden, years ago, explaining how teams tape each others' signals. And to the extent that fans think the Patriots have been treated differently, whether it's Pats fans thinking they've been singled out or other fans thinking they have been allowed to get away with too much, that really is an indictment of the league, whose single most important function is to establish conditions for fair competition between the franchises.
Adder, I don't understand why the NFL has done what it did, but it is beyond bizarre to have the league spreading disinformation and smearing one of its marquee stars. I tend to prefer explanations based in incompetence rather than malice, as per what I said above to Coltrane.
TM, the NFL put this statement out:
But if you're a Pittsburgh fan, would you trust the league? Why should anyone trust anything the league says at this point?
