BREAKING: Tom Brady suspended 4 games

[frylock]

Just heard on the radio while listening to Doug Gottlieb. No link yet.

[El Supremo]

1. They're also docking the Patriots two draft picks and fining the team $1 million.

http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/2015/5/11/8561245/tom-brady-suspended-deflategate-nfl-four-games-patriots

[rocktivity]

6. A small price to pay for keeping Kraft and Belichick's names

as pure as the driven snow. It was decided that Brady would be the blood sacrifice.

But I'm happy because I was hoping he'd lose at least a quarter of the season. Oh, and maybe the chain of custody of the footballs needs to be reconfigured.


rocktivity

[hughee99]

8. If the NFL doesn't do something about the chain of custody for the footballs, then this was all just

for show. If you're suspending a star player for "more probably than not" knowing about this, the team a million dollars, and taking away 2 draft picks (one, a first rounder) and do nothing to address the issues that actually came up, you're not really serious about fixing anything.

The NFL could hire an "official" NFL employee for all 32 teams, they work on gameday only, they make 500 bucks a game for a few hours work just to keep an eye on the ball and it would cost them a grand total 256k per season, so the Pats fine would cover almost the first 4 years of this. The employee could check the balls DURING the game as well, since on very cold days, all footballs are always under-inflated.

And didn't Brady lose a quarter of the season? 4 game suspension for a 16 game season?

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

2. Just got that notification on my NFL app

They also forfeit 2016's first round draft.

[KamaAina]

3. Ouch! The Pats just lost their hammerlock on the division.

An 0-4 or 1-3 start could open it up for the Fish or even the Bills, who showed some life last season.

edit: It goes without saying, of course, that the Jests remain hopeless.

[frylock]

4. Steelers, Bills, Jags, and Cowboys

[KamaAina]

5. Okay, Jags they could handle with me at QB

Stillers have seen better days. Bills and Cowpies gonna be tough.

edit: One imagines they'll be looking to pick up a free agent QB to get them through this. Who's out there?

[cali]

19. I think Jimmy Garoppolo could surprise people

just as Tom did.

[KamaAina]

20. The actress from The Truth About Cats and Dogs

is the Pats' backup QB?

[El Supremo]

7. Shit. Joeybee is putting people on ignore left and right in GD.

He must have run out of people here.

[madinmaryland]

13. He has more people on ignore than you have avatars!!

[El Supremo]

14. Did someone just reply to my post?

I can't see.

[madinmaryland]

17. How about some irony...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1204&pid=54673

Whining about cheating.

[trumad]

26. Irony...

He drips in irony.

[Auggie]

9. I don't think they hurt Kraft enough ... fine could be more

Team conduct starts with him and filters down

[hughee99]

11. I'm not sure, the Falcons only got $350k for piping in crowd noise for a couple of years,

although their team president (also CHAIRMAN of the competition committee) got suspended for the year... not suspended from the team, just the competition committee. It seems a bit like complaining that an MLB owner only got a $1 million dollar fine for one of the pitchers getting caught doctoring a baseball or corking a bat.

[Auggie]

16. Not quite the same analogy IMO, but I get your drift.

Maybe guys like Kraft only understand money, though the loss of power and prestige could be good punishment too. I like the suspension idea for Kraft along with a fine, albeit larger if even a little. He's totally getting off as it is.

Point is you really need to get the attention of the front office, head coaching staff and team captains so this shit stops once and for all -- everyone down the chain of command. I think they made that point with Sean Payton and the Saints.

[hughee99]

18. I agree on getting the owners attention, but is there really a fine the NFL could reasonably impose

that would really hurt Kraft? He's worth about 4 billion. Telling him his star has to sit for 4 games and he's giving up a first round pick probably got as much of his attention as you're going to get. I'm not saying they shouldn't fine him, but if the goal is to "hurt" him with a fine, I don't think that's going to happen.

[Auggie]

22. How about two billion?

[hughee99]

23. No matter how much other owners may hate Kraft or the Patriots, if Goodell tried to impose a

2 billion, 200 million or even 20 million dollar fine for something their own investigation concluded he didn't have any involvement in, just to get his attention, the other owners would fire him the next day.

Paul Allen doesn't want to be looking at a 8 billion dollar NFL fine because Marshawn Lynch won't wear the right shoes.

[trotsky]

10. Completely bogus.

What NFL player would say, "Gee, I sure would like to win a Super Bowl by cheating but being suspended for 4 games is too steep a price to pay!"?

LOL, crime pays, and the NFL just rewarded it.

[hughee99]

12. I think the Browns should be allowed to under-inflate a ball for the year.

They could use the good will that comes with winning a superbowl. Lets face it, the city of Cleveland could use a "win".

[mythology]

27. To be fair, the Browns could play with 13 players on the field and not win

That team is just spectacularly run and has been since they came back into the league. It's an amazing run of consistent awfulness.

[chelsea0011]

15. If game suspension stays at 4, first game back is against the Colts

Nice play NFL. No one will be tuning into that one.

[DinahMoeHum]

21. The Pats should have been banned from post-season play. . .

. . .for the season, as well as losing draft picks.

The whole team, not just Tom Brady, profited from this transgression.

[GusBob]

24. Expect the 2 equipment guys to start singing to the press

Paging tmz

[rocktivity]

28. Well, EITHER the press or TMZ

rocktivity

[bluedigger]

25. We're moving on to Jimmy.

I think the Steelers are fading. We got this.