Wetzel: Patriots were naive to walk into Goodell's trap

IcyPatriot · Jul 29, 2015

Goodell to this point has used Kraft like a dirty dish rag.

Kraft chasing riches like a meth addict chasing a fix ... Goodell used it to his advantage to gain power.

Hoodie · Jul 29, 2015

Bella*chick said:
Holy hell. This is the BEST analogy.

who is Goodell? Tywin shot and killed on the john or Joffrey poisoned on his wedding day.

I'm sure you know that GRRM is a Jets fan and he says the Patriots are the Lannisters.

Hoodie · Jul 29, 2015

Fencer said:
Brady should have clearly stated his case near the beginning of this whole mess, along the lines of:

"I'm completely innocent."

"I would be shocked to discover anything other than complete innocence on the part of Jastremski and McNally as well."

"I instructed my representatives to cooperate fully in almost all respects. However, in one exception, I'm standing on my rights regarding my personal cellphone."

"I hope this mess doesn't contain an element of retaliation for me being the named plaintiff on a suit vs. the NFL."

"Having said all that, I'm now going to shut up and lawyer up. There are ongoing administrative processes, and perhaps court cases after that. Also, I'm hoping to play 19 games of football next season, plus pre-season, and I need to fully prepare for that."

Not sure where all this hand-wringing about what Brady should have said at that first presser comes from. Hindsight is 20/20 but at the time they had no way of knowing what this story would become and they were operating with misinformation regarding the psi of the balls. If they had responded to that it could have hurt them because people now would be asking about answers based on wrong information. Brady did not speak at the Mona Lisa Vito press conference.

ausbacker · Jul 29, 2015

Why is a supposedly independent arbitrator laying a trap to begin with? From the outset, it's an unusual premise.

Fencer · Jul 29, 2015

Hoodie said:
Not sure where all this hand-wringing about what Brady should have said at that frist presser comes from. Hindsight is 20/20 but at the time they had no way of knowing what this story would become and they were operating with misinformation regarding the psi of the balls. If they had responded to that it could have hurt them because people now would be asking about answers based on wrong information. Brady did not speak at the Mona Lisa Vito press conference.

I give Brady a pass for his first press conference, because he'd been given inaccurate information about PSI, because the whole issue was new, and because he didn't do nearly as badly as people now claim.

I'm saying, however, that his team should have been more forward leaning on the PR front once the immediate Super Bowl aftermath was over.

Joker · Jul 29, 2015

this team should NOT have had to do anything. Stop minimizing what the NFL and Goodell have done here. It is reprehensible, calls for immediate firing and a full investigation by the relevant federalauthorities. What the team "should" or "could" have done is meaningless when this is a sting setup by the NFL that backfired on an unaware Patriots staff.

Rob0729 · Jul 29, 2015

As I said earlier, I think Kraft was naive to trust his "friend" Roger. I don't think Brady was. I think Brady knew all along the league was out to get him. The problem is he made some critical errors.

First, he did not consult the NFLPA until after the Wells Report slammed him. The NFLPA would have probably made the cell phone issue a non-issue. Brady handled that wrong.

Second, Brady and his people are only looking at this legally and not in terms of PR. Brady's silence and allowing the NFL shape the discussion is the biggest issues with where he is. He should have had a PR team and a legal team.

ausbacker · Jul 29, 2015

Rob0729 said:
As I said earlier, I think Kraft was naive to trust his "friend" Roger. I don't think Brady was. I think Brady knew all along the league was out to get him. The problem is he made some critical errors.

First, he did not consult the NFLPA until after the Wells Report slammed him. The NFLPA would have probably made the cell phone issue a non-issue. Brady handled that wrong.

Second, Brady and his people are only looking at this legally and not in terms of PR. Brady's silence and allowing the NFL shape the discussion is the biggest issues with where he is. He should have had a PR team and a legal team.

If (when) Brady's team comes out victorious, you realize they can run with all the PR issues they like? Nothing the Brady camp can say or do is going to change the minds of people who want him found guilty no matter what. The best way to deal with this is win the case then hammer it home.

RayClay · Jul 29, 2015

That article is stupid. The commissioner has the power to levy any penalties he wants with no evidence. He can also flat out lie about things and, until caught, his lies have the authority of his position.

Their is no trap that could have been avoided. Like living in any totalitarian society governed by power and lies, not laws.

Rob0729 · Jul 29, 2015

ausbacker said:
If (when) Brady's team comes out victorious, you realize they can run with all the PR issues they like? Nothing the Brady camp can say or do is going to change the minds of people who want him found guilty no matter what. The best way to deal with this is win the case then hammer it home.

Unfortunately, it will be too late. Just look at the Rams' Walkthrough stuff. The Pats were vindicated and Tomase admitted his story was wrong, but there are still people, even in the media, who believe it is a proven fact that the Pats' taped the Rams' walkthrough.

No matter the outcome of the court cases, people will remember that Brady smashed his cell phone to avoid giving it to Ted Wells. Not true, but that is what the belief will be.

ausbacker · Jul 29, 2015

Rob0729 said:
Unfortunately, it will be too late. Just look at the Rams' Walkthrough stuff. The Pats were vindicated and Tomase admitted his story was wrong, but there are still people, even in the media, who believe it is a proven fact that the Pats' taped the Rams' walkthrough.

No matter the outcome of the court cases, people will remember that Brady smashed his cell phone to avoid giving it to Ted Wells. Not true, but that is what the belief will be.

That's my point Rob. The idiots who aren't interested in the truth have already made up their minds.

Rob0729 · Jul 29, 2015

ausbacker said:
That's my point Rob. The idiots who aren't interested in the truth have already made up their minds.

But a better PR effort Brady could be dictating the message than responding to it.

Ring 6 · Jul 29, 2015

Fencer said:
I give Brady a pass for his first press conference, because he'd been given inaccurate information about PSI, because the whole issue was new, and because he didn't do nearly as badly as people now claim.

I'm saying, however, that his team should have been more forward leaning on the PR front once the immediate Super Bowl aftermath was over.

Ultimately Brady handled it correctly. Nothing he could have said would have us in any different position, and unlike Goodell he has not made public comments that can now be used against him.

ausbacker · Jul 29, 2015

Rob0729 said:
But a better PR effort Brady could be dictating the message than responding to it.

I agree with you in theory but the deck was stacked against the Pats and Brady before they even knew there was a deck. I understand and agree with your position it's more I'd rather they put out the wildfire ahead of addressing the spot fires.

Fencer · Jul 29, 2015

AndyJohnson said:
Ultimately Brady handled it correctly. Nothing he could have said would have us in any different position, and unlike Goodell he has not made public comments that can now be used against him.

He should have repeated himself more loudly.

TheBostonStraggler · Jul 29, 2015

RayClay said:
That article is stupid. The commissioner has the power to levy any penalties he wants with no evidence. He can also flat out lie about things and, until caught, his lies have the authority of his position.

Their is no trap that could have been avoided. Like living in any totalitarian society governed by power and lies, not laws.

Interesting. Goodell has carte blanche on deciding guilt? As we know he does not have this power for punishment but for deciding guilt he does? If there are words in the CBA that say he has this power then its extremely bad news for Brady (and by extension us). However, abuse of discretion is a fairly wide net. The CBA better be pretty specific that Goodell can just tap someone on the shoulder and say 'guilty' otherwise the legal case may still be there.

Joker · Jul 29, 2015

The point is all this post facto "Brady should have" this and that is exactly the same rationalizations and minimizings we've seen being used by otherwise intelligent people for decades and decades in this country.

Sure rape is a horrible crime BUT she should not have worn that suggestive clothing...THAT was HER MISTAKE...

The initial charge is 100% bogus...all that follows is 100% the fault of those who made the charge. Period. Now you can ignore the testimony of the ref, dismiss the ideal gas law and scream for the next ten years about "cell phone destruction!!" but the fact of this matter is the ref testified in the Goodellgaroo court that he used the NFL gauge and he will testify in REAL federal U.S. district court to this again, under oath. Does anyone actually believe a federal judge is going to say "you're committing perjury, Mr Anderson...and now on to this cell phone destruction issue"? It's preposterous.

RayClay · Jul 29, 2015

TheBostonStraggler said:
Interesting. Goodell has carte blanche on deciding guilt? As we know he does not have this power for punishment but for deciding guilt he does? If there are words in the CBA that say he has this power then its extremely bad news for Brady (and by extension us). However, abuse of discretion is a fairly wide net. The CBA better be pretty specific that Goodell can just tap someone on the shoulder and say 'guilty' otherwise the legal case may still be there.

Goodell can levy any penalty on a team. He [obviously] can levy a penalty on a player, then act as an impartial arbitrator. If he couldn't, we wouldn't all be here.

We are hoping, because the players have a union, that his succession of lies, leaks and arbitrary rulings will be found to violate the CBA.

RayClay · Jul 29, 2015

Joker said:
The point is all this post facto "Brady should have" this and that is exactly the same rationalizations and minimizings we've seen being used by otherwise intelligent people for decades and decades in this country.

Sure rape is a horrible crime BUT she should not have worn that suggestive clothing...THAT was HER MISTAKE...

The initial charge is 100% bogus...all that follows is 100% the fault of those who made the charge. Period. Now you can ignore the testimony of the ref, dismiss the ideal gas law and scream for the next ten years about "cell phone destruction!!" but the fact of this matter is the ref testified in the Goodellgaroo court that he used the NFL gauge and he will testify in REAL federal U.S. district court to this again, under oath. Does anyone actually believe a federal judge is going to say "you're committing perjury, Mr Anderson...and now on to this cell phone destruction issue"? It's preposterous.

you've got it, Joker. it isn't a matter of what the victims did or didn't do. The owners gave goodell unlimited dictatorial powers.He can screw one, or favor the other, they can't do anything short of voting him out. It's a private club.

The union did too, to an extent, but they at least have an agreement of labor vs management and he violated about every one.

If he had wrongly accused and convicted Brady, but followed the proper procedure, he likely would have been bullet proof. Fortunately he's an impetuous, stupid buffoon, good at character assassination, but incapable of the discipline to follow written procedures that Kraft probably wrote for him because...see previous content.

supafly · Jul 29, 2015

Rob0729 said:
Unfortunately, it will be too late. Just look at the Rams' Walkthrough stuff. The Pats were vindicated and Tomase admitted his story was wrong, but there are still people, even in the media, who believe it is a proven fact that the Pats' taped the Rams' walkthrough.

No matter the outcome of the court cases, people will remember that Brady smashed his cell phone to avoid giving it to Ted Wells. Not true, but that is what the belief will be.

Sadly, that is what I fear as well.

I think the NFL did their best to secure their "victory" yesterday, no matter what the outcome of the case yields. As you mentioned, people often bring up the taped walk through to this very day--not even realizing that it was proven false.

People will point to the technicalities which occur inside a courtroom, and the language in the labor agreement, should Brady manage to win.

We need some damning evidence to come out in the case.

Wetzel: Patriots were naive to walk into Goodell's trap

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