Some comments on the comments - or my fears and expectations on "deflategate"
1. My biggest fear comes from the impression that Welles' report is actually independent. I don't see how it could be. Welles' law firm collects millions of dollars in legal fees from the NFL. Anyone who expect this report to reflect badly on the league is naïve.
2. The next biggest fear, is that we will never see the full report. Don't forget it is the League who owns this report. Its their to do with what they wish. I have no expectation that the league will allow anything damaging to the league to get to the public. No corporation would, why would we expect this one to be the first.
3. The 3rd fear is the one everyone should expect. The Pats won't be proven innocent, just not guilty. It will basically read, "We couldn't find any direct evidence that the Pats committed any wrong doing" In other words we can't prove them guilty, but that doesn't mean they didn't do anything. We just can't find the evidence at this time.
4. I have no compensation expectations from this, though I would like to see guys like Kensil fired, and perhaps the Colts get fined and/or lose picks.
5. Here is what I'd LIKE to happen.
a. The league issues a public apology to the Pats for its lack of institutional control in allowing biased and misleading leaks that materially damaged the Pats legacy, and for allowing the league office to be used by a small renegade group with a specific anti-Pats agenda.
b. I'd like ESPNl to issue a public apology to the Patriots organization of its part in "leakgate". To apologize for allowing ESPN to be used by Kensil and his ilk to promote his own agenda. And to apologize for using poor journalistic methods and procedures
c. I'd like to see Kensil fired, at least. Goodell is seems to be in the process of setting up a Nuremburg defense, which basically consists of "I didn't know" and "I was just following orders" If Goodell were a man governed by a sense of personal accountability, he'd resign immediately. Even if he really didn't know what Kensil and his cabal were up to, he SHOULD have.
6. The fact is, I doubt that any of what I would "like" to happen will happen. In the end, Kensil and the haters will win. Even if he gets fired, the damage he and his accomplices at ESPN invoked on the Pats cannot be undone. There is always going to be a very vocal minority who will spin this to hurt the Pats, and there are enough mediots around who will never hesitate to stir the pot, if they think it will get them some notoriety.
Think about it. I used to think that Florio was an anti-pats hater, Now I realize that in reality he is just a pro-click whore. He knows all he needs to add hundreds of clicks to his site is to write an inflammatory and misleading headline (Like he did with Rooney's comments on "formation=gate") Immediately he knows the haters will rush in to post their screed, and there will be 3X's that number of Pats fans to defend the faith. .....and the clicks just keep on coming.
7. In the end we won't get the Justice we deserve, and will have to settle for the Justice we can get.