"When it happens to your son, it's a whole different context. Or your daughter or any one of your kids and I think any parent kind of understands that. They'd rather take the slings and arrows in the heart than have their kids take it. For what the league did to him (Tom Brady) and what Roger Goodell constantly lied about is beyond reprehensible as far as I'm concerned.
“He (Goodell) went on a witch hunt and went in way over his head and had to lie his way out in numerous ways, and the reality is that Tommy never got suspended for deflating footballs,” Tom Brady Sr. said. “He got suspended because the court said that he could, Roger Goodell could do anything he wanted to do to any player for any reason whatsoever. That’s what happened. The NFL admitted they had no evidence on him.” If the Patriots win Super Bowl LI, Brady and Goodell would inevitably cross paths during the handing off of the Lombardi Trophy. Steve believes that Roger shouldn’t even be on the same stage as his son. “ Somebody that has Roger Goodell’s ethics doesn’t belong on any stage that Tom Brady is on.”
Prior to Super Bowl 1, Green Bay Packers' Head Coach Vince Lombardi remarked that "you players should be proud of your profession." 50 years later, Tom Brady Sr. and New England Patriots' owner Bob Kraft want to incite the masses and upstage NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. The four game suspension levied against Patriots' star QB Tom Brady pales in comparison to the one year penalty that Packers' RB Paul Hornung received. Hornung, along with Detroit Lions defensive tackle Alex Karras, were banished by Commissioner Pete Rozelle on April 17, 1963 indefinitely for betting on NFL games and associating with undesirable persons.
Paul Hornung was the 1956 Heisman Trophy recipient from Notre Dame. He is the only winner from a team with a losing record. He was the first person to be inducted into the High School, College and Pro Football Hall of Fame. His 176 points in 1961 were an NFL record, and his 19 points in a NFL title game still stands. The suspensions lasted only one season, the fines were minor ($2,000 for each player) and the betting incidents now appear small. But the suspensions were crucial, representing the establishment of his authority and the backing of the owners. "I felt relieved," Pete Rozelle said. Forthright in admitting to his mistake, Hornung's image went relatively untarnished.
In 1990, the NFL instituted the Pete Rozelle Trophy to honor the Super Bowl MVP. NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle died at home on December 6, 1996 in Rancho Santa Fe, CA. Paul Hornung attended the funeral services.
In the final act of The Sting, Henry Gondorff(Paul Newman) tells Johnny Hooker(Robert Redford) that "You beat 'em, kid." Hooker's response was "You're right. It's not enough, but it's close." Tom Brady Sr. and Bob Kraft would be best served in watching this four star gem.
Paul Murphy
Follow me on Twitter at @_prmurphy
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