The Real Patriot Act

Is anyone actually surprised by cheating anymore? I feel pretty confident saying that about 99.998% of all people everywhere have cheated. Whether it's on taxes, during an exam, on a spouse or a drug test; everyone wants to win, no one wants to lose. It sounds simple but there is STILL uproar when people get caught. We would love to believe that everyone is pure and good, but to hell with that thought! People are vile and evil (oooh, an anagram!) and they will do anything to advance themselves. No, I'm not comparing Patriots head coach Bill Belichick to the devil, but he, just like every other coach in the NFL, wants his team to be #1. All the time. And yes, sometimes the best way to do that is via cheatation. Sometimes it's even easier than just putting in the work. Spying on the other team, deciphering calls, stealing signs are all things that are inherent to the game. Hell, why do you think baseball coaches look like they're doin the cracked-up version of the macarena every play? While it looks like fun, it's really just to have the other team so confused by the body gyration they give up on trying to cheat and focus on the plays at hand.

The opening game of the 2007 NFL season was an eye opener not only for the entire New England Patriots organization, but the NFL as well. The New York Jets played the Pats for their season home opener and caught NE cheating. Staff on the Patriots sidelines literally had a camera FOCUSED on the Jets defensive bench and coordinators, recording their every move and the plays they called. After the game, Jets head coach Eric Mangini told the league that NE was taping them and swift action was taken. The NFL found the tapes corroborating these allegations, and as a result, penalized the Patriots. Head coach Bill Belichick has been fined $500,000, the New England Patriots organization fined $250,000, and the team will also lose early round draft picks to be decided at a later date. If the Pats make it to the playoffs, they'll lose a 1st round pick. If they don't make it to the playoffs (and that's a huge IF), they'll lose 2nd and 3rd rounders.

I've heard both sides of the argument; the punishment was too harsh, it wasn't harsh enough. I'm not torn on this one, Bill Belichick got off easy. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has prided himself on cracking down on bad behavior in the league, and that effort has been respected. When Pacman Jones kept getting in trouble, he put his foot down and suspended him for the 2007-2008 season. When Tank Williams faced gun possession charges, he suspended him as well. We all know Mike Vick had been indicted on federal dog fighting charges and he's been suspended indefinitely from the league. More recently, Rodney Harrison, a New England Patriot, was suspended for the first four games of this season when it was discovered that he used Human Growth Hormones, a substance banned by the league. So here we sit, with a head coach and his entire staff aware of the rules (just like the players) and breaking them (just like the players) and they get off with a fine? As far as leadership goes, the quarterback is a force, and the most explosive player is also important, but the head of a team is the coach. These are the true leaders, and they should be held to higher standards.

Now don't misunderstand me, killing dogs, possessing illegal guns, and taking drugs are all wrong, but most of those crimes have no direct correlation to the game of football. Does it speak to the integrity of the players involved? Yes. Does it mean they shouldn't be able to do their jobs? Maybe. But what do you do when the HEAD coach of a team is engaged in a practice so egregious and overt, all in an attempt to give himself a huge competitive advantage? Do you fine him half a mil? Or do you suspend him, the same way you have several players in the recent past? If Harrison took drugs to make him, and inherently his team as well, better and is forced to miss a quarter of the season, how can Belichick consciously and purposefully record defenses, compile an illegal library of information, and only be punished monetarily? Goodell made a decision; how can we hurt these offenders the most? The answer is to take away the game they all love, the game they live for and off of. Vick stands to lose more than $20 million over animals! Belichick blatantly broke the rules with cameras on the sidelines and he should have to pay the same way. Coach, and members of his staff, should have been fined AND suspended. Goodell needs to be consistent. 'Gimme the cash, gimme the games.' There has to be a standard.
People are now calling Jets head coach Eric Mangini a rat. Huh? Yes, Mangini DID coach under Belichick. And yes, he does know his many illegal tricks. But Belichick should have been smart enough to know that ManGENIUS would not have any of that. Especially on his home field. Not only that, this is not the first time the Pats have been accused of cheating. Teams have been complaining to the league about the Patriots sketchy practices for years. If you ask me, it's about damn time somebody stepped in with some concrete proof. Leave to NEW YORK to show the league how to git er done!

Sports are exciting and wonderful but they are still just that, sports. Made for fun and enjoyment, they have somehow morphed into holier-than-thou gods that are exempt from all the rules that apply to man. There are things that are acceptable for the average Joe to do, but let an athlete engage in the same actions and it's a travesty. But let's be clear, a bad person is a bad person, regardless of wealth, fame and social standing. Having money does not make you great; it just makes you rich. Just ask Brittany Spears! She's a millionaire and we're all watching her life crumble before our eyes. She markets her music to the younger generations but that does not make her a role model. She's a bald wacko who can't take care of her own children, let alone keep her wig on straight! Hell, priests are still child molesters, politicians are still corrupt, and the police are still crooked. To somehow believe that participating in organized sports somehow absolves any ill feelings or intent is ridiculous.

Do I think Billy is a cheater? Yes. Will he do anything to ensure a victory for his team? Clearly. Do I think he's a horrible person? Please people, no. But an issue like this does put an mark on his record and legacy as one of the best coaches in football history. And yes, that mark should be an ASTERISK. That's right, I said it. ASTERISK. Yall can't only use that for Barry Bonds! He never tested positive for ANYTHING and people are so adamantly against him and convinced of his guilt. Head coach of the New England Patriots, a team that has won 3 of the last 6 Super Bowls, has been caught red-damned-handed. How can we not blame some of that success on his extensive library of cheatation materials? All I'm saying is, people need to check themselves and their reasoning. To me, this issue is clear cut. But yall ain't makin no sense.