The ploy of Bill Belicheat
Patriots Head Coach Bill Belichick and his staff were penalized for stealing signs and videotape from the New York Jets during their Sept. 9 game in the Meadowlands. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell fined the Patriots $200,000 and docked a 2008 first round pick from the team. Subsequently, Belichick was fined half a million dollars.
Yet, what is so surprising to me is that the Patriots are far and away the best team in football right now, and that says a lot coming from the conceited New Yorker that I am. They have no real reason to cheat. The Pats have arguably the best quarterback in Tom Brady. New England also has a powerful running game led by Laurence Maroney, and a wide receiver corps that includes a rejuvenated Randy Moss and the speedy Donté Stallworth. Moreover, their defense is crammed with superstars, Asante Samuel and Adalius Thomas to name a few. Essentially, there is no team in football that matches up with the Patriots on paper. The Patriots could have defeated the New York Jets with a practice squad–so it makes little sense to me as to why the Pats' coaching staff would conspire in illegal activity in order to gain an even more unfair advantage. If I were the commissioner, I would have forced the Patriots to forfeit the game that they won by such a preposterous margin in the first place in order to set an example. Cheating has no place in sports, however, the question that is most alarming to me is, does any sport exist that is completely pure? The answer: probably not.
Cheaters have existed for years in sports, ranging from Sammy Sosa and his corked bat, to Barry Bonds and his collection of syringes, to NBA referee Tim Donaghy and his inability to call a correct traveling violation. The motive of cheating is clear: One wants to achieve an unfair advantage in order to make their chance of gaining stardom and accumulating wealth even greater than it already is. For example, San Francisco Giants outfielder Barry Bonds was a fantastic player before he decided to jab himself in the arm with illicit substances. He would have been a first ballot Hall of Famer even if he had not hit 73 home runs in 2003 and even if he had not broke Hank Aaron's celebrated record of 756 career home runs. There is no point in cheating because the risk is infinitely greater than the perceived reward. Although Barry Bonds does hold the single season record for homeruns, it will always be looked at with a crooked eye. From the perspective of your everyday football fan such as myself, every game that the Patriots win this year (which may very well be all of them) will carry the possibility of a repeat offense. Fans do not forget about these types of antics, and it will not surprise me if this lingers beyond the course of this NFL season.
NFL Week 2: Fact or Fiction
FACT
1. The New York Giants are a bad football team.
2. LaDanian Tomlinson and Steven Jackson CAN rush for fewer than 100 yards and a touchdown in an NFL game.
3. After throwing for 398 yards and five touchdowns en route to a 51-45 win over the Bengals, Browns' quarterback Derek Anderson is a legitimate substitute for Brady Quinn-at least for now.
4. Texans' quarterback Matt Schaub is the frontrunner for the MVP.
5. Texans' defensive tackle, Amobi Okoye, is 19 years old and a forceful starter in the league.
6. Packers' runningback Brandon Jackson should enjoy his last few weeks as a starter because backup DeShawn Wynn looked sensational this past weekend.
7. The 49ers are for real this year. Frank Gore is a stud.
8. Broncos' kicker Jason Elam really loves waiting until the last minute to win games for his team.
9. The New Orleans Saints need to change something. Now.
10. The New England Cheatriots are without a question the best team in football.
FICTION
1. We will all laugh at Jon Kitna and the Lions as his team catastrophically ends the season 2-14.
2. Great year to be a Raiders fan!
3. Tiki Barber is coming out of retirement to rejuvenate the ailing Giants.
4. Rex Grossman has proved his critics wrong and has become a consistent NFL starting quarterback.
5. The Houston Texans made a BIG mistake by letting quarterback David Carr go to the Panthers.
6. On the topic of the Panthers, wide receiver Steve Smith will be hampered by lingering leg injuries and spend most of the year on the sidelines.
7. The Buffalo Bills have a reasonable shot at winning the AFC East.
8. Chad Johnson will never do another raucous, over-the-top, hysterical and expensive touchdown celebration.
9. The Jacksonville-Atlanta game received some of the highest TV ratings in years.
10. The New England Patriots will know the feeling of a loss of more than three points this season.