Getty Former New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady.
W
hile the rest of the NFL world was celebrating former New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady’s retirement, one NFL analyst wanted to bash the quarterback.
Brady announced his second retirement on Wednesday and this one appears to be “for good” as the quarterback said. Fox Sports’ Rob Parker took the moment to remind everyone of the cheating allegations that came against New England and Brady.
“It’s interesting because Tom Brady and the Patriots were caught up in cheating scandals, and somehow, someway it doesn’t seem to stick to Tom Brady as it does to baseball players,” Parker said on his “Inside the Parker” podcast. “Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa — all these other guys, there’s more, that were all caught up in the steroid era, they didn’t get into the Hall of Fame, their careers were basically tarnished, tainted, whatever you want to use. And somehow, Brady escapes it. Is it the football writer? Do people not really care? Do people not care about the Pro Football Hall of Fame? What is it?
“Because the Patriots got caught in Spygate, where they were recording teams’ signals, defensive signals,” he added. “Which is huge, because that would help a quarterback, wouldn’t it, if they know what kind of defense they’re running? Yeah, I think it would, that would help Brady. People said, ‘Well, Brady had nothing to do with it. That was Bill Belichick.’ Well, that intel helps Brady. Also, he was suspended for four games for Deflategate. You remember that? He got suspended for Deflategate because he was having the ball boys take air out of the balls and then they did not meet NFL specifications. People said, ‘That’s no big deal. What do you care about a football or whatever?’ There’s a reason you have to have a certain air pressure in it and everybody needs to play with the same ball. Can we be honest? And somehow, that escapes him.”
This Wasn’t the Only Time the Patriots Were Accused of Cheating
Parker then reminded everyone that New England was accused of illegally filming the Cincinnati Bengals.
”Don’t forget the Patriots again got caught cheating in Cincinnati, where they were recording,” Parker said. “They said they were doing a documentary, but they were also recording Cincinnati’s defensive signals — another time they were caught up, Josh McDaniels, who was a Patriots guy, got basically fired in Denver for cheating.”
New England Patriots Owner Robert Kraft Wants Tom Brady to Retire a Patriot
With Brady deciding to hang up his cleats for good, fans wondered if he would return to New England to sign a one-day contract and officially retire as a Patriot.
The Patriots owner was asked about the possibility and Kraft said emphatically that he wants Brady to retire in New England.
“I’d do it tomorrow. Not only do I want it, our fans are clamoring for it. And to us, he always has been and always will be a Patriot,” Kraft said on CNN. “We will do everything we can in our power to bring him back, sign off as a Patriot, and find ways to honor him for many years to come. He did so much to bring life and good cheer to our community and he’s a beloved figure and he’s earned the respect and love that people feel for him like no other athlete in our town and we’ve had some great ones.”