At the moment, the idea that the NFL is targeting poor Tom Brady in the DeflateGate investigation seems concentrated to a group of Patriots fans and/or Tom’s dad.
But it’s clear that the league is taking this one seriously.
As Florio pointed out this morning, a suspension of the Patriots quarterback seems unavoidable, as unlikely as that might seem on its face.
At the very least, it is being considered at the league level.
According to Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald, a league source familiar with the disciplinary process said we shouldn’t dismiss the possibility that Brady might go away for a period of time.
“Everything is being studied, everything is being considered,” the source said (emphasis Armando’s, not mine).
The league has gone hard on the crime-and-punishment from since being embarrassed by the Ray Rice debacle, as players such as Greg Hardy can attest.
But to suspend the starting quarterback of the defending Super Bowl champions (who kick off the season on national television) would be a huge move.
Of course, conspiring to break the rules of the game, and not cooperating with an investigation would be considered a huge lapse as well.
