If there was any joy to be had in the aftermath of New England winning a fifth title in the biggest Super Bowl comeback ever, it was the sheer awkwardness NFL commissioner Roger Goodell would be subjected to as he handed the Lombardi Trophy over to his nemesis, Tom Brady.
Roger Goodell and Tom Brady have given up on Deflategate, too
Sunday gave us the anticlimactic ending Deflategate truly deserved.
Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images
Yeah, about that ...
Everything between Goodell and the team that despised him was as cordial as possible in the postgame festivities.
The commissioner went over and shook Tom Brady’s hand, and though he was booed mercilessly as he presented Patriots owner Robert Kraft with the trophy, Goodell spoke nothing but praise for the franchise’s accomplishments.
The anticlimactic ceremonies continued over to Monday morning as Brady accepted the MVP award from Goodell saying, “It’s an honor to be here and have the commissioner present us with this trophy.”
This was supposed to be one of the most cathartic moments for NFL fans. Roger Goodell was finally going to have to pay up for the ludicrous, dragged out nature of Deflategate, and the ridiculousness of his authority to punish players.
Even after suspending Brady for four games, and refusing to watch a game in New England since 2014, Brady, Kraft, and Bill Belichick played nice for the cameras and maintained a professional attitude while winning what Kraft called his “sweetest” Super Bowl win yet. It was likely the only shot taken at Deflategate that we’ll get to see.
That’s despite the fact that Brady told a Boston sports radio show that if the Patriots beat the Falcons, he may open up on his true feelings about the commissioner — though he didn’t say when he would do it.
Instead, all parties “protected the shield” in public and denied football fans the one thing that could’ve made the Patriots’ win worth it.
There’s still one more bridge for Goodell to cross before he can put the bulk of Deflategate behind him: He’s got to attend a game in Foxborough again.
Goodell famously abstained from doing so this postseason — traveling to Atlanta twice to watch the Falcons instead — and while he’s said he would go back if invited, no one is going to stop him from showing up on his own accord.
The Patriots fans at Gillette stadium will get their last act of revenge and then this whole thing will, finally, be over with.
Or so we can only hope.
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