Patriots vs. NFL: Robert Kraft Takes the Gloves Off
The year is 1998. The setting – my best friend Sean’s den. The situation: Goldeneye 007, on Nintendo 64, team deathmatch, four players. The level is the Facility. I’m stuck at the end of that really long hallway. The two guys on the other team are closing in fast, according to the radar, and there’s no chance I get out of this room before they get here. The door is opening. They’re here already? I’m trapped. There’s only one thing to do.
I blast a rocket launcher straight into the floor and blow us all to hell.
2 kills, one suicide. Score!
Aside from revealing that I played way too much Goldeneye as a kid, the point of the story is this: if you’re going to go down, you might as well take your enemies down with you. And that’s exactly what Robert Kraft and the Patriots seem to be doing.
Last Friday, while most of us were sneaking out of work early to play golf, the Patriots took the same approach towards the NFL by publishing a series of emails between Pats VP of media relations Stacey James, team counsel Robyn Glaser, NFL spokesman Greg Aiello, and league counsel Jeff Pash. The email chain dates back to February 17th, 2015, and according to Pro Football Talk and anyone with a functioning brain that reads it, is basically asking the league to correct a few reports that were completely false. Like, oh, say, that one that said the Patriots tried to an unapproved kicking ball into the AFC Championship game, and that one you might remember from Chris Mortensen that said that 11 of the 12 Patriots game balls were a full two pounds below the minimum PSI requirement.
The request is simple enough. Hey, NFL, these reports are out there, and you know they’re factually inaccurate, and we know they’re factually inaccurate, so the Patriots would appreciate it if this blatantly wrong information could be corrected, or at least clarified by the NFL, ASAP.
And the NFL’s response was pretty much “LOL nah”.
From NESN, here’s the gist of what the Patriots are asking:
Stacey James (Patriots): “Once again, we have ANOTHER leak (this one citing four sources close to the investigation) resulting in a report providing details that no one else would possibly have in a story that tries to implicate a day of game employee. This story will undoubtedly get a ridiculous amount of attention on ESPN and other news outlets and continue to irreparably damage our brand and reputation.”
“What is unconsciounable to me is that the league holds data that could very well exonerate us from any wrongdoing and completely dismiss the rampant reports and allegations of nefarious actions, but the league refuses to provide the data. I cannot comprehend how withholding the range of PSIs measured in the game is beneficial to the NFL or the Patriots.”
Robyn Glaser (team counsel for the Pats) then forwards the email to Jeff Pash, the NFL’s league counsel, and comes out swinging, saying that the reports are clearly coming from the NFL, as the Patriots wouldn’t release false information that makes them look bad, and characterizes the NFL’s leaks as “…not only inaccurate, but completely inflammatory and profoundly damaging” and concludes that “Regardless of decisions made regarding the scope of the Wells Investigation, we hereby DEMAND that the misinformation included in this ESPN piece be formally and publicly corrected by the league IMMEDIATELY. Prefereably within the next few hours but, in any case, no later than the end of the day today”.
The NFL’s response from Jeff Pash, which came about 20 minutes after that email was sent, said “I have seen the ESPN story. I have no reason to think it came from our office but I certainly do not condone leaks which I do not serve anyone’s interest.”
After a reply from the Pats saying that the league would be the only ones that would be leaking information and saying there’s really no good reason to not correct false reports, Jeff Pash from the NFL replies and says, among other things, “…I have doubts that piecemeal disclosures are likely to accomplish much. If anything, I would think they are likely to prompt additional questions, additional stories, and additional irresponsible speculation and commentary.”
Pash then goes on to say that he doesn’t think the NFL would leak information that only they would have access to. His exact quote is “I don’t think that I am trying to disclaim responsibility by saying that ESPN printed the article. I am saying that I don’t believe our office was the source of the information.”
At that point, Robyn Glaser and the Patriots get really frustrated, call Pash’s response “pretty disingenuous”, reference Pash saying that the league works for the members and saying “It has been made resoundingly clear to us that your words are just a front. They have no substance at all.”
…To which the NFL pretty much shrugs.
What’s the point of publishing these emails now, months after the conversation with the league was already done?
Easy. Robert Kraft and the Patriots are putting all of their efforts to get the NFL to clear up false reports and accusations based on said misinformation out there, and highlighting the NFL’s response that’s more befitting of a Comcast customer service representative than someone who, like Glaser points out, is supposed to be looking out for the best interests of the NFL’s teams.
And with Tom Brady’s suspension appeal heading to court after Roger Goodell upheld his own suspension ruling, Kraft and the Patriots want it out there that not only was there plenty of bad information out there when this whole thing started, but also that the NFL looks like it actually put more effort into avoiding correcting the leaks than leaking bad info in the first place.
The damage is already done to the team. That first-round draft pick and $1,000,000.00 fine isn’t coming back. Plenty of people have noted that Brady’s court process might completely backfire.
But in the meantime, if Robert Kraft is going down, it’s clear now that he’s taking the organization he’s seen as responsible for this Scooby-Doo farce of a situation down with him.