Do It For The Kids

I'm sorry I've been even more emotionally distant than usual. Maybe it's the black flies or maybe the apocalyptically high levels of white pine pollen. Maybe it's mortality looming on the horizon. Maybe it's Deflategate Fatigue. Sometimes you forget. Life may be miserable but it's still better than the alternatives. I need put that on a t-shirt. With a picture of Godzilla spitting radioactive fire at a tank.

 

So, we're a couple of weeks out from Tom Brady's appeal and the debate has begun. Should Tom fight till he empties the clip or should he tap out?

I've pretty much been on Team Empty the Clip from the beginning. I've never believed Roger Goodell (FTG) would reduce Brady's suspension. Brady would have to take the NFL to court to clear his name.

I could never get with the "They probably did something because… Spygate!" crowd. I've considered having "Logo Gauge + Ideal Gas Law = 12.5" tattoed on my, well, there really isn't a good place on my body for a tattoo. Plus, I'm pathologically afraid of needles. (Hypodermiphobia?) Still, in my irrationally angry about pigskin injustice moments, I have considered a tattoo, if only briefly.

I can't go with Team Tap Out, either.

The basic rationale seems to be, no matter what happens, nothing will change. The jury's verdict didn't change anybody's mind about O.J. and nothing that happens from this point forward will change anybody's mind about Brady. Some believe Brady is innocent. Some believe Brady is a lying, cheating, whining, arrogant, narcissistic, avocado ice cream eating dick. There are also some people who consider themselves to be "reasonable" who believe Brady was simply doing what every other quarterback in the league does only he got caught because… Patriots!

So, since there's nothing to be gained, no guarantee he wins in court and since Goodell (FTG) will – presumably – reduce the suspension to 1 or 2 games, Brady should just let it go says Team Tap Out. And if Brady's acceptance is a tacit admission of guilt – that he cheated – well, so what? Everyone west of the Connecticut River already thinks he's a lying, cheating, whining, arrogant, narcissistic, avocado ice cream eating dick.

Okay.

I don't think Brady cares about what some guy from Trenton, New Jersey thinks. I don't think he cares what the pigskin pundits and bobbleheads think, either. I don't think he cares whether or not some analytics site decides Joe Montana was the better QB or even whether he's a first ballot Hall of Famer.

I do think he cares what his kids think. I think he cares about what they learn from what he's going through right now and how he handles it.

Sometimes Brady the public figure, the pigskin legend, the TB12 branded icon with the dimple in his chin and the piercing blue eyes can blind us to the fact that Tom Brady is a man like any other; a son, a husband and a father. We all have tough conversations we need to have with our children; sex, capitalism, the true meaning of Christmas, why life is unfair and tragic and heartbreaking but still worth living and why the bands of our youth were so much better than the bands of today.

Win or lose, some things are worth fighting for (like Talking Heads – at least from "Talking Heads '77" through side 1 of "Fear of Music" – were way better than Modest Mouse, for one thing). What we say isn't nearly as important as what we do. Like just about every moment in life, this is a teaching moment for Tom Brady and his kids. That's why I can't seeing Brady accepting even a 1-game suspension. What would that mean? That he cheated, but – wink, wink, nod, nod – only a little?

I don't see Goodell (FTG) vacating the suspension – I don't see him reducing the suspension at all – so I think we'll see Brady and the NFLPA take Goodell (FTG) and the NFL to court.

We all may be tired of it. Some of us may want Tom Brady to cut a deal, even if it means he accepts a 2-game suspension, so we can move on. We gave up on the notions of fairness or justice a long time ago. We've driven drunk, used creative accounting practices on our taxes and lied to our spouses and rationalized it because the truth was complicated and hurtful. We've seen bad calls go our way and accepted them as compensation for all the bad calls that didn't. A man's reputation, his good name, his legacy shouldn't have to be transactional but let's face it; it is.

Perhaps Brady will cut a deal. His kids won't stop loving him if he does. You can add that to the pile of things you think won't change regardless of what Tom Brady does after his appeal if you like. But you'd be wrong if you think nothing will change if Brady accepts a suspension, even if it's just one game.