It's hard to write anything negative about Bill Belichick without the backlash of being labeled an angry 'homer' or somehow jealous.
Bill Belichick is a great coach and one of the best strategists of his era. He is also a callous, deceiving cheat and the NFL commissioner practically said as much. In an article run by ESPN Boston, Commissioner Goodell said said he felt 'deceived' by Bill Belichick who failed to fulfill his 'obligation to tell his side of the story.'
After a harsh punishment which showed the severity and extent of the cheating, the commissioner's office spoke with Patriots' owner Robert Kraft and demanded that Belichick made a verbal apology in front of reporters. While Goodell would never admit it, such retribution was an obvious form of payback to publicly shame Belichick who embarrassed the league and tarnished his image.
Kraft agreed and promised his coach would own up to what he did and face the media. Yet, Belichick never honored his word nor fulfilled his punishment. He broke his promise by only issuing a written apology in which he claimed to be 'sorry' for his actions. He refused all questions in a later news conference and through his silence, buried the story.
Goodell feels 'deceived' and he should be.
The Patriots organization, through the actions of the head coach essentially lied to the NFL. Not a blatant lie, it was none-the-less a deliberate act to mislead the commissioner and his office. The last time somebody lied to the NFL was Michael Vick, who did not fully disclose his involvement in the dog fighting ring. He was punished severely for his actions and part of that extended punishment was the result of not being upfront with Goodell.
Of course Belichick denied any such deception. In a recent Sports Illustrated story Belichick was quoted as saying " I did not make any assurances about thoroughly discussing the subject publicly... I said I would address it following the league's review. I then did that in a way I thought was appropriate. I don't think that was deceptive."
So there you have it. Goodell feels deceived but Belichick says he did nothing wrong... I guess its a case of he said she said.
Personally, I am going to trust the head of the NFL who brought up a sore and damaging story because he is obviously quite hurt by it, over the cheat of a coach. That is just me but that is just me, maybe I am a homer but I wonder why is it that when Belichick displays conduct detrimental to the league no further punishment is taken. Shouldn't Belichick deserve a 4 game suspension? Wouldn't that make him own up to his actions. If he doesn't respect the league, he shouldn't be a part of it. As Goodell so often reminds us, the NFL is a privilege not a right.
It shouldn't matter how good he is. Michael Vick was quite impressive if my memory serves me correctly so too was Ben Rothlisberger. They were punished for disrespecting the NFL. Shouldn't Belichikck receive the same fate?
Either way, Belichick may be coach of the year and a master motivator. His behavior is equally shameful.