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The moment former Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce retired and turned his focus to a post-football career in media, many were excited to see his unfiltered thoughts on things that happened during the NFL season. While we’re months away from that happening, Kelce did reveal his thoughts on Deflategate.
Deflategate was the big NFL scandal during the 2015 season that alleged Tom Brady had his footballs deflated below the required gauge pressure (12 and 13.5 pounds per square inch). The NFL launched an investigation that found Brady deliberately had the footballs deflated below the mandated limits, which gave him an advantage in the AFC Championship Game against the Indianapolis Colts.
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Following that AFC title game, which the New England Patriots won 45-7, the NFL launched its own investigation and then hired attorney Ted Wells to look into the matter. Following the release of Wells’ report, Brady was suspended four games and the Patriots were fined $1 million and stripped of two draft picks.
The decision to suspend Brady and strip the Patriots of a 2016 first-round pick and a 207 fourth-round pick received plenty of criticism. Now that he’s out of the league, Kelce had his opportunity to share his thoughts on what the league did.
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On the latest “New Heights” podcast, Kelce admitted he never thought Brady should’ve faced discipline and he even thinks that the actions at the time were just an example of the former Patriots’ quarterback outsmarting everyone else.
“I don’t even think Tom should have got in trouble for deflating footballs. I’m pro-deflating footballs. I’ll say it. I’ll say it. I am pro-deflating footballs. . . . He outsmarted people. Why the (expletive) does it matter how much air is in that (expletive)? If you’re throwing it and catching it, who the fuck cares?
Jason Kelce on Deflategate, Tom Brady deflating footballs (H/T MassLive.com)
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Kelce made a passionate argument that Brady was simply punished for coming up with something that no one else thought of doing. It made the football easier to catch for his wide receivers and if no one else thought of doing it, that’s on them.
“We’re all mad because he had the common sense to (expletive) take a little air out so the receivers could catch the (expletive) thing? Why is that against the rules? You all could have taken the air out, too. You guys could have taken the air out, too. You just weren’t smart enough. So why am I getting penalized because you’re fucking dummies? It’s a rule, but it’s a stupid rule, though.”
Jason Kelce on Tom Brady having the footballs deflated
Years later, the decision to suspend Brady and take a first-round pick away from the Patriots seems even more baffling considering the discipline some players have received for far worse actions off-the-field. At the very least, Kelce is proving that he isn’t afraid of criticizing the league now that he has retired.