The NFL season is over (only 196 days left until it comes back, hold on strong). This means that the combine in upon us. Along with scouting and evaluating players. Lastly, is the NFL draft. But it isn’t as clean cut as Roger Goodell and the NFL would want it to be.
The New England Patriots still don’t have the first and fourth round picks from punishment handed down from the NFL. This is an issue that has been continued as part of what seems like the never ending issue of “Deflategate.” It was ruled that Tom Brady didn’t have to serve a four game suspension, the Patriots were fined $1-million, and there is still the issue of the draft pick.March third will be a big day for Patriots fans because that is the day Goodell and Brady go back to court. Peter King from MMQB wrote “Based on the weight of the evidence from the past 13 months, and that weight being circumstantial and not convincing, there’s one conclusion I’ve reached entering the 2016 draft season: Roger Goodell needs to give back the picks.”
This is a huge issue for the Patriots. They really need these draft picks because they need to build up their offensive line along with other positions. It’s not easy to get really good replacements if you can’t get them in the first round.
Many people are starting to agree with what King has said, but Boston Globe NFL writer Ben Volin brought up a different angle on the issue.
Volin said “Will the NFL give the Patriots their picks back? Heck no. Goodell and the other 31 owners have been hell-bent on punishing the Patriots since Day 1 of Deflategate, evidence or not. This is as much about re-punishing the Pats for Spygate as it is for anything they may have done with the footballs this time.” Volin brought up the point of if the NFL will give it back, whether they are right or not. Even when ESPN is turning against the NFL saying “Goodell would rather go down being really wrong than admitting he was wrong.” This is an issue that will continue to plague the Pats and their fans until justice is served.