Arian Foster, Matt Leinart, others downplay Deflategate
While there are plenty of fans, analysts and players who are up in arms over the latest cheating accusations against the New England Patriots, there are others who feel that the amount of air the Pats have or do not have in their footballs has no correlation with their success.
Many of those people are current and former NFL players. The most notable may have been Houston Texans running back Arian Foster, who is never afraid to share his opinion on Twitter.
“@hamidd03: @ArianFoster do you care about the new patriots scandal or no”
No. But I don't understand how that would be an advantage.
— Feeno (@ArianFoster) January 21, 2015
“@normalAnderson: @ArianFoster @hamidd03 easier to throw and catch”
I don't think so.
— Feeno (@ArianFoster) January 21, 2015
Matt Leinart and Shaun King, two former NFL quarterbacks, agreed with Foster. Both insist that tampering with footballs is something that every NFL quarterback does.
Every team tampers with the footballs. Ask any Qb In the league, this is ridiculous!!
— Matt Leinart (@MattLeinartQB) January 21, 2015
@SI_PeterKing Every Qb goes through the footballs days before game and handpick which ones they want!!!!!! They take air out or put air in!
— Matt Leinart (@MattLeinartQB) January 21, 2015
This deflated ball thing is just further illumnating which of you knows NOTHING about football…..
— shaun king (@realshaunking) January 21, 2015
@BigCountyPreps1 non whatesoever EVERY qb alters the balls to fit their liking
— shaun king (@realshaunking) January 21, 2015
Hey, we know at least one former NFL quarterback who admitted to paying someone to mess with balls before the Super Bowl.
One of the more surprising reactions came from Indianapolis Colts tight end Dwayne Allen, who said the amount of air in the game balls had nothing to do with the Patriots dominating his team.
@NFLonFOX not a story. They could have played with soap for balls and beat us. Simply the better team. We have to continue to build! #BTM
— Dwayne Allen (@Dallen83) January 21, 2015
Of course, there are plenty of others — like Hall of Famer Jerry Rice — who believe the Patriots should be nailed to the wall.
11 of 12 balls under-inflated can anyone spell cheating!!! #Just Saying
— Jerry Rice (@JerryRice) January 21, 2015
If the footballs were deflated by that amount, it's definitely cheating. Harder to fumble, easier to catch, and helps you throw further.
— Terrance Knighton (@MrKnighton2u) January 21, 2015
We have pretty much seen every reaction imaginable since the original story broke, the funniest of which came from Colts punter Pat McAfee. With more than a week remaining until the Super Bowl, the fun has just begun.
