Tom Brady may or may not be partially responsible for the New England Patriots playing with slightly under-inflated footballs in the AFC Championship Game, but there is one wrinkle to the story that has not received much attention to this point — will the defending champions come out with their hair on fire in 2015?
One of the reasons Bill Belichick is arguably the greatest NFL coach of all time is his ability to motivate. If you think he’s not going to use Deflategate as motivation, you’re insane. And according to one former Patriot, Brady will surely do the same.
In an interview with Jenny Vrentas of The MMQB earlier this week, Rodney Harrison said the Deflategate scrutiny is the “best thing” that could have happened to No. 12.
“You’ve got way over $100 million in the bank. You’ve got a beautiful wife. You’ve got a beautiful family. The natural tendency would be to say, ‘I can lie in my silk sheets and just enjoy life now. I don’t need football,’” Harrison said. “But I’m telling you: This is the best thing that could have happened to Tom Brady. This will rejuvenate him. The rest of the league better look out. This year, he’s going to make everybody pay for what’s happened.”
We all remember what happened after Spygate, albeit with a much younger Brady and a Randy Moss to throw to. Still, the Patriots ran the table during the regular season and came a dropped interception and a miracle catch away from the first 19-0 season in NFL history.
“Believe me, he’s not saying anything right now, but this is pissing him off, big-time,” Harrison added. “He will be supremely motivated this year. I know him. I know how he thinks. And this is going to be very bad for the rest of the league when they play Brady this year.”
Harrison made some comments about Deflategate a couple of weeks that weren’t exactly favorable for the Patriots, so he’s not being a homer.
No one should be surprised if Deflategate helps the Patriots avoid a Super Bowl hangover.
