It is tough being a sports fan today. It seems the headlines are full of items that are questioning the honesty and character of our sports heroes.
It may be a sign of the times where everything is public domain and athletes have no privacy or it may be the fact that these men have become so entitled that they feel they can do anything with no consequences. 
Tiger Woods’ missing tooth is the subject of much discussion lately. Team Woods stated he was hit in the mouth by a videographer during a crush of photographers at Lindsey Vonn’s championship. Yet no witness has come forward to corroborate that account. And surprisingly no photograph has surfaced showing any portion of the incident. No picture from a hoard of photographers? I seem to remember that tooth turning a little yellow shortly after his SUV met the fire hydrant. Could it be that finally that repair job gave out? Really? Hard to believe that story.
Next, the affable Aussie Robert Allenby shocked the sports world with his frightening account of being drugged, kidnapped, robbed, beaten and tossed from a trunk in a park. A bruised and battered Allenby spoke of fearing for his life and couldn’t remember many details. Now some witnesses have helped him fill in the details. Three different people have come forward contradicting his account. It seems he was much closer to a strip club than a park and was drunk rather than drugged. The scrapes and cuts on his face were the result of him passing out and falling instead of a beating, according to these witnesses. The police investigation hasn’t found much to prove Allenby’s version. Really? A night at a strip club goes bad and the story is a kidnapping? 
Then there’s the biggest sports story of the week and it’s not the Super Bowl: Deflategate. Bill Belichick, Tom Brady and the Patriots are back in the news for allegedly using under inflated balls in the AFC Championship. I’ll fight the urge to comment on Brady’s preferred choice of how he likes his balls but this is ridiculous. Who could imagine that something like this would go on? As far as Belichick and Brady playing dumb, no one should buy it. Big Bill went on about how meticulous he is with his practice balls: insisting that his players use the most beat up, worn, wet and slippery balls. So he worries about practice balls and not game balls? Really?
Now Tom has stated he likes a softer ball (cough) so of course he wouldn’t notice any difference in the ball because it is probably the same one he is used to. But he says he has no idea why the balls were inflated below the NFL required spec. And get this, not just a few balls; eleven of the twelve failed the test.
If this was an isolated incident we may be able to dismiss this as a mistake but the Patriots have been fined by the NFL twice before for cheating. It seems they have continued their old habits. Belichick is as anal and controlling a coach as there is and if anyone thinks he doesn’t know everything that goes on with his team they are very wrong. Really? He never discussed “air pressure?”
I am wondering if the Patriots are putting together their own investigation with former FBI and CIA guys to figure out what happened. They want to know who the guy is that missed that one ball!
Who to believe? Three stories that will test your faith in the character of those involved. Growing up idolizing sports heroes is a hard thing to let go of as an adult. But these stories seem to make it a little easier.
Related Articles
