Quote Originally Posted by smuggler View Post
The NFL does not enforce every rule they have on the books. Technically, it's specifically prohibited in the rules to punch a ball in player possession. The ball is also considered to be part of the player that's possessing it, so doing so would also, technically, be grounds for game disqualification. Yet that rule has not been enforced for decades. Still, if the NFL wanted, they could FINE players for having done it in last week's games.

The reason the NFL tried to lay the hammer here, laid the hammer on the Pats for Spygate, and the Saints for Bountygate, is that they sent communication to the Saints and Patriots informing them the cat was out and that they need to stop the cheating. They did not comply.

If the league had wanted to crack down on Stickem, Rice would have backed down.

As it stands, there is no justice in the NFL or in the US as a whole for that matter. There is just posturing, politics, and litigation.

As it applies to the NFL, Goodell will now need to levy harsher penalties more often to offset the fact the union will appeal literally everything that comes down. That's great for a cheat like Brady, but pretty terrible for basically anyone playing it straight.
What is nuts is how poorly the league botched this entire mess from day one. All they had to do was give Brady a one game suspension and a fine and that would have been the end of it. But because Goodell wanted to make an example out of NE and Brady for pass sins they now look ridiculous and have created a nightmare for any future penalties.