NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell was wrong to target league golden boy Tom Brady in a Deflategate “witch hunt” but the star quarterback’s reputation remains in limbo in the eyes of the public, even as a federal judge spiked his four-game suspension, crisis-management specialists said yesterday.
Read Judge Berman's decision here.
“The misstep has further diluted the potency of the NFL brand overall,” said Marvet Britto, president and CEO of the New York City-based Britto Agency, which has represented high-profile athletes such as retired NFL player Curtis Martin.
Britto likened Deflategate to a “witch hunt.” She said Goodell should have treaded lightly while taking aim at one of the league’s biggest names without having evidence to win in federal court.
“The NFL has to be careful when you start attacking your legacy players in a league that is anemic, when it is really starving for legacy players. Tom Brady is not your average athlete. He is a global superstar married to a global superstar,” Britto said. She added the NFL was hasty after its bungled domestic-violence investigation into former Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice.
“They were slow to move. Slow to react. Slow to act. When it came to Tom Brady, they were aggressive, swift, without giving him any benefit. … They didn’t take their time to be strategic and really rushed to judgment,” Britto said.
Mike Paul, president of Reputation Doctor LLC based in New York, disagreed and defended Goodell’s decision to “protect the shield” and levy a four-game suspension against Brady. He said other NFL players are now on notice not to tamper with footballs.
Paul said Goodell and the NFL “set a precedent it was willing to spend money, get lawyers involved and … circumstantial evidence is enough to bring a case against you.”
He added that while Patriots fans should feel good about the legal victory, an appeal means the case will drag on.
“Most people believe he knew, not just knew, he was involved in deflating the balls himself and worst, he was involved in the cover-up,” Paul said.
Karen Kessler with Evergreen Partners in New Jersey said Brady’s alleged wrongdoing did not involve violence, children or animals. He will be forgiven quickly if he just does his job. “The world accepts you 90 seconds after you score your first touchdown,” Kessler said.
