New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft put his reputation on the line Monday night when he stated unequivocally his coach and his quarterback, Bill Belichick and Tom Brady, had nothing to do with the underinflated footballs discovered by NFL officials. If the Ted Wells-led "DeflateGate" investigation doesn't uncover any wrongdoing, Kraft demanded the league apologize for putting his team through this ordeal ahead of Super Bowl XLIX.
The talk leading up to the Super Bowl hasn't been matchups, it's been underinflated footballs. Wells, the attorney who led the investigation into the Miami Dolphins' bullying scandal last season, will conduct the league's investigation into whether the Patriots intentionally deflated 11 of their 12 footballs used in the AFC Championship game against the Indianapolis Colts.
Kraft, who made a surprise appearance on Monday at the team's opening news conference, indicated the league better be prepared to apologize if the investigation doesn't conclusively find his team guilty of tampering with the footballs.
"If the Wells investigation is not able to definitiely determine that our organization tampered with the air pressure on the footballs, I would expect and hope that the league would apologize to our entire team and, in particular, coach Belichick and Tom Brady for what they have had to endure this past week," Kraft said, via ESPN.
"... I want to make it clear that I believe unconditionally that the New England Patriots have done nothing inappropriate in this process or in violation of NFL rules. Tom, Bill and I have been together for 15 years. They are my guys. They are part of my family. And Bill, Tom and I have had many difficult discussions over the years, and I have never known them to lie to me.
"That is why I am confident in saying what I just said, and it bothers me greatly that their reputations and integrity, and by association that of our team, has been called into question this past week."
Kraft also blasted the media for how it has handled the situation, reporting on speculation and anonymous sources rather than facts.
"(I am) confident that this investigation will uncover whatever the facts were that took place last Sunday and the science of how game balls (do) react to changes in the environment," he said. "This would be in direct contrast to the public discourse, which has been driven by media leaks as opposed to actual date and facts. Because of this, many jumped to conclusions and made strong accusations against our coach, quarterback and staff, questioning the integrity of all involved. ...
"I am disappointed in the way this entire matter has been handled and reported upon. We expect hard facts as opposed to circumstantial leaked evidence to draw a conclusion of this investigation."
