Even former Patriots linebacker Tedy Bruschi is disgusted by Spygate II: “All it does is open up that wound and open up that scab so everybody can say, 'They’re cheaters,' once again”

… just place an * after their Super Bowls

“Who thought this was a good idea?”

… Tedy Bruschi on ESPN

When the Patriots were again accused of cheating last week when they taped Bengals coaches on the sidelines giving signals during a game with the Browns, the team immediately shot out another of its patented denials. It stated that the production crew did nothing that even remotely resembled cheating.

And then the truth came out when it was revealed that the cameraman in the press box whom Bengals staff watched him film coaches on the sideline for eight minutes before had his camera and film confiscated.

That showed not a video of an advance scout as the Patriots had said was the case.

So, on ESPN where he works, Bruschi, while admitting to loving the Patriots, said,

Bill has denied it and says that he has nothing to do with Kraft Productions. I know that Kraft Productions is a separate part of the building. However, Kraft Productions is under the umbrella which is the New England Patriots, so it looks bad. With everything good that is going on with the organization … then you get this. All it does is open up that wound and open up that scab so everybody can say, “They’re cheaters,” once again.

ESPN, Dec. 15, 2019

First, the Patriots were caught in a massive spying operation that would have been worse had Commissioner Roger Goodell not destroyed the evidence. Still, Coach Bill Bellichick was fined a half-million dollars and the team $250,000 for the transgressions.

After ESPN re-investigated the cheating a few years ago, everyone learned of the magnitude of the operation. Then, a few years ago, we had the Deflategate controversy in which quarterback Tom Brady and others were accused of taking air out of the footballs used in the game to benefit them.

On ESPN's first take, another commentator said that Bellichick should resign,

If you look at the Ben Wishersham article from 2015 on ESPN, the cheating of the Patriots goes so deep they’re sending low-level employees through locker rooms to steal play sheets and stuff. And [teams] would leave out dummy playbooks to fool the Patriots.

In other words, there was systemic cheating in the organization, and it’s never stopped. That’s why Bellichick needs tone suspended.

ESPN, First Take, Dec. 15, 2019

That reality led Bruschi into a rant about the clueless Patriots,

What were we thinking? I’m a member of the New England Patriots for my entire career, and I’m thinking, What were you thinking that this was a good idea to bring in a comera crew. You want to do your job serious? I’ve seen it with their video personnel and [the training staff]. They are good little pieces, yes.

But this one? This was the wrong idea to do it … they weren’t thinking, what the optics were, and I don’t blame the league, and I don’t blame anyone out there that reopens all of this stuff and gives them an opportunity to call the New England Patriots cheaters because of all their success because the way it looks is terrible.

I don’t like the way it looks, and I’m disappointed that someone in that organization did not have the awareness not to go through and say, “Wait a second. Maybe we shouldn’t do this because it doesn’t look good.

ESPN, Dec. 15, 2019

Bruschi has more credibility than I do, so I will let his complaint stand.

He is right. The optics were horrible, and it means that maybe we should place an asterisk after all of the Super Bowls since it appears that they have been cheating all along.