The Psychology of the Patriots: Why Brady and Belichick Would Cheat

Not long after the Deflategate scandal erupted last season, I asked a defensive player who has gone against Tom Brady many times a simple question: Why would someone so unbelievably, historically good need to cheat?

The answer went something like this: To someone like Brady, it's not just enough to win. He wants his opponents to always think he's one step ahead. He wants to crush them. Like a lot of great players, he sometimes gets carried away.

This is something that happens across the human spectrum. This was Alex Rodriguez. This was Mark McGwire. This was Lance Armstrong, Richard Nixon, Halliburton and Enron. Whether it's chemicals, ball boys or something else, the manipulation was the same—they don't need to cheat or lie or scheme to be great, but they did.

The drive to win, to dominate, gets infused with ego. The mix is volatile. In Brady's situation, he has one of the most adoring fanbases in the sport, willing to defend him at every turn. He knows that. He knows there's a protective blister around him. So he feels even more comfortable pushing things.

Much of this applies to Bill Belichick as well. Across the sport, coaches acknowledge his brilliance. I go back to something a head coach once told me—that Belichick was the only coach in the sport that scared him. And this coach is a genuine tough guy, a former college and NFL player.

Spygate was a mix of Belichick's ego and seeking that .001 percent edge. Taping signals is practically worthless. But not to Belichick. Maybe there is one call I can steal that will change one play in one game.

So, why do they do it? Why do two men—to me, the best coach in the history of the sport, and the best quarterback in the history of the sport—do it? Because they're obsessed. Because they're arrogant. Because to them, they have to. Their obsession with winning compels them to excel and to cheat.

They want to be great, legitimately and if necessary not so legitimately.

It's no secret the Patriots are, easily, the most hated team in football. Mostly, it's because they beat everyone's ass. But almost equally, the view of many in football is there have been two sets of rules: one for the Patriots and one for every other team. Many teams have believed for a long time that the Patriots cheat and cheat extensively. Spygate and now Deflategate only add fuel to these beliefs.

There is no better example of this than the email Colts general manager Ryan Grigson sent to the league one day before that infamous AFC title game. Colts equipment manager Sean Sullivan told Grigson it was common knowledge throughout the NFL that New England regularly broke the rules by deflating footballs. From the Ted Wells report (Warning: Content contains NSFW language):

"

As far as the gameballs are concerned it is well known around the league that after the Patriots gameballs are checked by the officials and brought out for game usage the ballboys for the patriots will let out some air with a ball needle because their quarterback likes a smaller football so he can grip it better, it would be great if someone would be able to check the air in the game balls as the game goes on so that they don‟t get an illegal advantage.

"

The NFL's head of officials, Dean Blandino, then told referee Walt Anderson to keep an eye on the footballs. Again, in Wells' report: 

"

Grigson said that he made clear to [NFL executive vice president of football operations Troy Vincent and vice president of game operations Mike Kensil] that he understood that there was a problem with the inflation level of a Patriots football—the precise issue the Colts had raised prior to the game—and that he was not happy about the situation. Kensil and Vincent told Grigson that they were on their way to look into the issue.

"

It's also no secret that teams around the sport are ecstatic over the Wells report. One coach, in a text to me late Wednesday night, simply wrote: "Karma."

Tweeted Pro Football Hall of Fame tight end Shannon Sharpe:

None of this is about an anti-Patriots conspiracy. Or anti-Patriots media. Or some plot to get Brady. Or some other paranoid fantasy dreamed up by fans. This is a result of years of suspicions from other teams and Brady's arrogance and desire to win at all costs catching up to him.

Brady is mentioned in the Wells report 378 times.

Brady and Belichick have always plotted, prodded, been ingenious, been the best ever and been the smartest. Now both have also been caught cheating while trying to be all of those things.

Like many great men before them.

Mike Freeman covers the NFL for Bleacher Report.