NFL Fan Creates Petition to Place Asterisk Next to Patriots' Super Bowl Titles

There is no doubt the New England Patriots have accomplished a lot during the Bill Belichick and Tom Brady era, including winning four Super Bowls since 2002, but one NFL fan wants to make sure everyone knows those accomplishments came at the hands of alleged cheaters.

Jim Purucker, an Indianapolis Colts fan, started the Asterisk Project, which if successful will—you guessed it—slap an asterisk next to each of the Patriots' four championships in the NFL record books. He told Jim Shella of WISH-TV in Indianapolis that he will be traveling to Patriots road games this season to spread awareness.

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What we’d like to do is have a nationwide, grassroots petition effort that petitions the NFL to put an asterisk in the record book. I don’t think this thing ought to go away and 10 years from now when people look at the record book and see this fantastic set of accomplishments that the Patriots have amassed. I think there ought to be an asterisk next to it.

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Although this seems unlikely to happen, it’s not like the Patriots have had a squeaky-clean record either. There was Spygate in 2007 then Deflategate in January. And former St. Louis Rams running back Marshall Faulk accused the Patriots in 2013 of cheating to win Super Bowl XXXVI, according to Tom Curran of CSNNE.com (h/t Bill Carey of Sports Illustrated).

Purucker isn’t slowing down. According to Shella, he went live with his website, footballcheaters.com, last week, where he encourages other NFL fans to sign a petition that asks the NFL to add the asterisks next to New England’s accomplishments. Purucker noted on his website he's hoping to get 10 million signatures (100 times the amount the White House needs to consider a petition) with the thought that will draw the attention of the NFL.

While Purucker, Faulk and surely others feel the Patriots have cheated, 60 percent of players on last year’s NFL rosters don’t consider the Patriots cheaters, according to a poll of more than 100 surveyed players conducted by ESPN.

Don’t tell that to Colts fans. When the Patriots traveled to Indianapolis on Oct. 18 for a Sunday Night Football matchup won by New England, Purucker went to new heights to spread his message, according to what appears to be a Twitter accounting belonging to him:

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Just finished circling Lucas Oil Stadium. Let's go Colts, take it to the cheaters. Go to http://t.co/NKvQF7St2e pic.twitter.com/7UjlhGymIt

— Jim Purucker (@JimPurucker) October 18, 2015"

Purucker’s website does not list how many people have signed his petition, but a GoFundMe page he linked to shows he has a long way to go if he wants to reach his $5 million goal to spread asterisk awareness.

Although Purucker said he has spent a few thousand dollars out of his own pocket, he came up with the amount because "there’s at least five million Patriot skeptics out there that will give me two bucks apiece," per Shella. 

Incorrect math aside, Purucker is serious about this, and he also told Shella if he is able to raise the money, he will try to conduct a nationwide poll as evidence that many fans feel the Patriots should be called out in the record books.

The NFL has yet to comment.