Tom Brady's Deflategate scandal dissected by ten-year-old to win science fair
Tom Brady caught a lot of heat back in 2015 for his alleged involvement in the now infamous Deflategate scandal. The quarterback was accused of instructing some New England Patriots staff members to intentionally deflate their footballs to give the side a competitive edge during their 2014 AFC championship game.
Indianapolis Colts linebacker D'Well Jackson, after catching an interception, noticed that the balls used by the Patriots offense were deflated and not up to the standard gauge pressure of between 12.5 and 13.5 pounds per square inch.
A massive investigation followed and both team and quarterback were heavily fined and penalized for their wrongdoing. The entire scandal tarnished the Patriots dynasty and even hurt Tom Brady's legacy as the NFL GOAT. One 10-year-old fan in particular, took matters into his own hands by making the scandal the basis of his science project back in 2019.
His project title: 'Is Tom Brady a cheater?' hypothesized that Brady's under-inflated footballs provided him a competitive advantage in against the Patriots.
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Ace, who is a young quarterback himself, included hand-drawn charts and graphs explaining his theory. While speaking to nfldraftdiamonds.com he explained his decision to choose this sensitive topic as his science project:
"I hate Tom Brady. He's been accused of cheating before. I want him to be caught... The Patriots were found guilty of doctoring footballs, thus losing $1,000,000 and future draft picks. Tom Brady is indeed a cheater."
Ace's project ended up seeing him win the science fair he participated him and also owns him fans online for his efforts.
Tom Brady explained his side of deflategate scandal on Oprah Winfrey show
During an interview with Oprah Winfrey, Tom Brady explained his decision to accept his punishment for Delfategate despite claiming his innocence:
"Just too much anxiety. I realized I couldn't win. It was divided attention and I was tired of that, tired of waking up and having a call with someone from the Players Association."
The former Patriots QB, though, saw the silver lining of the whole matter and took the four-game suspension as a chance to recuperate:
"I said, 'You know what, I'm going to use this as an opportunity, to have the month of September off for the first time in like 16, 21 years, and 'I'm going to take advantage of this.'"
Brady recently retired from the NFL, calling it time on his illustrious 23 year NFL career. Winning seven Super Bowls, the QB cemented his place among the greatest ever to play the sport, but the Deflategate scandal will forever leave a mark on his legacy.