Armour: Richard Sherman sees real issue in Deflategate

TEMPE, Ariz. — Leave it to Richard Sherman to liven things up.

Making their first media appearance of Super Bowl week, the rest of the Seattle Seahawks had no interest in discussing underinflated footballs, proper air pressure or the New England Patriots' reputation as the resident Bad Boys of the NFL. Even Sherman doesn't see why footballs are causing such a fuss.

But integrity, now that's a different story.

"Their resume speaks for itself," Sherman said Sunday after being asked if Belichick and the Patriots tiptoe as close to the line as possible without crossing it.

"The past is what the past is. Their present is what their present is."

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It's not just Bill Belichick and Tom Brady raising eyebrows, either. While it wasn't a Michael Crabtree moment, Sherman was equally devastating in criticizing NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.

"Will (the Patriots) be punished? Probably not. Not as long as (Patriots owner) Robert Kraft and Roger Goodell are still taking pictures at their respective homes," Sherman said. "I think he was just at Kraft's house last week for the AFC Championship. You talk about conflict of interest.

"As long as that happens, it won't affect them at all."

See, Sherman gets it.

The national fixation on underinflated footballs has bordered on the ridiculous. For the better part of a week, there's been little talk of anything else. So much so that Patriots coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady were compelled to address it in separate news conferences.

Poorly handled ones, albeit, but news conferences devoted entirely to footballs nonetheless.

Former quarterbacks weighed in. Scientists were called upon to explain how footballs could mysteriously — or nefariously — lose pressure. Even Vice President Joe Biden offered an opinion.

And none of it was the point.

Specifying how much air pressure a football must have is a silly rule. So is requiring officials to test them before games.

"I never checked on the whole process of how footballs are handled until this week," Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said. "I never had, so I can understand how (Belichick) never has, either.

"I know every step of it now," Carroll said, cracking a smile.

But silly or not, those are the rules. So if the NFL finds that Belichick, Brady or anyone in the Patriots organization had a hand causing the footballs New England used in the AFC Championship game to deflate, that's cheating.

And cheating, in any form, compromises the integrity of the game.

The NFL has been fighting credibility issues all season. Underinflated footballs don't come anywhere close to comparing to domestic abuse, and no one is suggesting that. But Goodell has a tendency to make the rules up as he goes, and personal relationships carry a lot of sway with him.

That's not to say that's the case here. Whatever friendship there is between Goodell and Kraft is counterbalanced by the animosity he and Belichick have for each other.

But it's worth raising the question, if for no other reason than to assure people that the rules are applied equally in the NFL.

"We should set the standard," Carroll said.

There's more than a bit of irony in Sherman putting this latest pre-Super Bowl controversy into its proper perspective. A year ago, he was the one being vilified for his nationally televised rant following the NFC Championship game.

"Yeah, it is ironic that I was the villain seeing as I didn't break any rules," Sherman said.

It's possible Belichick, Brady and the Patriots didn't, either.

But as Sherman said, perception is reality. And neither the NFL's nor the Patriots is very good these days.

Follow columnist Nancy Armour on Twitter @nrarmour.

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