The Texans and Patriots don't play each other until Dec. 13 in Houston, but Bob McNair is already throwing some fuel on the fire, and yes of course it has to do with Deflategate.
The Texans owner weighed in on the deflated football scandal and Tom Bray destroying his cell phone prior to handing it over during the investigation. McNair said if his own team's superstar, defensive end J.J. Watt, was ever faced with the same situation, he'd never destroy the phone.
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"What escalated the whole thing is that Brady and the Patriots were going to cooperate fully, and then when it came down to it, they didn't," McNair told Houston's Sports Radio 610, according to ESPN. "If it was J.J. Watt, I think he would have been cooperative, and it wouldn't be a question. ... I don't think J.J. would destroy his cell phone."
The answer wasn't unprovoked, as host Mike Meltser asked if McNair's opinion would be different if it were Watt under investigation. The issue stems from Brady and two ball boys working together to deflate game balls during New England's 45-7 drubbing of Indianapolis in the AFC Championship Game last January. The Patriots went on to defeat the Seahawks in the Super Bowl.
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After the news broke, commissioner Roger Goodell suspended Brady four games and following the quarterback's appeal, the decision was upheld. It was discovered during the appeal hearing that the four-time Super Bowl champion handed over emails and texts to investigators, but destroyed his cell phone when he was supposed to turn it over.
McNair said that Brady and the Patriots could have "handled it better" and admitted there's no conclusive evidence, but the game needs to be conducted on an even playing field.
"Is there anything conclusive there? No, you don't have any conclusive evidence," McNair said. "But the whole idea is we want to make sure we have a competitive playing field that's level for everybody, don't want people breaking the rules. In the minds of somebody in that organization, they thought it was important. They thought it would give them a competitive advantage, and that's why they did it ... You just want to eliminate that kind of situation if you can."
Barring injuries, Brady and Watt will collide in December, well after the four-game ban expires, if it in fact holds up in court.
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