BRUNSWICK

On September 10th, the Pittsburgh Steelers will come into Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass., for the opening game of the 2015 National Football League season, with the knowledge that surefired first-year ballot Hall of Fame New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady will likely not be in the lineup.

Over the following three weeks, as of today, the Patriots schedule includes a visit to Buffalo, a home date with Jacksonville and, after a bye week, a CBS Game of the Week contest at Dallas, with those teams like the Steelers likely trying to defend backup quarterback Jimmy Garopplo instead of Tom Brady.

For fans of those four teams, it definitely gives them a better chance of defeating the NFL champion Patriots as the four-time Super Bowl champion quarterback Brady watches from the sidelines.

However, ask yourself, should we, as fans of those teams, be celebrating that fact or questioning the integrity of the NFL?

On Monday, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell handed out a fourgame suspension for Brady from the “Deflategate” investigation, along with a $1M fine for the Patriots, and the loss of a first- and fourth-round pick in 2016 and 2017.

Has there ever been a case more evident where the NFL and Goodell over-stepped their bounds?

I have to say, shock came to my mind when the suspension, fine and loss of draft picks were handed down to Brady and the Patriots.

In an investigation where the words “could have,” “probable” and “might have” were used a ton in describing Brady’s cooperation, or lack there of, throughout the 243-page “independent” investigation, how could Goodell take this position?

Here is what an intelligent person needs to ask:

— Can it be proven without a shadow of a doubt that Tom Brady ordered the balls to be deflated under the minimum weight standards as per NFL rules?

— Why did the NFL inspect just four of the footballs that the Colts were using (by the way, two were under the limit as well … just saying) in the AFC Championship game?

— Why did the NFL punish the team, along with Brady, so harshly?

The answers, in my humble opinion, are no, who knows and ??????

Here is a suggestion for the NFL. How about the most popular and most lucrative professional sports league has an official from the NFL handle the footballs, check with each quarterback prior to the game on what weight, within standards mind you, said quarterback would like the ball set at? That official inspects the footballs before the game starts, at halftime and after the game is completed. If there is a problem during the game, simply remove the ball from the game and get another one.

Wouldn’t that solve the problem?

We haven’t discussed the team fine levied against the Patriots yet. In the report, head coach Bill Belichick and his coaching staff were fully exonerated. So why will the Patriots be forced to pay a ridiculous fine and lose four draft picks over the next two years?

I have an answer. Quoting former NFL quarterback and ESPN analyst Trent Dilfer, “the NFL has a God-complex.” Goodell shells out fines and suspensions on a whim. This has become increasingly apparent over the past five seasons, when the NFL changed from a league of hard, clean hits that made crowds cheer, to a league that looks down on a wide receiver or quarterback who gets hit hard and planted into the turf.

Just look at the fouls that are called on hits to the quarterback. You can’t hit him in the head (I agree). You can’t hit him low toward the knees (the so-called Tom Brady rule). Last season, Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, all 6-foot-6 inches of his more than 250-pound frame, took a hard hit to the chest in a game against rival Baltimore. Out came a flag on the Ravens linebacker for leading with the crown of his helmet and a fine followed a few days later. Why? Replays showed that the hit was clean. Yes, it was hard and in my opinion didn’t even deserve a flag.

Last year, domestic violence was at the forefront of talks around the NFL. Ray Rice was suspended initially two games by the NFL for doing what Floyd Mayweather Jr., and Manny Pacquiao were unable to do in their over-hyped boxing match.

Now, don’t take it that I am making light of domestic violence. In my mind, Rice should be gone from the league forever. To do that to someone you allegedly love is grounds for jail time since it was an assault. I have no sympathy for what he did or what happened after the elevator tape came to light.

The Wells Report cited that Tom Brady did not cooperate with the investigation. Didn’t Brady sit down, according to the report, for three hours, answering every question that was thrown his way?

The report cited that Brady would not release his personal cell phone as part of the investigation.

Heck, I wouldn’t give up my personal cell phone willingly. Brady is married to one of the world’s most well-known super models in Gisele Bundchen. Brady has children. Why would he give an investigator who is trying to track down information on deflated footballs his personal cell phone? It was no more than a fishing expedition.

Is it hard to believe that Brady may very well have personal pictures and texts from his wife, photos of his children, texts with his parents, siblings and friends. Is that for public knowledge? Simply put, NO!

I could just see it now. Five years down the road, a tell-all book comes out with personal pictures of Tom’s wife, kids and texts that might depict Brady away from his good-old boy persona. You say that’s not possible? There are celebrities out there who might beg to differ.

To suspend Tom Brady for four games is beyond ridiculous. Brady will obviously appeal, and like his agent Don Yee said on Monday, “In my opinion, this outcome was predetermined; there was no fairness in the Wells investigation whatsoever. There is no evidence that Tom directed footballs be set at pressures below the allowable limits. We will appeal, and if the hearing officer is completely independent and neutral, I am very confident the Wells Report will be exposed as an incredibly frail exercise in factfinding and logic.”

To the NFL and commissioner Roger Goodell, you missed the mark by a lot on this, just like you did last year when domestic violence was a big issue, when the NFL could have taken a clear stand and been a leader.

In the world’s top sports league, was suspending perhaps the most popular athlete in the world for something that is no more than conjecture and circumstance the right thing to do? I think not.

At the end of the day, it is the fans who suffer. For four games in the 2015 season, we will not get to see one of the league’s best doing his thing. That is truly a shame!

However, the Steelers may get lucky and get a rare win at Foxborough. Quite frankly, it will not be celebrated by one of the biggest Steeler fans if Tom Brady is not taking the snaps. Thanks NFL!

BOB CONN is the sports editor of The Times Record. He can reached at bconn@timesrecord.com.