Zirkin: Patriots ‘cheat constantly’

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The jury in the NFL might still be out on the New England Patriots and “deflate-gate” but the verdict is clear for the chairman of the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee.

“I think it’s kind of you to say they crossed a line,” said Sen. Robert A. “Bobby” Zirkin, D-Baltimore County, “They just flat out cheat and the problem is, I liken it to drunk driving. The first time you get caught drunk driving is not the first time you’ve been on the road drunk.”

Zirkin, who is an self-described diehard Baltimore Ravens fan who “hates” the Patriots, made his comments Thursday during a call to the C4 Show on WBAL radio. The senator called in unannounced during a morning segment about the NFL review of footballs used by the New England Patriots 45-7 win over the Indianapolis Colts last Sunday.

The NFL this week determined that 11 of 12 balls used by the Patriots was under-inflated and may have made the ball easier to throw and catch in poor weather conditions.

The team under Head Coach Bill Belichick has been previously fined and penalized for stealing signals of other teams. Don Shula, the former head coach of the Miami Dolphins and the Baltimore (not Indianapolis) Colts, called Belichick “Belicheat” in an article with the Sun-Sentinel.

Zirkin went on to say that Patriots shouldn’t be allowed to play in the Super Bowl saying this incident and past actions “call into question everything” about the team.

“I have some friends who who are diehard New England fans. They are the only ones who are defending them at this point and time,” Zirkin said.

“They cheat constantly,” Zirkin concluded. “You think this was the first time they’ve done that?”