Over the past summer many sports fans have either watched, talked, or listened about the major NFL conflict known as “Deflategate”. In many ways Deflategate has either turned people away from being fans of the NFL or brought them in, but first the question must be asked: What is “Deflategate”?
Deflategate all started when text messages between the New England Patriots starting Quarterback, Tom Brady, and Patriots equipment staff leaked to the media. These text messages occurred before a division final playoff game verses the Indianapolis Colts and they showed that Tom Brady had asked members of the equipment staff to deflate the football used for the game. To the average football fan the deflating of a football by two psi wouldn’t make a big
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Being the commissioner of the NFL basically means that Rodger Goodell’s job is to control the league and make sure everything goes smoothly and with that being said he has the power of “legitimate” over everyone in the league. With the power of legitimate Rodger Goodell basically said because I’m the boss and Tom Brady cheated we can suspend him for his wrongful actions. On the other hand when Tom Brady took the NFL to court he showed his own sources of power that may have effected Rodger Goodell to let the suspension slide so easily. The sources of power Tom Brady may have shown could be: Reward, Coercive, and referent. In regards to the power of rewards, Rodger may have realized that if he was to suspend Tom Brady, arguably the most popular player in the leagues history, he may lose rewards such as jersey sales, TV ratings, and ticket sales. Tom Brady could have also used coercive power by saying that if you suspend me fans, team owners, and players will continue to talk badly about you and give you a worst reputation then you already have. Finally Tom Brady may have used referent power over Rodger Goodell by stating the fact that Rodger Goodell and the New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft are good friends which results in Rodger Goodell identifying with the team. Tom Brady also most likely used coercive and referent power against the equipment staff that he told to deflate the balls. He could have used coercive power by threatening