FEB

17

Filed under: Patriots, Boston

Bob Ryan is Boston's most prominent sports journalist, and on ESPN's The Sports Reporters today, he had some surprisingly harsh words about the New England Patriots, the Patriotgate controversy, coach Bill Belichick and even owner Robert Kraft, who for the most part has escaped criticism in this story:

Said Ryan of Belichick, "When this thing broke in September, the day of the Jets game, from that moment on, he has never fessed up, he has stonewalled it, we all know what his punishment was, but he has never addressed it, he has tried to pretend that it never happened, and that 'I just misunderstood the rules.' His day of reckoning, I think, is going to come, and I think that this whole thing that New England has built in seven years is in jeopardy.

For a prominent Boston writer to call the Patriots dynasty "in jeopardy" is rough, but Ryan didn't stop there. He also had something to say about the Patriots' owner:

"The person who has to take the initiative here is the owner, Bob Kraft. I cannot believe that Bob Kraft was pleased, during the course of this season, with the image of his team," Ryan said. "They are the most vilified team in sports, and I can't believe he likes this. He has allowed this coach to do it his way to this point and I don't see how he can allow him to do it his way any longer."Permalink | Read the full post at AOL Fanhouse

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