"I was given assurances that [Belichick] would tell his side of the story. He went out and stonewalled the press. I feel like I was deceived."

Roger Goodell

First: This isn't going to be a defense of Spygate. Bill Belichick cheated and got busted. I don't care who busted him, how many other teams did it, what it means historically, none of that matters today. 

Actually, Spygate shouldn't matter at all anymore, other than as a cautionary tale. It happened, the Patriots (meaning Belichick) were wrong, punished, paid the fine, docked the pick (just a couple of names selected after the Patriots forfeited first-rounder? How about Curtis Lofton, Matt Forte and DeSean Jackson), and moved on. 

Not word one from the Patriots organization. And I think we all assumed that it was -- some 1,300 days after the punishment was handed down -- a dead issue. A black mark? No question, and I think it's fair to view Belichick in any manner you wish following the scandal. But Spygate was starting to slip away, now almost limited to a desperate jab from a bitter Jets or Steelers fan on a message board, or the third paragraph of Belichick's coaching obit when he calls it a day. Not forgotten, of course, but as an issue, now and forever dead.

Until Roger Goodell decided to throw a pity party for himself.

Quick backstory, if you haven't read Peter King's 6,000-word story on Goodell in this week's Sports Illustrated: We all know Goodell hit Belichick with a $500,000 fine, the Patriots were slapped with a quarter of a million-dollar fine and also last that first-round pick. But what we didn't know was this: According to Goodell, part of the punishment included Belichick having to make a verbal apology in front of the press that same week. That didn't happen -- Belichick issued a statement and did not answer questions -- and Goodell, according to the King story, felt "stonewalled" and "deceived."

My first reaction to these quotes was this: Goodell was flattered to be the subject of a lengthy SI cover story, and probably fell into the classic trap of trying to give the reporter some good stuff. Again, this wasn't a 350-word sidebar, King must've spent some serious time with Goodell. My guess? This also isn't the first time the two have met -- King is, of course, THE guy among NFL writers today, the modern Will McDonough -- and I suspect that a level of familiarity crept in. That was my first reaction. 

My second reaction? Be a man.

I mean, come on. Let me get this straight: Part of the punishment was that Belichick had to issue a verbal apology. Belichick refused to do so, which is roughly the same as slapping Goodell in the face. So what does the NFL commissioner -- one of the two or three most powerful people in sports -- do about it? 

Nothing. Well, that's not exactly true. He did nothing for 40 months and then whined about being deceived in a magazine article. That's never been the plot of a western for a reason.

What could he have done? Well, how about this: Take a limo from the NFL offices to JFK (maybe 45 minutes). Then fly (I'm assuming this is commercial, just as possible he has his own plane) from New York to Providence (one hour, 10 minutes). Then another limo to Gillette Stadium (35 minutes). From there, I'm guessing it's maybe a 250-yard walk to Belichick's office. 

And once he gets there? He tells Bill Belichick that until he steps in front of the cameras and microphones and apologizes for a clear and flagrant violation of a league rule he cannot coach the New England Patriots. Or, for that matter, stay in his office or participate in anything NFL-related. Suspended until he does what he agreed to do, to put it another way. 

Agree or disagree with it, but it would have sent a pretty clear message to the rest of the NFL (remember -- this was still in the infancy of Goodell's tenure). But that didn't happen. We've been told that Goodell felt deceived, but apparently not deceived enough to take three and a half hours out of his day to go to Foxboro and get some answers. A fine line, I suppose.

Again, this isn't meant to be a pro-Belichick column. We know right from wrong. So does Belichick. And secretly videotaping an opposing team's coaching signals is wrong. There's a reason why it was secret, after all. I was comfortable with the punishment -- thought it was worthy of the NFL crime. But what makes me uncomfortable is the idea that the commissioner of the NFL may not like the head coach of your New England Patriots very much. And who knows what that could mean over the next decade. Nothing? Sure, maybe. But who knows?

What we do know from King's story is this: Goodell is "very proud" of Michael Vick, even though Vick lied to Goodell's face when asked about the dog fighting in an April 2007 meeting. Why? I guess because Vick played well this year -- there was nothing about how proud Goodell was of Vick last year. Am I to assume that Goodell is very proud of Belichick for going 14-2 this season? I guess I have to, since I couldn't find it anywhere in the King story. 

(Aside: I like Peter King as much as you do, but this story was a Champagne Room special from soup to nuts. And I understand why -- it's good business for King to snuggle up to the commish. A pure puff piece, filled with stories of Roger breaking up a bar fights, pressing flesh with the fans (A big message in this one -- HE'S A REGULAR GUY), taking care of his mother, joking with the players and salvaging careers of coaches. King clearly likes Goodell and that's OK. He's probably a swell guy. But I think a 6,000-word story on Roger Goodell should probably feature the words "concussion" and "head injury" more than once apiece. And nothing on the hideous pension program for retired players. That's akin writing a 6,000-word story on the 1988 Democratic Presidential Primary and never mentioning Donna Rice. Too dated? OK, it's akin to writing a 6,000-word story on Vince McMahon and never mentioning steroids. Or the Gobbledy Gooker.)

Look, Roger Goodell has done plenty of terrific things since taking over for Paul Tagliabue. The NFL is the absolute alpha dog in the world of sports now, and it's not even close (all you ever need to know about which is now America's Pastime: The Pro Bowl TV rating was higher than some World Series games). And plenty of credit for that explosion goes to Goodell. No question about it. And if Goodell manages to get this labor agreement done in time for a full 2011 season he'll be looking at approval numbers to match Walter Cronkite's in the mid-1970's. And it'll be deserved.

But this isn't about that. This is about Roger Goodell acting like one of the diva wide receivers he usually fines $25,000 for Tweeting at halftime. Goodell decided to make himself a story during Super Bowl week by dragging out an issue that was supposed to be closed for nearly three and a half years.

If Goodell had consulted the David Stern How to Be a Commissioner handbook he would've found one of the golden rules: Commissioners are supposed to put out fires, not start them.

It's a shame if Roger Goodell truly felt deceived by Bill Belichick. But if Roger Goodell really wanted to fix that, he could have.

Instead it was 40 months of silence and a pity party.