The biggest story, so far, of the Scouting Combine has a straight-line connection to the competing reports regarding whether and to what extent the Raiders’ interest in Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford resulted in Stafford visiting Raiders minority owner Tom Brady at his Montana home.
After Jordan Schultz of Fox, who broke the story that Brady (also of Fox) hosted Stafford, Ian Rapoport of NFL Media downplayed it as a chance encounter. After Schultz doubled down — and after Schultz and Rapoport had an encounter in an Indianapolis Starbucks, Tom Pelissero of NFL Media tweeted this: “Reached for comment about an Internet rumor that Tom Brady hosted Matthew Stafford on a recruiting visit in Montana, Brady’s longtime agent Don Yee told me: ‘I know that reporters sometimes make mistakes in their haste, but this story’s inaccurate.’”
First of all, it’s odd to see any reporter who came of age in the Internet era downplaying a report that emerged via a digital platform as an “Internet rumor.” In this case, it wasn’t an Internet rumor. It was a report, from a reporter who works for Fox. Which also employs Brady. At the risk of being verbally accosted at a Dunkin’ Donuts, the tweet feels like a bizarre attempt to warp the report into something it most definitely was not.
Second, what else would Yee say? It’s entirely possible that the Fox report resulted in Brady being caught with his underinflated-football-gripping hand in the tampering cookie jar. Of course Yee is going to deny it.
The fact remains that someone from Fox reported it. The fact that Brady also works at Fox gives this “Internet rumor” added credibility. The fact that Yee went on the record to dispute it suggests that someone is nervous about where this could lead.
Yes, tampering happens all the time. But it’s rarely blatant. If the Rams had given limited permission to Stafford’s agent to talk to other teams — and not a blank check to make visits to facilities, coaches, executives, and/or owners — a visit by Stafford to Brady’s house would be an obvious violation. As obvious as the Dolphins tampering with Brady, which resulted in a suspension for owner Stephen Ross and the loss of a first- and third-round draft pick.
While the Rams have yet to answer the question of whether a visit by Stafford to Brady’s home complied with the permission given to speak to other teams, common sense suggests otherwise. The recent remarks from coach Sean McVay on the Fitz & Whit podcast seem to indicate that the Rams wanted to give Stafford a chance to see whether the Rams’ current offer to Stafford is in line with what other teams would pay. Given that the Rams want to keep Stafford, why would they tell Stafford he’s free to be directly recruited, in person, by other teams?
At the end of the day, none of it matters unless someone will make the Rams an acceptable trade proposal and extend to Stafford a suitable contract offer. Still, if the Rams intended for only a minor squeeze of toothpaste and didn’t authorize Brady and the Raiders to jump on the tube with both feet, it potentially becomes much harder for the Rams to persuade Stafford to re-up with his current team.
Which is exactly the kind of complication that the tampering rules are meant to avoid.
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