So I read through all 130 some comments on the main thread and saw a common theme, and a lot of off topic chatter.  I believe what is being said right now are mostly knee jerk reactions towards ESPN, Big Ben, AND the accuser.  Call me a conspiracy theorist, but I believe there are very different things that could be going behind the scenes.

First and Foremost, I don't believe for a second that ESPN's decision was racially motivated.  I see them as being one of the most racially sensitive media outlets out there.  They do so many OTL and fluff stories about racial issues it is nauseating.  If you think the big swinging dick's making the decisions in Bristol didn't think they would get taken to task for this, your crazy.  They knew every media outlet and blogger out there would take advantage of there refusal to cover it. 

I do believe their decision was based off of color, but not black and white...it was made off of GREEN.  The NFL is far-and-away their biggest money maker, and pissing them off isn't something they want to do.  It wouldn't realistically jeopardize their ability to host MNF or provide other "expressed written consent..blah, blah, blah" footage, but it might give them unspoken leverage in future negotiations.  Let's not forget that Big Ben is one of the most marketable players in the NFL, playing for arguably the NFL's most popular franchise.  The single biggest factor, may be that "Rooney" is one of the most influential names in the NFL and that name happens to own the Steelers.

The arguments of the contrary are have very different circumstances.   Vick was marketable, but his story broke under federal investigation, not a questionable civil suit.  Marvin and Moss aren't the most marketable, media-friendly players in the league.  If Big Ben (and to a lesser degree Little Ben) wore a Detroit uniform would this story have been reported?  I think it would have been.

Second, I am a firm believer that there are 3 sides to every story.  His side, Her side, and the truth almost always lies somewhere in-between.  I'm not going to assume he's guilty because I think he's a "scum bag", and I'm not going to assume she's a gold digging liar.  Things like this rarely generate out of thin air.  So I'm going to throw out a couple of plausible scenarios that MAY have happened.....let me over-emphasize MAY!

If Big Ben was merely a model citizen having a good time, I doubt this lawsuit ever would have happened.  If he 100% innocent you probably would have seen an extortion story break from his camp a la Rick Pitino.  It never would have gotten this far.  Maybe he misread some signs and made a ridiculously aggressive pass at her.  Would that make him a rapist?  No.  A harasser and financially liable? Maybe.

Everyone is questioning this girls credibility because of the 1 year delay and the absence of a criminal report.  There are SO many factors that could contribute to this, so I'll try to not go overboard.  First, why a year later?  Many of us meat-head sports guys don't realize just how traumatizing rape can be for a woman.  Many, if not the majority of women fear rape more than they fear death.  If you really stop and think about it, it makes sense.  Very recently we've seen a prime example how a traumatized person acts unpredictably.  The guy who initially discovered the McNair crime scene didn't call police because he was so traumatized by what he saw.  And he only witnessed a crime...he wasn't the victim.  So it's not a stretch to understand why this girl didn't respond in a level-headed manner after a traumatic experience that left her feeling powerless.

If a rape really did occur, I wouldn't be surprised if she left that room and went straight to security or her manager to tell them what happened.  If their initial reaction was "damage control" rather than coming to her rescue, then couldn't THAT make her hesitate to report it? Absolutely.  And again, I'm not a conspiracy theorist, but I wouldn't be surprised if she witnessed a few interactions between the casino and local law enforcement that weren't exactly on the "up-and-up".  The gambling industry isn't exactly one that has ever been praised for their ethical conduct.  So she may have felt like going that filing a criminal complaint would never see the light of day and maybe put her at risk.

So those are my thoughts that are contrary to the mainstream opinions out there right now.  I don't think ESPN is innocent by any means, but I think their root of their decision is not racially motivated.  And it probably seems likes I'm siding with the girl, but in reality I'm not.  It's just that normally where there's smoke, there's fire.  It's probably just a matter of whether it's a trash can fire or a forest fire.  We'll probably never know what REALLY happened, but there is still much more to learn before we decide one way or another.

And since I started writing this, ESPN is now at least reporting something...so maybe some of this rant is moot.

I'm not sure many people heard this, so I figured I'd pass it on.  I was listening to the Kravitz and Eddie (1070AM)  on my way home from work yesterday, and they had Merril Hoge on as a guest.  He said that when he was breaking down the tape from the Vikings game that it was "sad" watching Marvin Harrison run routes.  This isn't a direct quote, but he basically said that Marvin isn't running as good of routes as he used to and that he's gotten "old", "lacked explosiveness", and "is a shadow of himself".

It's an interesting interview. He also talks about the impact of Bob Sanders, the problems with our running game, and that he thinks we'll be able to run the ball against the Jags, but they'll have trouble running on us.

Click Here for Interview

I for one am not celebrating the injury to Brady.  I've torn my ACL and it SUCKS!  And whoever wins the Super Bowl this year (whether it's us or anyone else) will face questions because they didn't have to beat Brady to do it.

But, his unfortunate injury will allow us to observe a once hypothetical scenario of where the credit lies in the Patriots success: Brady or Belichick.  It might also suggest who in a vacuum is truly the better QB: Brady or Manning.  We still won't be able to play out who would be the better QB if they changed teams, but we'll be able to see if a guy who has never thrown a college or professional TD pass (until Sunday) can lead the Patriots to the playoffs.  I think we all know where the Colts would be without Peyton.

If the Patriots have a dismal season, it will indicate just how important Tom Brady is.  If the Patriots can catch lightning in a bottle twice with another unheralded backup, it will indicate that Brady is the product of Belichick's system and isn't as valuable as he is made out to be.

It might be a little hard to tell with their ridiculously easy schedule.  I can't see them being much worse than 7-9 (They still play the Dolphins twice, 49ers, Cardinals, Raiders, Rams).   If Cassel can lead them to 11or more wins my opinion of Brady will change.

Any thoughts? Predictions?