As soon as the New England Patriots signed receiver Antonio Brown, there was backlash. A lot of NFL fans were upset that the defending champions were able to add one of the league's best wideouts right before the start of the regular season, and they weren't the only ones.
People in and around the game also weren't happy with it, including legendary former coach Tony Dungy.
“I coached 13 years, and every year my first message to the team was, ‘We want to win the Super Bowl, yes, we want to be talented, but we have to be role models’,” Dungy said, via Michael DePrisco of NBC Sports Boston. “These kids in our country look up to NFL players and coaches, and I really think this sent the wrong message.”
Dungy appears not so much upset that the league allowed this to happen as he is that the Patriots decided to go forward with it.
“I know coaches want to win but I’m disappointed in Robert Kraft,” Dungy said. “I think at some point you say, ‘Just as an organization, we're not going to do this.'”
While Dungy's concerns and objections are surely earnest and coming from a good place, they aren't exactly realistic. Brown apparently had interest from numerous teams as soon as he was released by the Raiders, and was always going to find another job.
Dungy, who won Super Bowl XLI with the Colts, has plenty of experience facing off against Bill Belichick. Dungy's Colts teams had an intense rivalry with the Patriots, and they met each other in the playoffs a handful of times.
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