FOXBORO, Mass. — If the New England Patriots win the AFC Championship Game, and the NFL commissioner isn’t there to see it, did it really happen?
The answer, of course, is yes: The Patriots defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers 36-17 at Gillette Stadium on Sunday to advance to their NFL-record ninth Super Bowl. Roger Goodell wasn’t there to witness the win, much to the dismay of New England fans hoping to let the commissioner hear it for his treatment of Tom Brady during the Deflategate saga.
The Patriots, unsurprisingly, have been pretty silent on all matters regarding Goodell. But after Sunday’s win, one of their most outspoken players took a little jab at the commish.
When asked about Patriots fans chanting “Where’s Roger?” during the game, tight end Martellus Bennett first feigned innocence.
“Who’s Roger?” Bennett responded to reporters.
After being told the subject was Goodell, Bennett weighed in with a great analogy.
“Yeah, where is he?” Bennett said. “He’s like Waldo right now. He doesn’t want to come here. We don’t know where he’s at.”
We do know the commissioner was at the Georgia Dome on Sunday to witness the Atlanta Falcons’ rout of the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship Game. But he might as well be Waldo to New England fans, who haven’t seen him in Foxboro since the Deflategate scandal all started back in January 2015.
Thumbnail photo via Ron Chenoy/USA TODAY Sports Images
