Ravens' Joe Flacco on 'Deflategate': 'Everybody likes the football their way'
Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco tried to avoid becoming the latest player to opine about "Deflategate" and Tom Brady's four-game suspension.
It was all for naught, but Flacco did speak about his football preparation.
"Do I have to comment on that?" Flacco said to ESPN's Jamison Hensley, when asked about the aftermath of the Wells Report.
Flacco's Ravens were defeated by Brady's New England Patriots 35-31 in the divisional round last season. The Patriots went on to rout the Indianapolis Colts 45-7 in the AFC Championship Game - the contest in which the team was found to have underinflated footballs.
"Listen, everybody likes the football their way," Flacco said. "That’s why I make sure our guys rub the balls down in a certain way - have them rub a couple balls down and make sure I like it - and once they have the ball the way I like it, I trust them to do that from that point forward.”
Flacco's defense of Brady appeared to be genuine, in spite of the active Ravens-Patriots rivalry. New England and Baltimore don't meet on the 2015 regular season schedule, but if recent history is any indicator, expect a hotly-contested playoff bout between the two squads.