at third by centre fielder Rick Ankiel. "If Polanco lets

If Tom Brady woke up Saturday morning in desperate need of good news, this bulletin might qualify: His big-game loss to Roger Goodell wont dramatically impact his historical standing in pro football any more than his two big-game losses to Eli Manning did.Brady can still go down as the greatest quarterback -- maybe the greatest player -- in NFL history. His Deflategate sin belongs in the venial basket, at a safe distance from the mortal sports sins committed by the likes of Pete Rose, Barry Bonds and Lance Armstrong.In other words, his Friday surrender wont make it into the first paragraph of his obituary decades down the road. That obit will surely include Bradys four-game suspension for his alleged involvement in the deflation of footballs the New England Patriots used in the AFC Championship Game victory over the Indianapolis Colts two seasons ago, but the misdemeanor crime and punishment wont shape the story of Bradys football life. This weekend, it only seems that way.Though coaches often say there are no losers in tight, hard-fought games, there were clearly no winners in this one, Goodell included. The commissioner mightve had his near-absolute authority notarized, but he cant possibly believe this 18-month debacle served what hes highly paid to protect -- the best interests of his league. Deflategate was a four-ring circus that effectively and mercifully ended when Brady decided his pursuit of a record fifth Super Bowl ring could be compromised if he won a temporary stay of his suspension while trying to take his case to the Supreme Court.The timing was too perilous to mess with. Understanding that his backup, Jimmy Garoppolo, can go 2-2 or 3-1 for a man, Bill Belichick, who once coached Matt Cassel to an 11-5 season, Brady made like Belichick at the coin toss and deferred. He was on to Cleveland, Week 5. Patriots owner Robert Kraft blasted the NFLs investigation, again, and those voices subscribing to the Ideal Gas Law reminded all that the leagues conclusions had crumbled under the weight of scientific scrutiny.But if the NFLs science really was junk, the circumstantial evidence was not. Most agenda-free observers thought it wouldve been wise long ago for Brady to make an admission of some kind and accept a lesser punishment, but the quarterback refused to take that snap and drop to a knee. He raged against Goodells system for as long as he could stomach the fight, then took the loss. Brady thanked every supporter in his Facebook concession speech except Richard M. Berman, the U.S. District Court judge who tried and failed to free him.The 2016 Patriots will be fine because the Patriots are always fine in the AFC East of the Miami Dolphins, Buffalo Bills?and?New York Jets. Ever since Brady became a starter early in the 2001 season, one quarterback other than Brady -- one -- has managed to win an AFC East title (Chad Pennington did it for the 2002 Jets, and for the 2008 Dolphins, who won after Brady went down for the season in Week 1). Go ahead and look around the division. Nothing much has changed. Ryan Tannehill, Tyrod Taylor and Ryan Fitzpatrick/Geno Smith for 16 games still isnt nearly as good as Tom Brady for 12.So the short-term damage will be minimal. Garoppolo looks pretty good for a backup, and now the Patriots will get a valuable four-game look at Bradys potential successor after the benched franchise player turns 39 (on Aug. 3).Long term? Now were talking about the L-word -- legacy -- and whether Deflategate will stick to Bradys. The quarterback didnt get caught using performance-enhancing drugs, and didnt get busted for gambling on his sport. He did allegedly know his equipment guys were tampering with those game balls, and he did ditch a cell phone that investigators wanted to view. One of the two 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals judges who would overturn Bermans ruling and uphold Bradys suspension, Denny Chin, said there was compelling evidence that the quarterback knew about [improper ball deflation], consented to it, encouraged it. The other judge, Barrington Parker, said Bradys explanation for why he destroyed his phone made no sense whatsoever.Brady badly hurt his own cause, and so this dark Deflategate comedy will forever remain a part of his career. But on truth serum, even the most narrow-minded Jets fans would admit that Brady became the dominant player of his generation by outplaying, outworking and outsmarting opponents, and not by cheating. Of course, the second half of that AFC Championship Game would be their Exhibit A.In the end, Brady can surpass Joe Montana (and Johnny Unitas and Peyton Manning) as the presumed greatest quarterback ever, and compete with Jim Brown, Jerry Rice and Lawrence Taylor for the unofficial title of greatest all-time player. One more championship, as Brady closes hard on his 40th birthday, would make for a stronger oral argument than any made on his behalf in the courtroom.Meanwhile, as Goodell does his end zone dance, Brady can find some comfort in the notion that he will recover from Deflategate, just as he recovered from those deflating Super Bowl losses to Eli and the Giants. Hell just need a little time to heal, a little room to breathe. This surreal case hurt him, no question, but it didnt destroy him or severely diminish him.More than anything, it reminded starstruck fans that nobody is perfect, not even a dimpled four-time champ with a supermodel wife.Clelin Ferrell Jersey Large .Y. -- Syracuse has turned up the defence at the right time all season, and when High Point threatened to pull off a monumental upset the second-ranked Orange did what they do best with their quick hands and savvy play. Custom Raiders Jerseys . The Cleveland Indians, Tampa Bay Rays, and Texas Rangers all won on Sunday meaning the Rangers will host the Rays in a play-in game on Monday. http://www.customraidersjersey.com/ . 8 Iowa State on Saturday, sending the Cyclones to their third consecutive loss. The Longhorns (14-4, 3-2) got their biggest win of the season with their third in the row in the Big 12. Cheap Raiders Jerseys ., and Rudi Swiegers of Kipling, Sask., took sixth spot on Saturday in pairs at the NHK Trophy ISU Grand Prix figure skating competition. Raiders Jerseys China ., for the next three years with the signings on Monday of Daryl Townsend and Michael Carter. MIAMI -- Jose Fernandez bounced back from his worst outing of the season with a dominant effort against the Mets. He pitched seven scoreless innings and had two hits with an RBI to help the Miami Marlins past the Mets 8-1 on Saturday. Fernandez (3-3) allowed just three hits and struck out eight to give the Marlins their fourth winning streak of the season. Miami has won two straight games three times and three in a row once. Fernandez retired his final 11 hitters and struck out the side in the seventh. He also had an RBI single in in the second, and doubled and scored in the seventh. He did this all in front of his mom, who he flew in from their adopted hometown of Tampa on Saturday morning. She saw him win as a major leaguer for the first time. "I woke up early, I went and picked her up and then we had lunch together," he said. "She was here watching the game. Anytime I get to see my family that makes me very happy." With the Marlins trying to keep his pitch count low, the rookie said he was not thinking shutout despite being at 87 pitches through seven innings. "Nope. I was thinking one pitch at a time," he said. "I wasnt thinking about anything else. I was thinking about making pitches and keeping the ball low." Fernandez was coming off his shortest outing of the season. He surrendered seven runs -- four earned -- in 3 1-3 innings at Tampa Bay on May 27. "I was a little upset like I should be after that game, but the next day was another day," Fernandez said. "It was time to get work done and Im pretty happy how I came back." Marlins manager Mike Redmond said he was confident Fernandez would pitch well Saturday. "Hes been able to bounce back after a tough start and be great and he was again tooday," Redmond said.dddddddddddd It was Fernandezs third start against the Mets, his first with a decision. "Im going to tell you something, if he throws like he did today, I dont care if you see him 30 times, hes going to get you out," Mets manager Terry Collins said. Chris Coghlan had three hits, including two run-scoring singles. Derek Dietrich had a two-run single in a four-run seventh that made it 8-0. Collin McHugh (0-1) gave up four runs and six hits in four-plus innings. He walked three and struck out one in his first start of the season. Omar Quintanilla had two of the Mets hits. Pinch hitter Justin Turner delivered a run-scoring double off Dan Jennings in the eighth. Coghlans two-out single in the first scored Placido Polanco from second to give Miami a 1-0 lead. Polanco crossed the plate before Dietrich was thrown out at third by centre fielder Rick Ankiel. "If Polanco lets up there, we dont get that run. That set the tone," Redmond said. Miami went ahead 2-0 in the second when Fernandez singled to score Jeff Mathis from first base. Mathis walked with two outs, and scored when Fernandez lined a single into deep left-centre. The Marlins scored twice in the fourth to go ahead 4-0. Coghlan and Greg Dobbs opened with singles. Adeiny Hechavarria delivered a sacrifice fly and Mathis tripled in Dobbs. Miami had lost nine in a row and 16 of 18 before winning Friday night. NOTES: It was Fernandezs third start against the Mets and his first with a decision. ... Marcell Ozunas 16-game hitting streak ended. He went 0-for-3 with a walk. ... New York RHP Matt Harvey (5-0, 1.85) opposes RHP Kevin Slowey (1-5, 3.59) in Sundays series finale. ... Mets pinch-hitter Marlon Byrd singled in the eighth for his 1,100 career hit. ' ' '