"The Spygate thing has diminished what have accomplished. You would hate to have that attached to your accomplishments. They've got it. Belichick was fined $500,000. The team was fined $250,000 and they lost a first-round draft choice. That tells you the seriousness or significance of what they found. I guess you got the same thing as putting an asterisk by Barry Bonds's home run record."

Those were the words of Miami Dolphin ex-coach Don Shula. Shula isn't just any old ex-coach. He's an icon around the NFL. No living coach is even close to Shula's 328 game regular season wins. Words out of the mouth of a man like Shula stings to the core.

How will those words affect the New England Patriots. Let me put it this way; I pity every team who has to face them this year. The saddest thing about the whole "spygate" incident is that the Patriots don't need to cheat to win. In fact; they don't even need to cheat to go undefeated this year.

Don Shula is no longer coaching. But he may have had more to do with the outcome of this year's AFC playoffs than at any time he coached the Dolphins. That reminds me; the Dolphins will have to face New England during week 16. It's hard enough to face being winless, but being battered in the next to last game of the season is something a team has to live with for nine long months.