Hall of Famer Charles Haley Says Tom Bradys’ Rings are “Tainted”

By Cheri Cheng - 05 Feb '15 12:53PM

Hall of Famer Charles Haley, who owns the NFL record of five Super Bowl rings, commented on Tom Brady's success in the league, stating that Brady's four rings are "tainted."

During a recent interview, Haley was asked about how Brady compares to the great Joe Montana, who also has four Super Bowl Rings. Haley won two of his Super Bowl rings with Montada and the San Francisco 49ers in the 1980s. Haley stated that because of the Deflategate scandal, Brady's wins will always be questionable, whereas Montana's wins are not.

"Joe didn't have to cheat," Haley said to Clark Judge of the Talk of Fame Network. "I've lost all respect [for Brady]. When your integrity is challenged in the game of football, to me, all his Super Bowls are tainted. You have to say this just didn't happen overnight. Who wants that shadow over them? I could be wrong. But I realize there were 12 balls deflated and 12 ain't. Then you've got [Patriots coach Bill] Belichick coming on three different times trying to explain it, . . .You know something is wrong.

During the New England Patriots' AFC Championship game against the Indianapolis Colts, 11 of the 12 game balls used by the Patriots were deflated. The NFL is still investigating what caused the balls to become deflated and who might be responsible for cheating. Deflated balls are considered to be easier to play with.

Haley added, "This is what Charles Haley believes - it's going to come back to haunt him one day. If the league doesn't come down on this guy, . . . Everybody is talking about it. Nobody believes it was by accident. It is what it is. I'm not going to take any of his Super Bowl rings away from him. But it's sad that it has to be tainted like it is right now. Hopefully they'll come out and let us know what really happened. Then all the mystery is gone."

Haley played for the 49ers from 1986-91 and from 1998-99. From 1992-96, he played for the Dallas Cowboys. Haley was elected into the pro Football Hall of Fame on Jan. 31, 2015.