Denver Broncos wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders believes the New England Patriots, who won Super Bowl XLIX, should not be champions following their involvement in the Deflategate scandal.
The Patriots defeated the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC Championship Game last January en route to winning the Super Bowl but they allegedly deflated the footballs used in that game to have a better grip and the advantage.
After thorough investigation, the National Football League handed New England the following sanctions: a $1 million fine, taking away of two future draft picks (2016 first-round pick, 2017 fourth-round pick) and a four-game suspension for quarterback Tom Brady.
Brady, who is trying to appeal the suspension, was "generally aware" of the scheme according to the NFL's investigation.
Because of the issue, Sanders thinks the Patriots do not deserve to be champions and that the penalties handed to them are not enough.
The 28-year-old was the speaker at a football camp in Denver Thursday and a camper asked him about his thoughts on the Deflategate scandal.
Sanders said in a report by Mike Klis of NBC 9News, "Am I mad about Deflategate? I feel like I'm on ESPN with that question. ...Yeah, yeah, I'm kind of mad. I don't think that they should be the Super Bowl champion this year."
"You aren't supposed to cheat. Cheating is not good, especially when you've got guys who are working they're butts off for 365 days out of the year and one person cheats -- whether it helps them win the Super Bowl or not, they still cheated and shouldn't be a champion," Sanders added.
Sanders flourished last season in his first year with the Broncos having 101 receptions for 1, 404 yards and nine touchdowns.
Denver finished the 2014 regular season with a 12-4 record reaching the playoffs for the fourth-straight season but lost in the AFC divisional playoffs 24-13 against the Colts.
