Nov 22, 2020; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Detroit Lions strong safety Duron Harmon (26) after the loss to the Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports
Detroit Lions safety Duron Harmon comes to Tom Brady’s defense after Lombardi Trophy controversy.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers‘ Super Bowl boat parade was highlighted by quarterback Tom Brady getting a little bit tipsy and playing catch with the Lombardi Trophy. It was a moment that really had every NFL fan cringing at the thought of the trophy submerging in the Hillsborough River. Luckily, Brady was lightly tossing the Lombardi to tight end Cameron Brate, who had no problems catching it.
Even so, Brady’s throw was the subject of controversy. Lorraine Grohs, daughter of Greg Grohs, the silversmith who created the original Lombardi Trophy, demanded that the seven-time Super Bowl champion quarterback apologize for his actions this past Wednesday.
Detroit Lions safety Duron Harmon, former teammate of Brady during their time on the New England Patriots, came to his defense saying that Grohs had no issue with tight end Rob Gronkowski using the Lombardi Trophy as a baseball bat in 2019.
Harmon lays out the facts
Harmon is speaking nothing but facts. This was something that many NFL fans brought up when she claimed Brady “disrespected and disgraced” the trophy.
In early 2019, the Patriots defeated the Los Angeles Rams 13-3 in Super Bowl 53 to win their sixth Lombardi Trophy. Gronkowski showed up to Fenway Park with his teammates for the Boston Red Sox’s home opener, who were celebrating their 2018 World Series victory. Wide receiver Julian Edelman decided to throw some warmup pitches to Gronkowski, who was miming taking a swing with the Lombardi. As the pitch approached him, the tight end shocked everyone by outwardly extending the trophy for the bunt…and made contact. The end result saw a baseball sized dent at the top of the Lombardi.
The former Patriots safety wasn’t the only one to respond to Grohs. Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht used a GIF from the film Stripes to reply to her complaint.
Harmon was bringing up a valid point that Grohs did not come out and demand an apology for the man called “Gronk” using the trophy as a baseball bat. If you had to compare the situations between Gronkowski and Brady, the tight end’s is way worse.