BREAKING NEWS: TOM BRADY SKIPS WHITE HOUSE VISIT!!!

Tom Brady isn't going to visit the White House with the Patriots today. It's unbelievable, unfathomable, unconscionable, unconsiderable. I'm not sure if that last one is a word, but I'm practically hyperventilating over how serious and earth-shattering this story is, so I don't have time to check.

And much like some media and fans reacting to this story, I also don't have any time to think.

Reports on this report reportedly report that Brady isn't going to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue because of a "prior family commitment." I'm not actually quoting anybody, certainly not Brady or anyone from the Patriots. But by putting quotes around those words, I can make it seem like it came directly from a reputable source.

If Tom Brady is missing this most important of off-season activities for a legitimate family reason, then fine. But if it's just to spend time with his kids, then it's way, WAY out of line. Visiting the President for a token photo op is much more important than trivial things like time with your kids. This is America! Our glorious and revered leaders are of higher importance than our families! That's what America was built on.

But if Brady is lying (even though it's a source saying this, and not Brady), and this was politically motivated, then God have mercy on his soul. And his legacy.

As 98.5 The Sports Hub's Jim Murray very correctly stated about this story: "If you don't go to the White House for political reasons, you're a bad teammate." (that's an actual quote, not a made up one like earlier)

And that's so very very true. After winning his fourth Super Bowl and third Super Bowl MVP, we were all considering Tom Brady to be one of the greatest of all time, if not THE greatest. However, this newly revealed bad teammate aspect of Brady has tarnished that legacy. Super Bowl wins aside, how can you be the greatest of all time if you aren't a good teammate? It's not possible.

What makes this the act of a bad teammate is that it will create a media firestorm, which will possibly be a distraction. And the Patriots have little to no experience dealing with media distractions. Apart from DeflateGate, SpyGate, Tim Tebow, and Aaron Hernandez.

It's completely Brady's fault if the media makes a huge deal over this. It's Brady's responsibility, as a teammate, to predict what the media will overblow as a story. It's also Brady's responsibility to not do what he feels is right. No, a good teammate and a good leader caves in to peer pressure, and goes against his own principles in order to appease and conform to the masses. That's what leadership is all about.

The important thing to remember is that Tom Brady's motivations behind skipping - I could be more accurate and say "not going," but "skipping" makes it sound like he's doing something wrong, and it's more important to use provocative language to enhance a story than it is to be truthful - anyway, his motivation for blowing off this White House visit is more indicative of him as a teammate than anything he's ever done on a football field.

Such a shame. I used to really like Brady. But now... I don't know.

You People Need to Get Over the Tim Thomas White House Thing

The Florida Panthers are in town tonight to play the Bruins. That means Tim Thomas... will likely be inactive due to lower body issues. The former Bruins goalie, who won two Vezinas and a Conn Smythe in Boston, won't be between the pipes. He made the trip but we'll see if he even dresses.

Look, I think criticizing Thomas for the way he de-activated himself is a legit criticism. And I can even understand blaming his on-ice performance for the team's struggles in 2011-12. Those are rational. They make logical sense. In my opinion I think what he did for this team overshadows that lackluster 2011-12 season. And I think the way he exited the team shouldn't dictate how we view his entire Bruins tenure. You may not like how he left, but you have to appreciate what he did while he was here.

However, when you continue to criticize him for not going to the White House, you're venturing away from logic. You need to get over that. It was years ago. He made a political statement. Who cares? People make political statements all the time and we ignore them.

The people who criticize Thomas then go on lectures about him being "selfish" and creating a distraction for his team. Several more logical leaps and bounds later and suddenly Thomas' absence at the White House is responsible for the team's struggles that season. Media people, like Tom Caron on WEEI today, blame Thomas for forcing his teammates to answer questions about the event. Then they blame that distraction for the team's difficulties.

There is nothing more outrageous to a member of the media than refusing to answer their questions. It appalls them. And media people will invariably find a way to turn your lack of cooperation with them into something with a broader impact. In this case, Thomas didn't talk to the press about the White House, so that forced his teammates to talk (because I'm sure the media would not have asked them questions had Thomas talked), and that distracted a team of grown men from playing hockey at 100%. Thomas' selfishness was the reason that a Championship winning team wilted in the First Round a year later.

Thomas was the reason Bergeron and Lucic failed to score in that playoff series. Thomas is the reason Krejci and Marchand only scored one goal apiece. Rich Peverly was somehow immune because he scored 3 goals. Maybe Pevs was a member of the Tea Party.

I will blame Thomas' on-ice performance for the team's struggles in that series and that year. That's a fair complaint. He was not the same goalie in 2011-12 as he was in 2010-11. He looked kind of like he looks this season. Slower. Clunky. Borderline clumsy. Thomas could only manage to play in 59 games that year. And in 2011 he only played 57 regular season games. Then 25 playoff games. He was worn out.

I'm tired of the White House non-visit being blown out of proportion. I'm tired of media people getting sanctimonious whenever an athlete dare refuse them an interview. I'm tired of Thomas doing something off the ice being blamed for a team's struggles on the ice.

Tim Thomas was a great goalie. He was a weirdo. He left town in a selfish way. And once he didn't want to go to the White House. The end. Get over it.