Richard Sherman kicked off Super Bowl week by stating the New England Patriots will likely avoid punishment for "Deflategate" because Robert Kraft and Roger Goodell are buddies, citing photos recently taken of the pair at Kraft's home.
Kraft had his chance to respond Tuesday, saying he believes Sherman's comments were calculated.
"I think Richard Sherman is a very smart marketing whiz," Kraft said. "If you go into the facts of what he said, the NFL always used to pay for a big party for the AFC Championship Game. We've been privileged to own the team for 21 years, and this was our 10th championship game. When the league stopped giving the parties, we started doing it. This is our third one."
Kraft said Sherman shouldn't be complaining because the party was for the Patriots' sponsors, who play a role in expanding league-wide revenue.
"I think Mr. Sherman understood that he's the biggest beneficiary, because they get over 50 percent of the revenues," Kraft said. "So he didn't go to Harvard, but Stanford must be pretty good because he figured it out."