Ron Wolf to Roger Goodell: ‘Way to go on that Brady thing’

The Pro Football Hall of Fame had its gold jacket presentation event Thursday night in advance of Saturday’s induction ceremony. And deflate-gate, thank goodness, has made its way to Canton, Ohio. 

Former Green Bay Packers executive Ron Wolf, one of the enshrines might have been nostalgic, but he preferred to bring up more recent NFL events in one priceless exchange that was caught by the NFL Network cameras.

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Check out as Wolf goes over to shake commissioner Roger Goodell’s hand and say, “Way to go on that Brady thing.” That would be, of course, Tom Brady and the ongoing deflate-gate saga.

Goodell’s reaction is tremendous:

Was Wolf being earnest? As some have pointed out on Twitter, Wolf formerly worked for the New York Jets prior to joining the Packers in 1991, and he helped Charlie Casserly advise the Jets as they sought a new general manager and head coach this offseason.

That, in many Patriots fans’ eyes, means the old-school Wolf was being hard-line serious. But we’re not so sure. Patriots head coach Bill Belichick considers Wolf a friend, and the feeling is believed to be mutual.

Could the 76-year-old Wolf have been throwing Goodell some shade? Perhaps — and that uncertainty makes the exchange all the more priceless. Either way, Wolf has his gold jacket now, which essentially makes him bulletproof and above reproach for this weekend anyway.

Goodell’s shake-laugh-and-run bit with Wolf makes it appear like even he didn’t know which way the 2015 Hall of Fame inductee was leaning. After the week the NFL has had, with the 458-page Brady hearing transcript not reflecting well on the league, Goodell wasn’t about to stick around to find out.

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Eric Edholm is a writer for Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Eric_Edholm