The NFL hasn’t said a word, but the message might be loud and clear. Dave Portnoy, the Barstool Sports founder once tossed from Super Bowl 53 and persona non grata at league events, just headlined the New England Patriots’ 2025 schedule release, per NBCSports. And the league’s response? Crickets.

Only 48 hours after the 10-year anniversary of Portnoy’s arrest for storming the NFL offices during the #Deflategate saga, he resurfaced in classic fashion: staging a mock “emergency press conference” to unveil the team’s upcoming matchups. In true Portnoy fashion, he didn’t tone it down — throwing jabs, referencing his infamous Roger Goodell clown shirt, and serving up unfiltered takes on every opponent. And still, not a peep from Park Avenue.

That silence might signal a shift, or at the very least, a strategic avoidance. Especially considering Portnoy’s past skirmishes have been anything but subtle. From T-shirts to Congressional hearings, Portnoy’s beef with the NFL made headlines. Yet now, the league appears to be pretending none of it happened.

The Patriots lean into their most polarizing fan

The Patriots, meanwhile, seem to be in full troll mode — and it’s working. After last year’s high-production “Good Will Hunting” parody starring Julian Edelman and Rob Gronkowski, this year’s schedule rollout was split into two videos: one “egg drop” clip with players, and the other a six-minute Portnoy rant that stole the spotlight.

While other teams leaned on slick production, New England leaned into authenticity. Dave Portnoy, a lifelong fan, didn’t just hype up the season — he gave blunt commentary on a team fresh off back-to-back four-win campaigns. It was raw, risky, and a clear nod to the fanbase that Barstool has long cultivated.

So, is this a comeback or just a clever PR gamble? Either way, the Patriots invited the league’s most notorious critic into their living room, and the league — for once — didn’t kick him out.