[Svartalfiar]

You realize that spotting a team a big lead changes the entire game, right?

Oh, definitely. And yes, if the balls hadn't been deflated, who knows what could have happened. But with deflated balls, the score was 13-7. Not too big of a difference that would cause major strategy changes. And of course, the second half was a complete blowout 28-0.
Not justifying what happened, but I highly doubt an even match would have made much difference in the outcome.

[Defiant]

I agree that the Colts looked like crap that day, and the Patriots likely would have won. No way to know for sure, though, and it doesn’t really matter. You don’t look at criminal behavior, or prohibited behavior, with hindsight. And it also is likely that this was not the first time, and on other occasions, it may have made a difference. Ask the Ravens, who noticed it in a close game.