Rarely do the New England Patriots lift a finger to take a jab at an opponent, especially following a playoff game (unless your name is Wes Welker). However, when their integrity was questioned, Tom Brady went on the defensive.

Following New England’s dramatic 35-31 win over the Ravens, John Harbaugh complained about the Pats being deceptive with a serious substitutions while Baltimore enjoyed a 28-14 lead that allowed Shane Vereen to line up as an ineligible receiver with just four offensive linemen.

Baltimore didn’t know who the ineligible receiver was and in turn, would potentially covering the wrong player. The confusion led to Harbaugh drawing an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for protesting what happened.

In the game’s aftermath, Tom Brady offered up some advice to the Ravens.

“Maybe those guys gotta study the rule book and figure it out. We obviously knew what we were doing and we made some pretty important plays. It was a real good weapon for us. Maybe we’ll have something in store next week.”

Advantage, Brady.

The NFL stated yesterday that the Patriots did not commit any substitution infractions.