Steve Smith understands what Randy Moss, Adalius Thomas, Gary Guyton, and Derrick Burgess are feeling today, and to a much harsher degree than the Four Horsemen of Not Owning Snow Tires.

Last year during the preseason, Smith knocked out teammate Ken Lucas during a training camp fight. The nasty punch forced coach John Fox to sideline Smith for two regular season games. His transgression and his punishment, obviously, were both far more severe than today's disciplinary action in Foxborough.

Having gone through the process, what does Smith think about how a coach's discipline can affect a team?

"The coach makes a decision," Smith said. "If it’s a good decision or a bad decision, the coach has whatever the consequences are, just like the players have the consequences in their decision. A lot of times, the coaches do what they want to do despite what the locker room may agree or disagree with. I don’t think they make their decisions on based all the time on what the best thing for the team. Coaches can sometimes say, ‘I think this is best for the team.’ And it comes back, and it may not be. They’re going to do what they want to do."

When a coach disciplines a major figure, which Moss certainly qualifies as, he takes a certain risk. It can galvanize a team. Or it can further rile an unsteady locker room.

"I think it depends on the state of the team," Smith said. "If it’s a team that maybe hasn’t done as well as they think they should have, and you kind of do something a little outrageous, and they say, ‘Oh, that’s what sparked it, and that was great.’ And then if it goes the opposite direction, you have people that are going to say it wasn’t very good. I think it really just depends on the outcome.

"That’s what this is about. Wins and losses."

As for Bill Belichick's perspective, Fox could provide insight.

"Everybody has roles and has jobs, and you need to be held accountable, and you need to be dependable people," Fox said. "As a head coach, that's what you have to do. Sometimes it's not easy. ... I think I can speak for Bill. I don't think he wanted anything like to happen, just like I didn't want something like to happen. I don't think you sit around and scheme and try to pre-meditate. I think it's just something you have to do to keep order. Bascially, you're the gatekeeper."