Football teams are not museums. That's something Daniel Vitale learned the hard way after he loaned the New England Patriots Hall of Fame a rare American flag autographed by Tom Brady.

Vitale is suing the Patriots for allegedly ruining the autographed flag by displaying it using improper techniques, which faded the autograph and possibly reduced the value of the flag by up to $1 million.

Let's break down this case.

The flag

According to the suit, the autographed flag is very rare. It's an American flag that flew at Foxboro Stadium in 2001, the year Brady took over as starting quarterback and the final year of the stadium's existence. There's a patch sewn onto it commemorating the final season at Foxboro, along with the date and the matchup when that flag flew (Dec. 22, 2001 against the Miami Dolphins). It was autographed by Brady a few years later, and the flag and autograph are fully authenticated.