More Cheating? Nah, can't be.

[LazyWinker]

pic?

I might deserve the ban hammer for this.

 

[Elmgrovegnome]

I cannot verify this, however a poster supposedly in the know on another forum claims that the Colts were aware of the deflated balls from their earlier game in Foxboro this year and filed a complaint to the league. When the Colts intercepted the ball the player gave it to the officials because it felt squishy.

Luck has a big arm. Maybe by deflating the balls it would help reduce his long accuracy and distance, thus eliminating or reducing a defensive concern for the Patriots. a everyone knows that Luck and his receivers carry that team, so the Patriots tried to neutralize the Colts most dangerous weapon. We all know that Brady does not have a great arm and if he practiced with the deflated balls all week it probably doesnt affect him much on short throws.

 

[ScotsRam]

That would be a correct statement lol. Worse part is the new wife is a smoke show.

I've learned a new word.... What's a smoke show?!

 

[T-REX]

Cheaters gonna cheat. Frist there was Spy Gate now the Deflate a Ball, what’s next…Spiking the other teams Gator Aid…The Punch Bowl…

 

[Boston Ram]

I've learned a new word.... What's a smoke show?!

It means she is hot

 

[DaveFan'51]

Gee. That'll teach 'em. How much is a SB appearance worth? $1.5M?
How many college players would you forfeit to get to one? 2? 3?

How about stripping them of the win instead. If Bellyfat knows he can game the system and only get fined and/or lose a player or two in the draft, he'll keep doing it.

I guess it's like the Great Vince Lombardi is Quoted as saying " Winning isn't everything it's the ONLY thing!" ( I think that's the way the quote went!)

 

[snackdaddy]

I guess it's like the Great Vince Lombardi is Quoted as saying " Winning isn't everything it's the ONLY thing!" ( I think that's the way the quote went!)

An anonymous Rams coach once said "Winning isn't everything, but losing sure sucks!"

 

[Stranger]

the Colts were aware of the deflated balls from their earlier game in Foxboro this year and filed a complaint to the league. When the Colts intercepted the ball the player gave it to the officials because it felt squishy.

Can we please ban Belicheat from the league forever now. This has gotten beyond ridiculous and it's now very tiresome.

I'm convinced Goodhell's mission is to destroy the NFL.

 

[rams2050]

 

[rams2050]

 

[rams2050]

 

[rams2050]

'Deflategate' not the type of scandal the NFL needs
61 COMMENTS
image: http://media.philly.com/images/011915_belichick_600.jpg

New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick walks off the field after beating the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC Championship Game at Gillette Stadium. (Stew Milne/USA Today)

JOHN SMALLWOOD, DAILY NEWS SPORTS COLUMNIST
POSTED: Tuesday, January 20, 2015, 3:01 AM


image: http://media.philly.com/designimages/partnerIcon-DailyNews-2014.jpg




I USED TO THINK that all the talk about the New England Patriots and head coach Bill Belichick being cheaters was just sour grapes.

When you lose playoff games and Super Bowls to a team that is as close to an NFL dynasty as there has been in the last 2 decades, there is bound to be talk of improprieties.

Of course, the fact that Belichick was fined $500,000 by the NFL for his role in the Patriots spying on, and videotaping of, the New York Jets in 2007 tends to lend credence to charges of underhanded shenanigans.

Considering the Patriots smashed the Indianapolis Colts, 45-7, it would be easy to downplay NFL spokesman Michael Signora's announcement that the league will look into a report that New England supplied deflated footballs for quarterback Tom Brady to throw during its AFC Championship Game against the Indianapolis Colts.


Teams always provide the balls for their offense. That Brady and his receivers may have gained a slight advantage by playing with a deflated ball in cold and wet weather doesn't account for the 38-point beatdown.

Still, the last thing the NFL needs going into Super Bowl XLIX is another accusation against New England and 2 weeks of Belichick being referred to by his nickname, "Beli-cheat."

From the high-profile domestic violence incidents of Ray Rice and Adrian Peterson, to the controversy surrounding whether or not the draft status of rookie Michael Sam suffered because he announced he was gay, to the questionable officiating that may have decided playoff games, it has been a tough season for the NFL.

But the Super Bowl has almost always been a cure-all for whatever ails the NFL. The over-the-top spectacle of what has now become a national holiday always deflected attention away from whatever seamy issues were laying under the surface.

"I can't imagine," Belichick said in an interview yesterday on Boston radio station WEEI. "I really don't know what to say or know anything about what we're talking about here.

"Whatever it is, we'll cooperate with them the best we can."

You'd like to think Belichick is being genuine, but considering his hand has been caught in the cookie jar before, the questioning is appropriate.

The NFL would not look into possible wrongdoing unless there was something to investigate.

The timing could not be worse for the league.

A Super Bowl featuring the reigning champion Seattle Seahawks and three-time champion Patriots is one of the most anticipated ever.

It would have been the perfect panacea for NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, who has been criticized all season for his perceived lack of leadership.

Now, however, "Deflategate" is going to be yet another unwanted issue he'll have to address at his annual Super Bowl news conference.

"Now, I've heard it all," Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, who will play in his sixth Super Bowl, said of the deflated football controversy during his weekly radio appearance on WEEI. "Oh, God. It's ridiculous.

"That's the least of my worries. I don't even respond to stuff like that"

Except it is not ridiculous because the NFL is going to investigate whether the balls the Patriots provided were properly inflated with 12.5 to 13.5 pounds of air pressure per square inch and weighed between 14 and 15 ounces.

The league will presumably look at why a ball was taken off the field in the third quarter and taken out of circulation.

And while Brady may not "even respond to stuff like that," he and his teammates can be assured that questions concerning deflated footballs are going to be popular ones during their Super Bowl media conferences.

In 2008, just days before the undefeated Patriots were upset in Super Bowl XLII by the New York Giants, "Spygate" jumped to the forefront when then-Pennsylvania U.S. Senator Arlen Specter demanded a meeting with Goodell. Specter wanted to know why the league reviewed, and then destroyed, tapes and evidence it had requested from the Patriots.

Ultimately, Belichick received the maximum fine allowed and the largest ever imposed on a coach. The Patriots were fined $250,000 and lost their first-round pick in the 2008 NFL draft.

If the league determines that New England intentionally used footballs that were not properly inflated, the fines and penalties could be similar to those imposed in "Spygate."

The reality is that this is much ado about nothing because the footballs, deflated or not, did not determine the outcome of the game.

Brady completed 23 of 35 passes for 226 yards and three touchdowns, but the biggest factor was New England's LeGarrette Blount rushing for 148 yards and three TDs, which had nothing to do with throwing or catching a football.

Still, the accusation is just another on a list of things that cloud the Patriots' and Belichick's legacies.

Less than 2 weeks ago, Hall of Fame coach Don Shula publicly referred to Belichick as "Beli-cheat."

Ten days ago, Baltimore Ravens coach John Harbaugh accused the Patriots of manipulating the rules concerning the reporting of eligible and ineligible receivers to intentionally confuse his defensive players and the officials in their AFC divisional loss to New England.

Despite no physical evidence, many St. Louis Rams still say that the Patriots illegally videotaped their walk-through practices prior to beating them in Super Bowl XXXVI in 2002.

Some members of the Eagles and Carolina Panthers have said they believe New England illegally obtained information that allowed the Patriots to know their signals and plays in their close Super Bowl losses in 2004 and 2005, respectively.

Again, there is no concrete evidence that New England cheated, but the numerous allegations combined with "Spygate" have placed a dubious aura around the legitimacy of the Patriots success.

"Deflategate" may prove to be nothing, but after the season the NFL has had, it isn't something the league wanted to have to deal with.




Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/eagles/20150120_Squawking_on_air.html#hErT6bK66sxZmkOD.99

 

[Rambitious1]

While I don't get why they would do this, who thinks it would only help the Pats? They were playing with the same balls, this did not affect the outcome of a total ass whopping

If they had someone (ball boy) providing balls and had them send in or give them deflated balls only when they had possession.
Just spit balling.

 

[Boffo97]

The reality is that this is much ado about nothing because the footballs, deflated or not, did not determine the outcome of the game.

Brady completed 23 of 35 passes for 226 yards and three touchdowns, but the biggest factor was New England's LeGarrette Blount rushing for 148 yards and three TDs, which had nothing to do with throwing or catching a football.

Ugh. I hate this bullshit.

Of course that's not the reality. The reality is we don't know how the game would have gone without the advantage of their footballs being easier to grip. And of course, rushing is also affected since those balls are easier to hold onto and those rushing TDs were set up by passes.

What the reality is is that if the Patriots cheated, they did so because THEY thought they needed to in order to win the game. This stuff has a purpose, it isn't just mustache-twirling evil.

If the NFL had any actual integrity, the penalty that SHOULD happen if the Patriots are guilty is disqualification from the game and telling the Colts to come back in, they have a Super Bowl to play in. THAT would finally get Belichick's attention to stop doing this crap.

 

[Mackeyser]

Absolutely, Boffo.

I was mentioning this to the wife and she was just GOBSMACKED.

"So they get to continue?"

"Yep"

"Are they gonna at least be punished?"

"Maybe, but probably not until after the Super Bowl and then it'll likely be viewed as an infraction."

She just shook her head.

"That's just not right. They cheated. They're rewarding cheating." Then she got mad at me for getting her upset AND by doing it with a football story which is a double whammy since she hates football.

So, here's my wife who hates football and really doesn't hardly know anything about it, but she surely knows right from wrong and it's clear as a bell to her that the Patriots cheated and that the crystal clear answer is for the Patriots to be disqualified. Period. End of discussion.

And THIS is why Roger Goodell fails... because my wife who hates football knows more about basic ethics and how that should be applied to football than the NFL Commissioner.

 

[Jorgeh0605]

Absolutely, Boffo.

I was mentioning this to the wife and she was just GOBSMACKED.

"So they get to continue?"

"Yep"

"Are they gonna at least be punished?"

"Maybe, but probably not until after the Super Bowl and then it'll likely be viewed as an infraction."

She just shook her head.

"That's just not right. They cheated. They're rewarding cheating." Then she got mad at me for getting her upset AND by doing it with a football story which is a double whammy since she hates football.

So, here's my wife who hates football and really doesn't hardly know anything about it, but she surely knows right from wrong and it's clear as a bell to her that the Patriots cheated and that the crystal clear answer is for the Patriots to be disqualified. Period. End of discussion.

And THIS is why Roger Goodell fails... because my wife who hates football knows more about basic ethics and how that should be applied to football than the NFL Commissioner.

It sounds easy enough but proving something without any reasonable doubt is something I just don't think most people understand. Example, how in the hell do you prove they deflated the ball? A number of other things could deflate a ball. Temperature drops being a likely scenario. I mean, it was one ball right?

And even if they prove that it wasn't that, it doesn't mean that the Pats were the ones that deflated the ball. There are a lot of things to consider, and I think it is sad to see the mob mentality that occurs with assumptions even with lack of any real information. Not to pick on you Mackeyser because the response is 100% human, but you said "it's clear as a bell to her that the Patriots cheated". Fact is, that hasn't been proven yet. We do not know if they cheated, it isn't clear. We will never know with 100% certainty if they cheated. And since we can never with that much certainty we should not drop the hammer with 100% certainty. Any real punishment like disqualifying them from the Super Bowl would likely lead to a very big law suit between owner and the league, so issuing such a large punishment without definitive evidence leave the NFL liable financially. It could also create a precedent for other owners to follow suit and sue when they disagree with a particular punishment, of which the legal system likes to stay out of at the moment.

Yes we all like to call Belicheat and the Cheatriots names, and yes they have a stigma from the spygate ccontroversy, but that doesn't make them automatically guilty of doing this. I personally like to give virtually everyone the benefit of the doubt if no evidence is given. I'm not attacking anyone on this board either, I'm just suggesting we try and regain an objective mind.

So I'll conclude with a question, what sort of things do you feel would definitively prove they cheated?

 

[Boffo97]

It sounds easy enough but proving something without any reasonable doubt is something I just don't think most people understand. Example, how in the hell do you prove they deflated the ball? A number of other things could deflate a ball. Temperature drops being a likely scenario. I mean, it was one ball right?

I don't think anyone is saying punish them before you know they cheated. But it should be easy enough to prove that it wasn't just the temperature going down (I presume the Colts' balls were fine.... hehehe) and I don't think it's just one ball.

That said, as individuals with no power to punish, it's perfectly okay for us to have the opinion that they did most likely cheat. Their record sucks for itself.

 

[Stranger]

I think it is sad to see the mob mentality that occurs

Hand me a torch

 

[Jorgeh0605]

That said, as individuals with no power to punish, it's perfectly okay for us to have the opinion that they did most likely cheat. Their record sucks for itself.

I wouldn't say it is "okay" but I would definitely agree that it is within your right to form that opinion. But one would hope that people would strive to gain a respectable opinion by backing it with facts of some kind.

I saw a post on here that said the ball could have been waterlogged and therefore removed from the game. A waterlogged football could definitely deflate a football as well. As could temperature.

Also reports I've read have only ever mentioned the one football taken out of the game. I haven't heard reports of more than one football being deflated. If so, that definitely lends credit to them cheating.

 

[Jorgeh0605]

Hand me a torch

You're a torch guy? I took you for a pitchfork kinda fellow!