Reopening Old Wounds: More proof that the Patriots were cheating

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badnews

Use Your Illusion
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Nobody wants to open up a real discussion there... because you get into uncomfortable areas really quick.
I'm not a tinfoil hat conspiracy theory guy.
I'm also not afraid to admit that sometimes a couple or more people with power and/or influence will work together to subvert a given system in order to help each other achieve goals that otherwise wouldn't be possible (usually because of rules or laws).
Julius Caesar took over the Roman Republic in just such a way (the 1st Triumvirate)

In 2001, there was a big thing going on. The key word is patriotism.
All it takes is just allowing a team to get away with bending the rules a little once... and then that team can push those limits over and over because they have leverage...

No, I don't believe there was anything on paper, or anything like "the govt was in cahoots with the NFL". Not at all. What I think is some refs were told to let em play, and one team knew that. Someone from an acronym agency asked the commissioner, in service to their country, to ease up a bit on their oversight of one particular franchise for a little while.

Just my ideas about how it was allowed to happen..
 

XXXIVwin

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I personally don't believe there was some big conspiracy, or that some government agency was in on things, or that the league had pre-planned to favor the Pats.

I simply believe the Pats found a way to tape the Rams practices and they got a significant advantage from that (especially the brand new plays they were perfectly prepared for). Once the NFL obtained evidence of the Pats cheating, they chose to bury the evidence in an attempt to protect the League's image.

That's it. No more, no less, not complicated. Just my opinion.
 

David Ray

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Randall
They have no reason to stop. Monetary fines are meaningless and losing a few draft picks are worth it for a Lombardi trophy.

Does anyone really believe that goodell saw no cheating on the tapes and just destroyed them for no good reason?
Before goodell had the skids greased by bob WITCh-kraft in order to become commish JELLYFISH, he was the COO of the National Football League, a position within the NFL hierarchy that gave him oversight of the game officials. In light of the farce that was the FIX that was XXXVI, I'm getting a quid pro quo vibe.
 

Steve808

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pathetic pat fan... go fuck yourself, loser...

brady GOAT??... my ronchey red ass... he'll never see me call him that... ever...

go rams

Brady GOAT? If he played in Bradshaw or Montana's era of football, he would have been disabled and retired at age 34.
 

tempests

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Walsh confessed that after the Patriots' team picture, he and at least three other team videographers lingered around the Louisiana Superdome, setting up cameras for the game. Suddenly, the Rams arrived and started their walk-through. The three videographers, in full Patriots apparel, hung around, on the field and in the stands, for 30 minutes. Nobody said anything.

https://www.espn.com/espn/otl/story/_/id/13533995/split-nfl-new-england-patriots-apart
I'm supposed to believe those three guys were there, 'in full Patriots apparel', filming the Rams practice, and no one from the Rams organization noticed this? Let alone with post 9-11 stadium security.

I'm sorry, they never would've gotten away with that. And the Rams organization just wasn't that stupid.
 

kurtfaulk

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I'm supposed to believe those three guys were there, 'in full Patriots apparel', filming the Rams practice, and no one from the Rams organization noticed this? Let alone with post 9-11 stadium security.

I'm sorry, they never would've gotten away with that. And the Rams organization just wasn't that stupid.

we all know they used to tape a logo of the team they're videoing over their logo.

.
 

Mikey Ram

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I despise the organization but my biggest piece of ire is thrown at Tommy..I call him plastic boy...He tries to come off as the humble goat, but I see him as the full blown goat of the fake, pouting, whimpering prick society...His childish temper tantrums when one of the serf teams in the league dare to kick his ass, piss me off ad nauseum...Jeez, I feel a lot better suddenly...BTW, picture what would have happened if anybody else in the league would have had the gall to damage the Lombardi trophy by throwing it from one boat to another..Oops, off topic here..I'm off to the dungeon for a well deserved, self-administered, painful flogging...
 

badnews

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I personally don't believe there was some big conspiracy, or that some government agency was in on things, or that the league had pre-planned to favor the Pats.

I simply believe the Pats found a way to tape the Rams practices and they got a significant advantage from that (especially the brand new plays they were perfectly prepared for). Once the NFL obtained evidence of the Pats cheating, they chose to bury the evidence in an attempt to protect the League's image.

That's it. No more, no less, not complicated. Just my opinion.

That's fine, most don't want to believe things like that but history proves they happen.
Again, no "big govt conspiracy" is needed. 2 guys working on their own agenda is plenty.

And the tuck rule?
The Pats literally unbelievable run was going to happen at just the right time.
By the way, if TV producers can be agents, why can't the NFL have similar plants? We don't know and I cant rule it out... and it makes plenty of sense.
 

CoachAllred

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In 2001, there was a big thing going on. The key word is patriotism.
All it takes is just allowing a team to get away with bending the rules a little once... and then that team can push those limits over and over because they have leverage...
Exactly.
I had a gut feeling prior to that game, based solely on the atmosphere of the nation.
But my feeling was that the NFL would find a way for the Patriots to win.
And in fact I still believe they played a part aside from the patriots cheating
there were outlandish non calls involving defensive holding. Especially on Faulk
when he would attempt to run routes.
Now whether the NFL was aware at that time of the pats filming or not??? I don't know.
but I think the NFL separately had plans to make a Rams victory as difficult as possible.

Whatever happened I do remember pregame thinking there could be a fix on, based solely on
the patriot name.
 

badnews

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Exactly.
I had a gut feeling prior to that game, based solely on the atmosphere of the nation.
But my feeling was that the NFL would find a way for the Patriots to win.
And in fact I still believe they played a part aside from the patriots cheating
there were outlandish non calls involving defensive holding. Especially on Faulk
when he would attempt to run routes.
Now whether the NFL was aware at that time of the pats filming or not??? I don't know.
but I think the NFL separately had plans to make a Rams victory as difficult as possible.

Whatever happened I do remember pregame thinking there could be a fix on, based solely on
the patriot name.

And there's many recent historical examples of things like this happening.
The first big distraction since those events, and in a symbolic way, visually, America wins. Patriotism wins, the people of NE win. It projected morale.
Between the AFC championship and the SB, there's too much smoke for me to believe there was no fire.
 

Loyal

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Nobody wants to open up a real discussion there... because you get into uncomfortable areas really quick.
I'm not a tinfoil hat conspiracy theory guy.
I'm also not afraid to admit that sometimes a couple or more people with power and/or influence will work together to subvert a given system in order to help each other achieve goals that otherwise wouldn't be possible (usually because of rules or laws).
Julius Caesar took over the Roman Republic in just such a way (the 1st Triumvirate)

In 2001, there was a big thing going on. The key word is patriotism.
All it takes is just allowing a team to get away with bending the rules a little once... and then that team can push those limits over and over because they have leverage...

No, I don't believe there was anything on paper, or anything like "the govt was in cahoots with the NFL". Not at all. What I think is some refs were told to let em play, and one team knew that. Someone from an acronym agency asked the commissioner, in service to their country, to ease up a bit on their oversight of one particular franchise for a little while.

Just my ideas about how it was allowed to happen..
A glimpse at the secret badnews live cam, seconds ago.....

tw0UGrW.gif
 

badnews

Use Your Illusion
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A glimpse at the secret badnews live cam, seconds ago.....

tw0UGrW.gif

Where'd you get this? How did you find me?? You're one of "them" aren't you? I knew I should have listened to what my microwave was trying to tell me!!
 

Mackeyser

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Mack
No one can cheat like Belicheat. Just look at the (lack of) success of his former coaches once they leave the compound to take on HC jobs at more honest organizations. Belicheat didn’t give them the recipe for the secret sauce for cheating. Because he’s a selfish SOB. And did I mention I hate Brady. I hate him for being the entitled stuck up a-hole that he is. For life!!!

This whole thing backfired because Belichick continued cheating after helping Eric Mangini get the HC spot with the Jets. Mangini specifically asked Bill NOT to film him... and they did it anyway... Mangini blew the whistle and we saw Spygate.

If Belichick had just let that one game go... we may never have heard about Spygate... which is crazy to think about in retrospect.
 

1maGoh

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This whole thing backfired because Belichick continued cheating after helping Eric Mangini get the HC spot with the Jets. Mangini specifically asked Bill NOT to film him... and they did it anyway... Mangini blew the whistle and we saw Spygate.

If Belichick had just let that one game go... we may never have heard about Spygate... which is crazy to think about in retrospect.
It's that documented somewhere? As in, did Mangini or some staff member say they? I've never heard it before.
 

Mackeyser

Supernovas are where gold forms; the only place.
Joined
Apr 26, 2013
Messages
14,176
Name
Mack
Nobody wants to open up a real discussion there... because you get into uncomfortable areas really quick.
I'm not a tinfoil hat conspiracy theory guy.
I'm also not afraid to admit that sometimes a couple or more people with power and/or influence will work together to subvert a given system in order to help each other achieve goals that otherwise wouldn't be possible (usually because of rules or laws).
Julius Caesar took over the Roman Republic in just such a way (the 1st Triumvirate)

In 2001, there was a big thing going on. The key word is patriotism.
All it takes is just allowing a team to get away with bending the rules a little once... and then that team can push those limits over and over because they have leverage...

No, I don't believe there was anything on paper, or anything like "the govt was in cahoots with the NFL". Not at all. What I think is some refs were told to let em play, and one team knew that. Someone from an acronym agency asked the commissioner, in service to their country, to ease up a bit on their oversight of one particular franchise for a little while.

Just my ideas about how it was allowed to happen..

I said as much in October of 1999. That would have been on the Herd and I don't think they go back that far, but last time I tried the Wayback Machine, It didn't come up as saved.

But yeah... it was clear when EVERY game became a national game and/or the other games opposite were constantly giving Pats updates and the entire nation wanted the Patriots to win... well, except for diehard football fans who mostly found the display a fucking joke...which it was.

I've been wrong before, but I'm absolutely not wrong about SB 36... The Pats cheated, plain and simple. Worse, Belichick seeing how they were being refereed decided to go all in and not only cheat, but also stretch the rules in obscene fashion.

Even if the players felt okay with "a little birdie told me"... which no grown adult worth the title would believe for a nanosecond... they still engaged in overt attempts to injure Rams players... so you'll NEVER hear from me that the Pats were legit champions.
 

Mackeyser

Supernovas are where gold forms; the only place.
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It's that documented somewhere? As in, did Mangini or some staff member say they? I've never heard it before.

The controversy surrounding the Patriots back in 2007 (Spygate) is largely overshadowed by the controversy surrounding the Patriots in 2014 (Deflategate), but there are plenty of people who have not forgotten what came out of the incident nearly a decade ago.

Eric Mangini, for instance, has still not spoken with Bill Belichick. Mangini, who was coach of the Jets in 2007, had been mentored by Belichick before leaving the Patriots to take the top coaching job with the division rival. He really ratcheted up the tension when he decided to inform the NFL about the Patriots practice of video taping their opponents' defensive signals from the sideline.

A whole controversy was born and Belichick hasn't spoken to Mangini since. Mangini told Rich Cimini of ESPN this weekend while coaching a youth football camp in Connecticut that he hopes the two can be friends again.

"Am I surprised? I hope it's something that can come back," Mangini said. "Look, Bill is a big part of my life. Bill gave me a tremendous opportunity, and I enjoyed that experience, and I respect him. It's disappointing, the way it's been. Hopefully, it can change at some point."


That Belichick decided to end the relationship shouldn't be a surprise. His reputation was sullied and the Patriots were severely punished. When Deflategate happened, it was not uncommon for people to assume the Patriots were "up to something" simply because of what happened in 2007.

The second controversy also created more investigation into the prior one, with ESPN reporting in 2015 that the Pats taped more than 40 teams from 2000 through 2007.

At least one NFL owner believed the harsh penalties against the Patriots in Deflategate were a "makeup call" for Spygate -- the tapes from 2007 were destroyed by Roger Goodell and the NFL and a "panicked" commissioner reportedly called Mike Martz and got him to sign off on a statement to avoid an investigation.


eric-mangini.jpg

Mangini says it has been 10 years since he spoke to his former mentor, Belichick. USATSI
This is not the first time that Mangini has made a public statement saying he feels bad about how things went down. In 2012 Mangini said deciding to tell Jets security to watch the Patriots and filtering it up to the NFL was "a regret" and called it a "disappointment."

He said the same thing in September of last year -- it's pretty clear that he wishes he hadn't burnt Belichick. He also claims that his goal wasn't to rat out the Patriots, but only to stop them from videotaping and that things got "out of hand."

"It was never supposed to go the way that it went," Mangini said. "It was more about, 'Hey, don't do this here.' It wasn't about reporting it. Sometimes things get out of hand and get rolling in one direction. It was never, ever supposed to go that way."


It went that way and it got very public. History hasn't helped his story get written. After failing with the Jets, Mangini was hired by the Browns, where he won 10 games in two years before being relieved of his duties.

Last year alone Belichick won 14 games and the Super Bowl, for the fifth time as a head coach. Maybe mending fences is something that happens once Belichick hangs up his headset, but even then it's a longshot. He hasn't spoken to Mangini in 10 years! As Cimini noted, Belichick listed all his former coordinators last year and didn't include Mangini's name. It's pretty clearly a "you're dead to me" situation.

And forget about it right now. Belichick famously groused about the Patriots being five weeks behind the rest of the NFL for the coming season the day after New England won the Super Bowl. He's not going to take time away from coaching football to worry about the feelings of someone who helped to create the biggest controversy of Belichick's coaching career.