Report: NFL could punish Brady, ball boys in wake of report

[rams2050]

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/07/s...contentCollection=Pro Football&pgtype=article

Tom Brady Probably Knew Footballs Were Doctored, N.F.L. Finds


He called himself the deflator. A longtime locker-room attendant for theNew England Patriots, Jim McNally, was responsible for controlling the air pressure in the footballs that quarterback Tom Brady would use on the field.

Another Patriots employee, an equipment assistant named John Jastremski, was in direct communication with Brady and provided McNally with memorabilia, including shoes and autographed footballs.

Those three men — two low-rung employees and Brady, the passer regarded as one of the best ever — are now linked in a scandal that threatens Brady’s legacy and further tarnishes the reputation of the Patriots, a team that has taken suspicious paths to success.

On Wednesday, the N.F.L. released its report on the inquiry into New England’s surreptitious deflation of game-day footballs to make them easier to grip, a program uncovered during January’s A.F.C. championship game.

Using detailed accounts and circumstantial evidence, it implicated Brady as part of the operation, saying he most likely knew that the two employees, McNally, 48, and Jastremski, then 35, were purposely deflating footballs, for Brady’s benefit, to a level beyond the permissible threshold.

“There is less direct evidence linking Brady to tampering activities than either McNally or Jastremski,” the report said. “We nevertheless believe, based on the totality of the evidence, that it is more probable than not that Brady was at least generally aware of the inappropriate activities of McNally and Jastremski.”

The N.F.L. report absolved other top Patriots officials, including Coach Bill Belichick, the owner Robert K. Kraft and the equipment manager Dave Schoenfeld, saying that there was “no wrongdoing or knowledge of wrongdoing” on their part.

The N.F.L. said it would consider disciplinary action and changes to game-day protocol as a result of the findings.

It was not the first time that the Patriots, who won the Super Bowl, 28-24, against the Seattle Seahawks in February, had been found to break rules to gain an advantage. In 2007, the league fined the Patriots and Belichick and ordered the team to forfeit a first-round draft pick after a Patriots staff member was discovered videotaping signals by Jets coaches during a game. Belichick was fined $500,000, and the team was ordered to pay $250,000.

For this case, outside investigators hired by the N.F.L. left some critical questions outstanding. They were unable to determine when the operation to release air from footballs had begun, who had come up with the idea, how often it had occurred or “the full scope of communications related to those efforts,” the report said.

But investigators implied that Brady had lied when he denied any knowledge of the operation or of McNally’s name and role. They found that Brady had spoken to Jastremski on the phone for more than 13 minutes starting shortly before 7:30 a.m. the morning after the A.F.C. championship game, their first phone conversation in six months. At Brady’s behest, for the first time that Jastremski could recall, they met in the quarterbacks’ meeting room later in the morning.

It was there that the operation unraveled. In the hours before the game in Foxborough, Mass., in the byzantine catacombs beneath Gillette Stadium, McNally took 12 game balls to the locker room used by on-field officials.

The head referee for the Patriots-Colts game, Walt Anderson, used a gauge to test the air pressure of each ball. The balls are made of a urethane bladder inside a pebbled leather casing. N.F.L. rules dictate that they be properly inflated during a game, falling into the window of 12.5 to 13.5 pounds per square inch.

McNally told Anderson that Brady liked the balls to be at the low end of the scale. (Brady later confirmed this, to reporters, saying that he liked squishier footballs to help him get a better grip.) Ten of the balls were approved. Two others were underinflated. Anderson instructed another official to pump them up until they reached the 12.5-p.s.i. threshold.

A second bag of balls was provided by the Colts. Those, too, were tested. Most were inflated to about 13.0. All were approved.

A short time later, Anderson looked around the locker room. The two bags of balls were gone. It was the first time in his 19-year career as an N.F.L. official that Anderson could not find the footballs before a game, he told investigators.

McNally had taken them out of the locker room without anyone’s noticing. He turned left, then left again, walking through a tunnel toward the playing field. Just before he got there, he entered a bathroom to the left.

He locked the door and was inside for 1 minute 40 seconds, surveillance footage later showed. He left the bathroom and took them to the field. And when 11 balls were tested with two gauges at halftime, after the Colts had raised suspicions following a second-quarter interception of a Brady pass, they were all below 12.5 p.s.i. Most were substantially lower. One was at 10.5.

The game was played in the rain, and deflated balls would have been easier to grip in the wet weather.

The Patriots won the A.F.C. championship, 45-7, but the victory was quickly overshadowed by intrigue and controversy, as team leaders — Brady, Belichick and Kraft, mostly — took turns denying any wrongdoing.

The N.F.L., trying to keep the ball controversy from overwhelming anticipation for the Super Bowl, promised a thorough investigation. The Patriots beat the Seahawks for their fourth championship since 2001, all under Belichick and with Brady at quarterback.

The investigation could not determine how many years, if any, the intentional deflating of footballs had gone on. It revealed a text-message correspondence between McNally and Jastremski from May 9, 2014, in which McNally, after asking Jastremski if he was working, wrote: “jimmy needs some kicks....lets make a deal.....come on help the deflator.”

Brady struggled early in the season. On the sideline during an Oct. 16 home game against the Jets, Jastremski said, Brady complained to him about the inflation of the balls.

“Tom is acting crazy about balls,” Jastremski texted to an unidentified recipient at halftime.

Jastremski told Brady that McNally was the locker-room attendant for the officials, and Brady “said something like, ‘isn’t he in there to make sure the balls are staying where they should be?’ ” the report said.

The Patriots won, 27-25, and Brady was a rather ordinary 20 of 37 passing for 261 yards, though he threw for three touchdowns and no interceptions.

Over the next few days, McNally suggested in text messages to Jastremski that he would overinflate the balls — using the terms “watermelons,” “rugby balls” and “balloons” — for the next game.

“The only thing deflating sun..is his passing rating,” he wrote.

They were jokes, apparently. The next game, a home rout of the Chicago Bears, Brady completed 30 of 35 passes for 354 yards and five touchdowns, his best performance of the season.

Brady and the Patriots finished the regular season with a 12-4 record, earning home-field advantage throughout the playoffs — a more meaningful advantage, perhaps, than anyone had suspected.

And at the first playoff game in January, eight days before the scandal erupted, the three men later implicated — McNally, Jastremski and Brady — were in the equipment room, trading pieces of valuable merchandise.

Three weeks later, the Patriots won the Super Bowl. Brady was the game’s most valuable player.

 

[rams2050]

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/07/sports/football/in-the-end-science-works-against-the-patriots.html?contentCollection=sports&action=click&module=NextInCollection&region=Footer&pgtype=article


In the End, Science Works Against the Patriots
By JAMES GLANZ
MAY 6, 2015

The laws of physics worked in favor of the New England Patriots when a football spiraled into the arms of one of their players at the end of the Super Bowl. But those same laws could not save the Patriots from the conclusion that they almost certainly tampered with footballs — by improperly deflating them — to help the team win an earlier playoff game.

In a report commissioned by the National Football League and released Wednesday, a noted engineering firm and a Princeton physics professor concluded that an equation known as the Ideal Gas Law could not explain why the Patriots footballs were at such low pressures when they were measured at halftime of New England’s postseason victory over the Indianapolis Colts.

The report punctured a key assertion of some physicists around the country who believed that the temperature difference between the locker room, where the balls were inflated, and the playing field could provide an innocent explanation for the pressure drop. However, the balls were taken back to the locker room at halftime, where they warmed up again before the measurement, the report said. Therefore, the report concluded, “the reduction in pressure of the Patriots’ game balls cannot be explained completely by basic scientific principles.”
The report, led by the Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison law firm in New York, took several months to complete and softens its conclusions with the phrase “more probable than not.” In addition, the firm apparently ordered the researchers not to talk about their work — generally a no-no in a field where transparency builds credibility.

When contacted by phone, the Princeton physics professor, Daniel R. Marlow, said he could not discuss the topic.

“Paul, Weiss has asked me not to comment and to refer questions to the N.F.L.,” Marlow said.

A spokesman for the N.F.L., Greg Aiello, said in an email: “It is entirely up to Professor Marlow as to whether he speaks to you or anyone else. He does not need our permission.” But Aiello also said that Theodore V. Wells Jr., who led the investigation on behalf of Paul, Weiss, was free to conduct it however he saw fit.

Lisa Green, a spokeswoman for Paul, Weiss, would only say, “No one at the firm is talking to the press.” She would not say whether the firm had ordered the scientists not to speak about their research.

The deflation controversy spawned a secondary series of events in the world of science, with some physicists initially miscalculating the pressure drop using the gas law, others seeming to be influenced by which team they had been rooting for and an engineering graduate student performing an elaborate set of experiments that appeared to exonerate the Patriots.

Despite its fussy language, the new report received a generally positive reaction from scientists around the country — in part because of Marlow’s reputation as a researcher.

“Looks pretty reasonable to me,” said Alan M. Nathan, a nuclear physicist at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign who is known for his work in the physics of baseball.

“Although the scientific details are not presented, I suspect the conclusion reasonably follows from the data and simulations,” Nathan said. “Moreover, Dan Marlow is a good physicist and I would place great weight on his scientific opinion.”

Timothy J. Gay, an experimental physicist at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln who happens to know Bill Belichick, the Patriots’ longtime coach, said the team could no longer hide behind the Ideal Gas Law.

“It sounds like they’ve got a guilty party,” Gay said. Because the Patriots’ game balls were taken back to the locker room before the pressure was measured, he said, the gas law “doesn’t account for” the pressure drop.

The Colts’ game balls were handled in a similar way and did not show the same pressure drop that the Patriots’ footballs did, the report notes — further evidence that something besides physics was in play with the balls used by the Patriots. “The measurements recorded for the Patriots’ game balls at halftime cannot be entirely explained by the Ideal Gas Law,” the report said.

Einstein once remarked that gravitation is not responsible for people falling in love — meaning that physics cannot explain everything humans do. The report seems to have confirmed his observation.

 

[iced]

Haha I love it.

Can't wait to hear Pats' fans excuses now

 

[Stranger]

Science is just a tool, Robert Kraft. It's about the integrity of the people using the tool that matters. And when those people have integrity, science is pretty good at finding truthful answers. So don't quote science when everyone knows that the people behind that science were just bought-off shills. Glad we finally were able to get an academic who would not dishonor scientific integrity, and voila, we have a result that is perfectly logical...

Ideal Gas Law could not explain why the Patriots footballs were at such low pressures

game balls were taken back to the locker room before the pressure was measured, he said, the gas law “doesn’t account for” the pressure drop.

... the team could no longer hide behind the Ideal Gas Law.

Don't give them SB Rings, and take back that Lombardi!!!

 

[A55VA6]

lol watching ESPN and NFLN, it makes me fucking laugh the way Tedy Bruschi and Willie McGinest defend the Patriots like they have done no wrong and they're the best franchise in NFL history. Really, they're just cheating assholes.

 

[iced]

DeflateGate punishments could come Friday

The Boston Herald reports a ruling on "DeflateGate" could come as early as Friday.

Ted Wells released his 243-page report Wednesday, revealing that New England likely committed a violation by manipulating footballs during the Patriots AFC Championship win over Indianapolis. While the blame has mostly been placed on Tom Brady and New England's two ball attendants, John Jastremski and Jim McNally, it's possible head coach Bill Belichick will be punished as well. Most outlets are suggesting a multi-game suspension for Brady. The organization may also be subject to a fine and loss of draft picks.
Source: Boston Herald
May 8 - 12:20 PM

 

[iced]

Report: DeflateGate punishment could come this afternoon
Posted by Darin Gantt on May 8, 2015, 12:16 PM EDT

Getty Images
Well, it is Friday.

With the Ted Wells report on the DeflateGate investigation in, the next step is for the league to decide on any possible punishments, and that could be coming soon.

According to Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald, a source close to the investigation thinks the disciplinary ruling “could be made as soon as this afternoon.”

While it would be tempting for the league to sit on bad news until the Friday before Memorial Day weekend — and a possible suspension of a star the magnitude of Tom Brady would qualify for such treatment — it might not last that long.

While nothing has apparently been relayed to the Patriots, the fact word is leaking out now indicates that the pressure could be rising around Gillette Stadium soon.

And it’s more probable than not that they’re not going to be happy.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.co...ategate-punishment-could-come-this-afternoon/

 

[Legatron4]

Please dear god let Brady be suspended for an entire season.

 

[The Ripper]

It's all going to be a PR move for the NFL their going appear to come down hard on Brady and the Patriots but by the time the season starts Bradys suspension will be appealed down to a fine.

 

[Selassie I]

Off with their balls!!!

 

[CodeMonkey]

 

[Stranger]

a multi-game suspension for Brady. The organization may also be subject to a fine and loss of draft picks.

we're talking about the AFCC Game, this wasn't just some meaningless pre or regular season game. Additionally, this was probably going on for quite some time.

Guess it's time for Goodhell to bend over for the Kraft shaft once again. I wonder what kinda pay-raise or other compensation we'll see Goodhell get in return.

 

[iced]

we're talking about the AFCC Game, this wasn't just some meaningless pre or regular season game. Additionally, this was probably going on for quite some time.

Guess it's time for Goodhell to bend over for the Kraft shaft once again. I wonder what kinda pay-raise or other compensation we'll see Goodhell get in return.

I think it will since they have texts complaining about the air during the regular season

 

[CGI_Ram]

I think what aggrevates me most about some of the articles I read... People act like he cheated just one game.

He's been doing this, how long?

 

[rams2050]

And no one is mentioning the half-ass 'legal' illegal substitution maneuver that caught the Ravens completely off guard during the game preceding the AFCC game.

The Cheats have numerous and sundry ways of winning games; some legal and most not so much.

 

[CGI_Ram]

1. Brady refused to turn over his cell phone and records
2. Brady claimed he didn't know one of the ball boys, when THEIR text messages show he was in contact with them
3. Brady lied to the NFL and public

He'll be suspended. It should be 8 games, minimum.

 

[rams2050]

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/...um=referral&utm_campaign=programming-national


Jon Stewart takes on DeflateGate. Calls Brady, "You cheating F_CK!

 

[ChrisW]

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/f...spend-tom-brady-deflategate-article-1.2215881

Tom Brady will be suspended by Roger Goodell for role in DeflateGate, announcement expected next week

Over under on how many games he gets?

 

[yrba1]

Over under on how many games he gets?

It's gonna be four games, I'll laugh if it's the entire season.

 

[Memento]

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/f...spend-tom-brady-deflategate-article-1.2215881

Tom Brady will be suspended by Roger Goodell for role in DeflateGate, announcement expected next week

Over under on how many games he gets?

Forget games. It's going to be the first half of one game, and even if it isn't, you know that Brady's going to take that case to court and get them to reduce the sentence, just like Hardy's trying to do.