So The Patriots Were Cheating... Again

[Scooby67]

For all these people who want to believe that deflating balls makes no difference, ask yourselves this: if it really makes no difference, then why would any team risk fines, penalties, loss of draft picks, and their integrity, to do it?

Excellent point.

 

[HawkRod]

What I have trouble with is this: My understanding is that the HOME TEAM supplies all the game balls. They are responsible for the balls and BOTH teams play with the game balls.

So if the balls were underinflated then BOTH teams had the same advantage/disadvantage - however you look at it. If that is the case, then the only reason to do it is if one team would have a decided advantage over another to do it, like a strong running team vs. a strong throwing team.

Regardless, if it turns out that the Pats were deliberately cheating, then the bums should be HEAVILY punished.

 

[Runner 68]

By the way, Aaron Rodgers did say he likes his balls pressured on the high side, which is great for guys like him who have large hands.

Damn Bruz, I thought you used to be a professional writer.
Personally, I find too much pressure on my balls uncomfortable.
I prefer a nice caress with small hands.

 

[1967coronet]

I just read {Mike Florio's football talk } for what its worth ?
The lower pressure was discovered at 1/2 time and corrected so seeing how the Pats only scored 28 points in the second 1/2
they really only won 28 to 7 not 45 to 7.

I am a life long Raiders fan and have no dog in this hunt , but have to say 1 or 2 lbs of air pressure did not loose that game for the colts.
the Pats D backs didn't have any trouble catching Lucks passes

 

[WileERobby]

There are 2 undeniable facts : 1) even with properly inflated balls, the Patriots probably would've still won, 2) Belichick and the Patriots have been, and still are, CHEATERS.

 

[Xp29h]

Bottom line is they all do it! It doesn't make it right by any means. heck, I liked the footballs tight and over inflated and that was back in the 80's. But, It's not just the pats, although they seem to get caught more. Most likely due to their long standing success over the Brady era, and spying with video on other teams didn't help either. The Indy reporter who broke this just happen to catch the football change in the game. Both teams played with the correctly inflated footballs during the entire 2nd half according to ESPN last night (??)

Many, if not all teams do this. Brad Johnston paid the ball guy $7500 bucks to make sure the footballs were the way he wanted, illegal psi. That's just one, The pats got caught and we will have to wait and see how many time it takes Goodell to get it right.

 

[Richard Cranium]

With all the ball details coming to light, one has to wonder why they need 24 balls (total) to play the game? And, if the air pressure is so important, why don't the officials have control of them instead of the teams?

Has the NFL actually come out and said there is a problem, or is this still being reported by anonymous sources? Did anyone check the air pressure in Colt's footballs? If the balls were inflated at an inside temperature of 65-70 degrees, would 45 degrees (outside) result in a pound or two loss in psi? Both of those issues would be telling.

 

[Coyoteduster]

What I have trouble with is this: My understanding is that the HOME TEAM supplies all the game balls. They are responsible for the balls and BOTH teams play with the game balls.

So if the balls were underinflated then BOTH teams had the same advantage/disadvantage - however you look at it. If that is the case, then the only reason to do it is if one team would have a decided advantage over another to do it, like a strong running team vs. a strong throwing team.

Regardless, if it turns out that the Pats were deliberately cheating, then the bums should be HEAVILY punished.

Former NFL referee Gerry Austin was on Mike and Mike this morning and said officials check the PSI of all footballs two hours before the game. At halftime, New England’s footballs (each team has different balls during the game) were found to be two-to-three pounds lighter. Someone deflated the balls. There’s no debate here.

- - - Updated - - -

I just read {Mike Florio's football talk } for what its worth ?
The lower pressure was discovered at 1/2 time and corrected so seeing how the Pats only scored 28 points in the second 1/2
they really only won 28 to 7 not 45 to 7.

I am a life long Raiders fan and have no dog in this hunt , but have to say 1 or 2 lbs of air pressure did not loose that game for the colts.
the Pats D backs didn't have any trouble catching Lucks passes

This is the same logic that is used to justify illegal aliens being here, all the while dismissing the fact that they broke the law by coming here in the first place. The outcome of the game does not justify or nullify the action, cheating is cheating and the NFL needs to be consistent with their punishment whether it be through fines, loss of picks, reduction of cap space, or all three.

 

[coronet340]

What I have trouble with is this: My understanding is that the HOME TEAM supplies all the game balls. They are responsible for the balls and BOTH teams play with the game balls.

No each team provides their own. 12 each.

What sucks to think about is that those balls fly better then ours.

- - - Updated - - -

Has the NFL actually come out and said there is a problem, or is this still being reported by anonymous sources? .

Yes. The NFL has stated their investigation found 11 of the 12 were light on air.

 

[Hanover Mopar]

Ha, Ha. We are going to the Superbowl (again) and now it isn't a boring two weeks until the game, is it?

This was Bill's plan to spice up the wait. He's a genius.

 

[TekHousE]

Actually there are rules for the pressure for balls that are kicked. They require special inspection and marking procedures so they cannot be mistaken for regular game balls.

As for standards, they have been set and they are enforced. The problem here is someone decided to cheat.

Those balls for kicking are NEW! Sealed in boxes from the factory so they have nothing to do with this issue.

 

[coronet340]

Those balls for kicking are NEW! Sealed in boxes from the factory so they have nothing to do with this issue.

No sir. They have special markings from the officials. They have more PSI then then typical game balls (NFL likes points scored).

 

[jjschm]

Bellicheat is making the football playoffs more like hockey playoffs in that he counts on the interpretation of the rule book being very cautious in high pressure games. He is not afraid to push the limits of the rules or cross the lines to his advantage. (tuck rule, illegal filming, mauling receivers, interfering with running backs leaving the backfield, illegal downfield blocks from receivers, eligible/ineligible receivers, deflating footballs). Unfortunately if the NFL doesn't crack down on this more seriously it will only continue.


-Jon

 

[Coyoteduster]

I would think that this guy has some credibility ...

http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/eye-on...eira-on-patriots-deflategate-this-is-cheating

 

[satman72]

Why can't the NFL just provide the footballs? Why is that such a big deal?

 

[Moparsmitty]

Mr. Personality speaks. How ironic is it that at his press conference there is an ad over his left shoulder for Gillette Flexballs. Subliminal messaging maybe?
http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/eye-on...eira-on-patriots-deflategate-this-is-cheating

 

[coronet340]

Why can't the NFL just provide the footballs? Why is that such a big deal?

Because the NFL only makes $10 billion a year on non-profit status. Where would they find the money to buy footballs?

 

[Bruzilla]

I gotta say this whole issue is really showing that however sad and pathetic the NFL has become, a LOT of football fans have sunk right down alongside with the league. I've been a fan since I was seven, and have been blessed to have been a fan of the finest NFL franchise ever, the Pittsburgh Steelers. And as much as I love to see my Steelers win, I know that a win doesn't mean much if it means sacrificing your teams credibility. I remember when Bam Morris, who was going to be our star running back and the next Franco Harris, was summarily dropped by the team because of a minor drug offense that no other team in the NFL would have cared about. I hated to see Morris go, but he was making the Steelers look bad and that was worse than losing. And I was one of many Steelers fans who thought keeping Roethlisberger after the second rape charge was a mistake. He should have been cut, but I was happy to see at least the Steelers stepped up and suspended him before the NFL did. And yeah, the charges were dropped, but Ben still brought disrepute to my team and that's unforgivable to me.

That being said, I have to say it sure is disappointing, but not surprising, to hear how Patriots fans are defending their team. Just as with the last two cheating scandals, Spygate and the efforts to cheat on the Push rule, the song remains the same. First there is total denial that any cheating occurred and this is all nothing buy jealousy and envy of their great team. Then when the evidence comes out that shows the team was cheating, the tune becomes "everybody does it!". Then when the "everybody does it!" allegation proves untrue, the tune changes to "they would have won anyway!" It's one thing to defend your team when they are wrongfully accused, but another when you're team has been convicted twice and is caught red handed a third time.

It seems the notion of THEY WERE CHEATING doesn't matter as long as the outcome can be justified, or you can find one or two similar situations to point to and try to paint the whole league with that brush. It doesn't even matter to these folks that a team was cheating during a conference championship game, or that there's mounting evidence the team was doing this all season, nope... the short-term goal of winning is far more important than the long-term goal of having victories you can be proud of and that won't go down in history with an asterisk after them or spoken of for decades as "yes they won, but that was the year they were caught cheating by..."

It's been proven time and time again that any NFL team can beat any other team on any given Sunday no matter how much the odds favor one team over another, which leads to the adage "that's why we play the games". Sure, it's very likely the Patriots would win, but we'll never know for sure that they did legitimately win because they were cheating. Nor will we know for sure that they should have been in the game in the first place as it now appears they've been cheating all year. Whether they would have won anyway isn't as important as knowing we can no longer be confident that the outcome of games is legitimate and the NFL needs to fix that.

 

[petieg383]

Hehe Andrew Luck is funny.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2338704-andrew-luck-jokes-that-he-feels-deflated-about-loss-to-patriots?utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=programming-national

 

[69a100]

Come on guys, It's alllllllll good! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vd3D2gsPUR0

This sport is getting about as bad as Nogball!