Deflategate - Confirmed

[Dinsdale]

So, the proscribed-by-rule $25,000 fine gets upped to 1 mil, 2 draft picks, and 4 games for Brady?

Ohhhhhhkay.

First, this will get laughed at upon appeal. Part of the Collective Bargaining was that punishments were based on "precedent." There's been myriad violations of ball inflation rules, and take a guess what the precedent was?

And is there any disciplinary/investigation thingy that the NFL can't botch to an amazing level? Ref didn't write down the numbers that the balls were, there were 2 radically different gauges, the investigation made assumptions... just another NFL clusterfuck.

Goodell reallyreallyreally needs to go. What an embarrassment.

If anyone thinks Brady vs Romo in Week 4 isn't going to happen, then... you are probably a member of this forum.

[Joe in PB]

I look at it as a comprise of the game. Deflated balls are easier to hang onto plain and simple. The link I posted used Benjarvus Green Ellis as an example, he had an issue with ball security in college, gets drafted by NE and carries the ball 500 times without a fumble. Then goes to the Bengals as a FA and fumbles 5 times the next season as part of a RBBC. My point of view is ball deflation most probably changed the outcome of some games between 2007 & last season's AFC Championship because NE was able to hang onto deflated balls more consistently and had fewer fumbles.

Then there's the fact this is a second occurrence of NE breaking NFL rules. 2nd offenses of breaking NFL rules always entail more severe disciplinary action, that's the precedence.

If cheating is no big deal in the NFL, then its basically the WWF.

So yeah, I would have been more satisfied if Brady & Belichick were suspended half a season or more. Brady is basically taking the fall for the franchise, while he is at fault, none of this would have happened, especially over 7 seasons, without Belichick's approval.

NE got off easy. The Raiduhs would not have have fared as well if they were in NE's shoes as a second offending rule breaker.

[Dinsdale]

Joe, you're naivete is refreshing.

Your assumption that NE was the only offender, thus explaining Green-Ellis' fumbles are solely attributed to underinflated balls is flat out silly. Maybe a disparity in offensive lines and downfield blocking might factor in?

And since a cornucopia of former QBs have come out and said how it was an everyday activity, I'm guessing NE had no "competitive advantage" whatsoever.

[Joe in PB]

I understand NE is not an honorable franchise, that's the difference between you & I. Two sets of rule violations and NFL sanctions for them agree.

[Dinsdale]

I look at it as a comprise of the game.

That the NFL wants to sanction massive fines and suspensions based on evidence provided by two different gauges that varied by as much as 8-9%?

I agree.

The Raiduhs would not have have fared as well if they were in NE's shoes as a second offending rule breaker.

Haven't the Raiders been caught doing the same thing in recent years?

[Joe in PB]

I'd guess your take on Aaron Hernandez is similar, innocent? Bogus circumstantial evidence by the man?

[Dinsdale]

The quick brown strawman jumps over the lazy dog?

WTF are you talking about?

But to your moronic point -- if the cops/DA in the Hernandez case collected no evidence, didn't log any written evidence, and inferred that "I can't recall" from a witness was solid evidence of their accusations... Hernandez's lawyer couldn't even respond, because he'd be laughing too hard, and he would have walked, without so much as a trial.

[poptart]

That the NFL wants to sanction massive fines and suspensions based on evidence provided by two different gauges that varied by as much as 8-9%?

Just stop it, Dins.
You're entering Moving Bowel territory here.


Read page 12 of the report: https://nfllabor.files.wordpress.com/20 ... pionsh.pdf
It's a given that there is a range of variation between the measurements two officials would find.
It's not an exact science, but it was evident that the Pat balls were way out of line.

As noted regarding the four COLT balls measured: The four Colts balls tested were not inflated because they measured within the permissible range on at least one of the gauges used at halftime.

Look at the measurements for the Pats balls, though: https://nfllabor.files.wordpress.com/20 ... pionsh.pdf
Go to page 12.

They were WAY under, and WAY under as measured by both officials.

[BSmack]

But to your moronic point -- if the cops/DA in the Hernandez case collected no evidence, didn't log any written evidence, and inferred that "I can't recall" from a witness was solid evidence of their accusations... Hernandez's lawyer couldn't even respond, because he'd be laughing too hard, and he would have walked, without so much as a trial.

Considering that the Hernandez case involved the state and a possible penalty of life without parole and deflategate involved a collectively bargained workplace investigation with no jail time, I would expect standards of proof to be different.

[mvscal]

Goodell reallyreallyreally needs to go. What an embarrassment.

Definitely. Dishing out discipline based on the volume of public poutrage is completely asinine. He is a dickless shitbag.

[Felix]

He is a dickless shitbag.

insofar as the opinions flying in this thread, this is the only one with which I tend to think no one would disagree......he's an embarassment

[Joe in PB]

I see Goodell is presiding over Brady's appeal. Being Kraft's puppet, I'd be very surprised if he didn't cut 2-3 games off the suspension, maybe reduce the draft pick loses too. Total WWF bullshit....

[Joe in PB]

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2464 ... mpaign=nfl

The problem is the Patriots aren't willing to admit, in any way, that this all looks—at best—highly suspicious. To non-Patriots fans, to non-haters, it's fairly clear Brady was cheating. What the Patriots released not only fails to clear Brady, it actually does the opposite. There are several problems with the report, including:

The Deflator. In an all-time act of unmitigated gall and pee-on-my-leg-and-tell-me-it's-raining chicanery, the Patriots maintain that when Jim McNally refers to himself as the Deflator, it's because he's a fat dude trying to lose weight.

"'Deflate' was a term they used to refer to losing weight," the Pats' report stated.

That...that...that's it? That's how the team is explaining the use of that word? Next up for the Patriots: The Tom Brady referred to in the Wells report is actually Cindy Brady.

The fact the Patriots actually think that explanation will fly shows what kind of cocoon they're in. That excuse will only work in New England. Outside of New England, everyone is mocking it. Because it's just not believable. In any way.

It doesn't matter that McNally and cohort John Jastremski had used deflate in that context before Deflategate. The context they use the word in the Wells report clearly demonstrates they are talking about deflating footballs, not deflating human beings.

Why were they suspended without pay? This is a key point, and it's not answered in the Patriots' response. If Jastremski and McNally truly did nothing wrong, as the Patriots maintain, why were they suspended indefinitely without pay? The report stays away from that because it is, indeed, pretty damning for the team.

Just jokesters. The team says the texts were all just jokes, not serious. Again, laughable. And, again, why suspend two guys if you think they were just kidding around?

The phone calls. The Wells report makes, I think, a legitimate point about the flurry of phone calls from Brady to McNally and Jastremski. Wells basically portrays it as everyone getting his story straight. The Patriots contend the calls were Brady showing concern over the upcoming media frenzy.

Wrote the Pats' report: "Mr. Brady is used to the limelight and to critics; Mr. Jastremski is not. Since Mr. Jastremski prepared the footballs, it was reasonable to expect that this media attention would focus on him. It was also reasonable to expect that (as happened) Mr. Jastremski's boss would question Mr. Jastremski to see what, if anything, he knew. Mr. Brady's reaching out to Mr. Jastremski to see how he was holding up in these circumstances is not only understandable, but commendable."

Tom Brady: just a good dude checking in on a few of his homies.

Anyone who covers the Patriots (I've covered dozens of games and practices and all of their Super Bowls since the beginning of the Bill Belichick regime) knows they have the most tightly controlled team maybe in the history of football. Possibly in the history of North American team sports. No media person was ever going to get to McNally or Jastremski, and as it turns out, no one did.

Also, the fact the ultra-wound-up Brady, at a time of such stress and importance as the title game, would suddenly just send texts saying "how you fellas holding up?" is not believable.

Those things, especially that a guy naming himself the Deflator really means he was about to sign up for Jenny Craig, undermine the entirety of the Patriots' rebuttal.

So here we are now. A back-and-forth between the Pats and the NFL. The NFL's opening salvo was pretty solid. The response from New England?

Mostly a laugh.

[Dinsdale]

So, what should happen retroactively to the other two teams that were caught doctoring balls in the last couplefew seasons? Since they got the $25,000 fine, and punishments, by rule of the CBA, are based on precedent.

[Joe in PB]

Were the other teams also found to have lied about it, and in the past found to have filmed opposing teams sidelines? The Patriots have a history of cheating, that should also be considered, and probably was, but was still too lenient imo.

[Felix]

The Patriots have a history of cheating

if you're not cheating, you're not trying.....
/s/
Mark Grace

[Dinsdale]

Were the other teams also found to have lied about it

No, since they weren't given the opportunity. They simply got a polite phone call saying "knock it off!"

How's that "based on precedent" thing working for you, Goodell and Co.?

I'm not trying to take up for the Cheatriots (far from the only team secretly taping opponents' practices), but the NFL couldn't have screwed this up any worse than they did.

And I'm guessing that putting stick-um on the ball has more effect than letting a bit of air out. What was the penalty for that again?

[Felix]

but the NFL couldn't have screwed this up any worse than they did.

sure they could have
/s/
Ray Rice & Greg Hardy