"DeflateGate" Update: Suspension Upheld! Brady Accepts 4 Game Ban.

[furi0usbee]

Well, with that Belichick P.C. today, the NFL better have some convincing evidence, otherwise you can file this one. Unless NFL has big time evidence, not even fines will be levied here. Just saying.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJ_I-qypKpY

[furi0usbee]

Ok, I'm done on this issue. But, for next year, I hope we can meet you guys again in the playoffs. This rivalry is getting really good. Until next year.

[Grapple Raven]

The Patriots cheated in this game by using underinflated footballs, cheated when they didn't have to, to win a game against an opponent that they had already beaten multiple times.  Why?  I think to ensure their victory, so they could get back to the Super Bowl.  Back to the Super Bowl in Arizona, site of the game when they lost to the Giants, think about what that implies if you know your football history.  Back to a Super Bowl to win so they could wash the stain off their franchise for Spygate.  To rinse that stain off their tarnished legacy, the legacy of Kraft, Belicheck, of Brady.  An act of desperation perhaps?  All three aren't getting any younger, they aren't in their prime any longer, perhaps they saw this as a final chance.  Its the only thing that could explain the need to cheat with a good team on a team they knew they could beat because they had done so before.

 

I would probably say that the majority of the public doesn't believe that it would remove the stain from their legacy, but I do think this is what the Patriots were thinking.  Finally after years of rebuilding, they had the team they thought could win it all.  The team that could erase the stain.  But regardless of whether they win or not, it will still be just one more stain added on top of an already tarnished legacy. Why?  Because they used a cheap illegal tactic to give them an unfair advantage.  A tactic that gave their QB more grip allowing for better accuracy in a throw, a tactic that gave their receivers a softer ball to catch in pouring rain, a tactic that allowed a firmer grip by their backs that would aid in less fumbles.  The fact that they were so desperate to win against a team they knew they could beat. Win at all costs.

 

To those football purist like myself, that love the game for its simplicity...what its owner, its head coach, its quarterback, and this franchise have done to the game of football diminishes the sport, the integrity of the game, the principle of good sportsmanship, and the legacy of all that have played before them.  It is revolting, despicable, and most of all shameful.  Goodell better think long and hard because his career is teetering too. He has a chance to stand up and begin to right this deceit and underhanded culture that the Patriots have brought to this sport, and if he doesn't he is no better.

[Grapple Raven]

Usually, not a big fan, but I don't think I could have said it better:   http://russellstreetreport.com/2015/01/23/lombardis-way/risks-worth-rewards-patriots/ …

[DMH_in_WA]

But lying about what? Lying about presenting under-inflated balls to the refs, or lying about tampering with the footballs after the refs inspected them? See, that's the problem. The former gets a slap on the wrist whereas the latter should involve fines and suspensions and loss of draft picks.

Here's the thing. Presenting an under/over-inflated ball doesn't deserve a slap on the wrist or any punishment as it's not against the rules. You could pump a ball up to 30psi and hand it in if you want. The refs will simply deflate it to within the 12.5-13.5 range (that's what Aaron Rodgers said annoyed him, when they'd deflate his balls down).

The only thing that warrants punishment is if they tampered with the air pressure after the officials checked and marked the balls, which is what the NFL says happened. The balls were at regulation pressure before the game and off at the half.

The problem with the natural atmospheric deflation theory is that it doesn't account for the fact that the Patriots didn't bring just 12 balls. As home team, they brought 24 balls. Since Tom Brady says he likes his balls at 12.5psi, you have to assume that all 24 were prepared at that pressure.

Do you know what the chances are that of those 24 balls they bought, only 11 deflated and it just so happened to be the 11 starting balls of the Patriots? Not the 12 alternate balls. Not the 1 ball that the kicker gets to practice with on the sideline. Just the 11 balls the patriots offense uses.

Add into that the 12 balls the Colts brought and the 12 kicking balls and the chance that this was a random natural occurrence seems -extremely- far fetched.

I also can't believe that if it was as easy to say "natural consequence of the environment" the NFL wouldn't have already run to the podium to say that and nip this embarrassment in the bud. Goodell doesn't want another second of scrutiny for the NFL after the year he has had.

Edited January 25, 2015 by DMH_in_WA

[Ravenatic20]

I thought he did a credible job of explaining 1 PSI of difference. The problem as I understand it is there was a 2 PSI difference for them and none for the Colts. He did also drop hints that it might have been the officials themselves that caused this and repeatedly said he doesn't know what they do. Also dropped in some "different gauges" stuff.

Flat out lied when he said they don't push the line on rules, though.

I noticed this also. To someone on the outside who is not familiar with the situation would probably say they believe him.

[ravensdfan]

The NFL has *never* stated that the balls were gauged and that the have empirical data showing the PSI of each of the balls prior to kickoff. That information *may* exist and will be released by the NFL, but that's now what we know at this point.

 

And to the point of the another poster, presenting under/over inflated balls is trying to skirt rules. Right, no. But the NFL has a job to do here, and it's there job to properly check the balls the Patriots have presented. Like Aaron Rodgers said, he likes over-inflated balls, and he doesn't like when the refs deflate some of his balls, but some get caught, some get through. Now, if the rule stated "you cannot present any ball to the official that is not at least 12.5 PSI and at most 13.5 PSI, that's something different.

 

Believe me, on the drive home from my father's house Monday morning, and first hearing of this story, I was furious. I was ready to take my 3 SB balls and kick them over Gillette. I was that mad. Based on the tweet and what people were saying, I assumed it was black and white and the evidence was there. Problem is, we know nothing from the NFL other than balls were under inflated. We have heard the Patriots say they like 12.5 PSI, which is the only thing they can say to counter any deflation issues. When the NFL presents its evidence, and there is tampering.... I'll be the first to come on here and call them cheaters.

 

But I think there was NO TAMPERING. Patriots presented balls probably 11-11.5 PSI. At that point, it's up to the NFL/refs to say, GOOD, BAD, GOOD, BAD, etc. The rules say the balls must be 12.5/13.5 PSI, not that the Patriots have to present them at that PSI or verify they are at proper PSI. Is that playing loose with the rules? Is that finding a loophole in the text/spirit of the rule? Yes, probably. But that's how rules get changed and clarified/updated.

 

I'll be the first to say Belichick doesn't play fair, he plays to win. I never want to play fair. If I can over-power my opponent, I will do so. But I never want to cheat. Playing fair and cheating are really not the same. Beating the Colts 45-7 is not playing fair. That's taking every advantage against your opponent and beating them as much as you can. Presenting under-inflated balls is not playing fair, that's trying to gain an edge, and letting the NFL/refs sort it out.

 

Tampering with balls is NOT playing fair, not right, and cheating. I know I'm not going to get any sympathy from anyone on here, but just know that I'm not a blind Patriots fan. I hate these Pats fans who say the balls didn't matter anyway, as we won going away. If they tampered with footballs, winning by 100 doesn't mean anything, and could possibly be a factor in why a team won going away.

 

That's pretty much all I have to say on this until the NFL comes out with evidence. Any more talk is just making stuff up, so I prefer to wait for the other side. The defense has spoken, now let's here the prosecution.

The league did say the officials inspected the Patriots' footballs before the game per the rules and they were compliant with the rules, which clears up that key point.

 

Then they went on to say the balls were inspected at half-time and were not in compliance. You are mistaken that the NFL has not said they were checked prior to the game. Again, clearly someone tampered with them during the game.

[JO_75]

Funny to me how the NFL cares more about the wrong socks, or Lynch wanting to wear gold shoes, or him grabbing his crotch(told him and the Seahawks that if he did it in the Super Bowl it would be a 15 yard penalty on Kickoff) than doing a real deep investigation. Why hasn't Brady been asked anything, as someone said why not give them a lie detector test. Hell, call Maury and put BB and Brady on his show for publicity. 

 

Point being is the NFL is dragging it's feet on this and can tell Seattle and Lynch that grabbing his crotch will result in a 15 yard penalty, while the time used to do that could have been used to get further along in the investigation. 

[Tyakack]

Belicheat is basically blaming "climate conditions" for the deflation of the footballs.  Hasn't explained why the Colts footballs were not impacted by this!

 

This is where the disconnect comes in. There has been absolutely no reports that the colts balls were 100 percent uninfected by this. The reports are the colts balls were still within the leagues limits. That does NOT mean they were not effected. It could just mean their balls started a higher psi among other things that go into it. Seriously, the main reason people don't understand is because they are uneducated on the subject. That, and they are letting their hate for the patriots cloud their mind. Personally, I'm so done with this subject. I would much rather talk about the SB which is shaping up to possibly be one of the better superbowls ever. Two great teams going at it. Way more interesting than "deflate-gate".

Edited January 25, 2015 by Tyakack

[JO_75]

Found this article with interesting yet truthful statements.

 

“[Deflategate is] not going to have any effect on this game,” Sherman said, referring to the Super Bowl, according to ESPN. “Nobody is going to get suspended [for the Super Bowl], and nothing's going to happen.”

 

“They were trying to suspend Marshawn for gold shoes and that [deflating the ball] really affects the game,” Sherman said, according to the Boston Globe. “You suspend Marshawn for gold shoes, then you’ve got balls being deflated and that’s the issue.”

 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/01/22/richard-sherman-deflategate_n_6523248.html

[Tyakack]

Then they went on to say the balls were inspected at half-time and were not in compliance. You are mistaken that the NFL has not said they were checked prior to the game. Again, clearly someone tampered with them during the game.

 

You are misunderstanding alot of things my friend. "Clearly someone tampered with them during the game". I would go as far as to say CLEARLY the weather had a huge inpact on the footballs. You really need to learn more about the facts. Every scientific study is backing this. I have yet to see ONE that suggests that the balls were more than likely tampered with, not one. 

[berad]

You are misunderstanding alot of things my friend. "Clearly someone tampered with them during the game". I would go as far as to say CLEARLY the weather had a huge inpact on the footballs. You really need to learn more about the facts. Every scientific study is backing this. I have yet to see ONE that suggests that the balls were more than likely tampered with, not one.

Scientific studies are already out about a less-than-week-old story?

[allblackraven]

This is old but remains relevant and I like it a lot

 

[furi0usbee]

Then they went on to say the balls were inspected at half-time and were not in compliance. You are mistaken that the NFL has not said they were checked prior to the game. Again, clearly someone tampered with them during the game.

 

Squeezing ball to "check" it is not evidence that someone tampered with the ball.

[Tyakack]

Scientific studies are already out about a less-than-week-old story?

 

Yes, actually....IDK where you been man lol. I've seen/heard alot of studies done on this and they all show that the weather could have "easily" *one of the words used in one of the studies I read* effected the balls. Belichick did a study which I'm sure most of you will dismiss since he's the bad guy but I think we can admit he most likely wouldn't flat out lie about doing this study. Plus, I've seen some on youtube and twitter done by people. All suggest that the weather effecting the balls is not only NOT far fetched, but likely.

[furi0usbee]

Here's the thing. Presenting an under/over-inflated ball doesn't deserve a slap on the wrist or any punishment as it's not against the rules. You could pump a ball up to 30psi and hand it in if you want. The refs will simply deflate it to within the 12.5-13.5 range (that's what Aaron Rodgers said annoyed him, when they'd deflate his balls down).

The only thing that warrants punishment is if they tampered with the air pressure after the officials checked and marked the balls, which is what the NFL says happened. The balls were at regulation pressure before the game and off at the half.

The problem with the natural atmospheric deflation theory is that it doesn't account for the fact that the Patriots didn't bring just 12 balls. As home team, they brought 24 balls. Since Tom Brady says he likes his balls at 12.5psi, you have to assume that all 24 were prepared at that pressure.

Do you know what the chances are that of those 24 balls they bought, only 11 deflated and it just so happened to be the 11 starting balls of the Patriots? Not the 12 alternate balls. Not the 1 ball that the kicker gets to practice with on the sideline. Just the 11 balls the patriots offense uses.

Add into that the 12 balls the Colts brought and the 12 kicking balls and the chance that this was a random natural occurrence seems -extremely- far fetched.

I also can't believe that if it was as easy to say "natural consequence of the environment" the NFL wouldn't have already run to the podium to say that and nip this embarrassment in the bud. Goodell doesn't want another second of scrutiny for the NFL after the year he has had.

 

The NFL has said NOTHING. That's the problem. I wish they said something so we all don't have to theorize what actually happened. What little has come out of the the NFL's camp has been leaks and no facts. Say what you want, at least we have an explanation, believe it or not, from the Patriots. So we have to wait 10 more days for the NFLs response?

[balfan23]

Usually, not a big fan, but I don't think I could have said it better:   http://russellstreetreport.com/2015/01/23/lombardis-way/risks-worth-rewards-patriots/ …

If this were any other team, it would not even be on the national media's radar. Why? Is it because everyone is jealous of the Patriot glory boys? No .. it is the "pattern of behavior over time", as stated in this article. 

 

That's why I'm not interested in listening to their attempts to explain anything away. They have over the years lost credibility and I'm not inclined to buy anything that comes out of that organization. 

[allblackraven]

Yes, actually....IDK where you been man lol. I've seen/heard alot of studies done on this and they all show that the weather could have "easily" *one of the words used in one of the studies I read* effected the balls. Belichick did a study which I'm sure most of you will dismiss since he's the bad guy but I think we can admit he most likely wouldn't flat out lie about doing this study. Plus, I've seen some on youtube and twitter done by people. All suggest that the weather effecting the balls is not only NOT far fetched, but likely.

 Why the Colts' balls were not affected? Have they played in Miami that same game?

[Tyakack]

 Why the Colts' balls were not affected? Have they played in Miami that same game?

 

Again, it is not confirmed that the colts balls were not affected. Its confirmed that they were within the league limits. That is not the same thing as being not affected. 

[ravensdfan]

Squeezing ball to "check" it is not evidence that someone tampered with the ball.

LOL

 

Nowhere did they say "squeezing". They said the balls were in compliance at the beginning of the game when checked, out of compliance at half-time, although, the balls the Colts' provided were all in compliance.

 

Denial man. It's an evil drug.

[berad]

Yes, actually....IDK where you been man lol. I've seen/heard alot of studies done on this and they all show that the weather could have "easily" *one of the words used in one of the studies I read* effected the balls. Belichick did a study which I'm sure most of you will dismiss since he's the bad guy but I think we can admit he most likely wouldn't flat out lie about doing this study. Plus, I've seen some on youtube and twitter done by people. All suggest that the weather effecting the balls is not only NOT far fetched, but likely.

Can you reference any of these?

A Belichick 'study' does not count. He would NEVER lie, huh?    I meant peer-reviewed studies done by actual scientists.

 

Either way, Belichick said the PSI dropped 1 unit (even though it was significantly colder yesterday in Boston than during the AFCCG but whatever). How would that explain the reports that the Patriots game-balls were, reportedly, 2 PSI under-inflated?

 

If that was really the case and the weather took them 2 PSI down, they would have had to be initially filled in a place above 90 degrees.

 

However, the NFL found that 11 of the Patriots 12 balls were “underinflated by about 2 pounds each.” In order for a ball to register a 10.5 PSI in a 50 degree environment but register a 12.5 PSI in the testing environment, the ball would have to have been inflated, stored, and/or tested in a 91 degree environment.

 

http://www.boston.com/sports/football/patriots/2015/01/21/how-the-patriots-could-have-cheated-without-letting-air-out-the-ball/Eocm5m29nIlh0HRBjFWsYO/story.html

 

Don't think Gillette Stadium normally warmed to that temperature. Even still, a 2 PSI drop would have put the Colts' game balls out of regulation, as well - which it did not. A 2 PSI drop would put ANY ball within the 12.5-13.5 PSI range out of regulation, we've already established that it did not for the Colts. That is very far-fetched.

[Tyakack]

I would have to look for the videos/articles again. When I find it Ill post it here for you.

[ratedr]

http://www.patsfans.com/new-england-patriots/messageboard/threads/harbaugh-colts-responsible-for-this-nonsense.1115586/

You really can't make this stuff up. Patriots fans are truly the most delusional people on the planet.

The story linked in the thread is a hoot too. Read it if you need a good laugh.

[DomMcRaven]

http://www.patsfans.com/new-england-patriots/messageboard/threads/harbaugh-colts-responsible-for-this-nonsense.1115586/

You really can't make this stuff up. Patriots fans are truly the most delusional people on the planet.

The story linked in the thread is a hoot too. Read it if you need a good laugh.

I honestly couldn't laugh at that. After the first page, I just closed out. What a joke.

 

I will not generalize all Patriots fans since not all them are from Boston (nothing wrong with that either, be a fan of whatever team you want to be, just don't be switching teams). However, I just can't help but smh at them. The garbage that flaps from their gums is just............wow.

[ratedr]

I honestly couldn't laugh at that. After the first page, I just closed out. What a joke.

I will not generalize all Patriots fans since not all them are from Boston (nothing wrong with that either, be a fan of whatever team you want to be, just don't be switching teams). However, I just can't help but smh at them. The garbage that flaps from their gums is just............wow.

I'm typically not a fan of generalizations either but unfortunately those are the views of a typical Patriots fan, and that's why it's being reflected in their media. There is not a fanbase more entitled and delusional.

If the team really believes that too then they're even bigger whiny wimps than I previously thought. I can't wait for Seattle's defense to crush them. There are no Rashaan Melvins for Brady to exploit in that secondary.

Edited January 25, 2015 by ratedr

[Tyakack]

This is actually not a video I saw until just now but 

 

I still haven't came across the other videos and articles I've seen *should have bookmarked it* ill post them if I run across them but I'm done looking for now. We will see if the NFL can find evidence that suggests a man had to intentionally deflate the balls but that's really not looking likely right now. My guess is they will find the pats not guilty, we shall see.

[DomMcRaven]

I'm typically not a fan of generalizations either but unfortunately those are the views of a typical Patriots fan, and that's why it's being reflected in their media. There is not a fanbase more entitled and delusional.

If the team really believes that too then they're even bigger AND SOFTER whiny wimps than I previously thought. I can't wait for Seattle's defense to crush them. There are no Rashaan Melvins for Brady to exploit in that secondary.

Fixed it for you.

[berad]

This is actually not a video I saw until just now but

 

I still haven't came across the other videos and articles I've seen *should have bookmarked it* ill post them if I run across them but I'm done looking for now. We will see if the NFL can find evidence that suggests a man had to intentionally deflate the balls but that's really not looking likely right now. My guess is they will find the pats not guilty, we shall see.

 

So, if the pressure drops an average of 1.8 PSI wouldn't the Colts game balls be out of the regulated range of 12.5-13.5 PSI, as well?

[Tyakack]

So, if the pressure drops an average of 1.8 PSI wouldn't the Colts game balls be out of the regulated range of 12.5-13.5 PSI, as well?

 

This is what I've been wondering as well. Is it possible the colts balls were over inflated? Rodgers just came out recently and said he himself likes them over inflated, who knows? Or whatever they did prep wise made the balls stay within range. Its still not confirmed by the NFL where the starting point was for the colts balls or even where the psi was after the game. There is still alot of key information missing..The only thing I'm positive of at this point is the weather CAN and most likely DID play a factor. I'm still not convinced the refs even checked the balls properly pregame. At this point I'm just trying to ignore the bias opinions and focus on the facts and scientific evidence because that will bring you closer to the truth than anything else will.

[Grapple Raven]

Another interesting viewpoint, and the video at the end is interesting as well!  This one in particular was actually odd due to the fact that King is usually in the Patriots corner, but not so much in this one.

 

http://mmqb.si.com/2015/01/21/patriots-tom-brady-bill-belichick-deflategate-ball-controversy/