I’ll admit it, I was following #DeflateGate since Monday. All of my favorite MSNBC people were covering it like it was the most major sports story ever. The basics: when the Patriots played the Colts last Sunday, the Colts complained (for the second time) that the Patriots-provided footballs felt underinflated. The accusations really picked up steam on Monday, and Tom Brady literally laughed off the speculation in a Monday morning radio interview. But guess what? Eleven out of twelve footballs used by the Patriots were found to be underinflated. Now it’s a thing. There’s a formal investigation going on and the Patriots could be facing serious consequences, likes fines or losing a draft pick or something along those lines.
Yesterday, the whole thing got pretty epic with major players coming out to declare that they didn’t know nothing about no balls. Patriots coach Bill Belichick gave the first press conference, where he was the model of restrained denials. It also seemed like Belichick was throwing Tom Brady under the bus, which meant Brady had to come out later in the afternoon to defend his name. The result was… fascinating sports theater. After Brady’s press conference (it was more than 30 minutes long), Twitter blew up with #DeflateGate, #ShadyBrady, etc. Here’s a clip of his press conference:
I ended up watching the whole thing, and I just have to say… I don’t believe him. I don’t know Tom Brady, I’m only minimally interested in him on a gossip level (because he’s married to Gisele Bundchen), so maybe I don’t know all of Brady’s quirks or whatever. But it seemed to me like the dude was lying his ass off. And like he’s a really crap actor too. BALLS!!! Brady told reporters: “I didn’t alter the ball in any way…our equipment guys do a great job of breaking the balls in. When I pick those balls out, at that point, to me, they’re perfect. I don’t want anyone touching the balls after that. To me those balls are perfect. And that’s what I expect when I show up on the field.” When trying to put the controversy in perspective, Tom quipped, “This isn’t ISIS, no one is dying…”
I also love the fact that Seattle Seahawks’ Richard Sherman was already calling Brady out ahead of his press conference. Sherman basically said that because Brady is a nice, clean-cut white guy, he can just come out and deny everything and people will believe him.
So, was Brady lying? Is the #DeflateGate henchman? Or is he the fall guy?
Photos courtesy of WENN, Getty.
You cannot tell me that Brady couldn’t feel those footballs were under inflated. I call BS on him.
Exactly. 2 lbs is a big difference and he would have known. However, IMO he didn’t order anybody to deflate them. That falls on Bellicheck…deflated balls didn’t make them win of course, but since they have a track record, it does make you wonder what else is going on.
It’s actually 2 lbs per square inch. A non football player would probably not be able to differentiate, but an experienced football player might be able to notice the difference. A football weighs like 14 oz of something, deflating it 2 PSIs would not make much difference in weight.
A Boston sports commentator deflated a football on the air and he couldn’t tell the difference between the fully inflated football and the one with the air let out. Also, most quarterbacks have a preference as to air pressure, so this is probably more widespread than anyone realizes.
And – Tom Brady could have played with a beach ball and still the Pats would have won the game.
I would say the difference would be noticed in the grip of the football. And Tom Brady has gripped a helluva lot of footballs in his day. He likes them underinflated. He was quoted saying so in an old interview from 2011.
This is exactly what I was going to say. Okay, maybe he didn’t know ahead of time that they were under-inflated, but as soon as he touched one he should have realized it.
I don’t care at all about either team but it just seems a bit ridiculous that the QB wouldn’t be able to tell that something was up.
People know that these balls were inflated ahead of time inside in room temperature. Then they are out in the cold. Do you know what happens when air gets cold? It compresses, so it feels as if its deflated.
I bet you anything they just fill the balls one way and never put the outside temperature in consideration.
@itzblissy Well then, why weren’t the Colts balls deflated? They were checked at halftime as well.
Ryan Seacrest could pick out the slightly deflated ball this morning on Kelly and Michael. RYAN SEACREST.
Sorry, I’m football stupid. The teams use different balls? I had no idea. I’m a soccer junkie. One ball to rule them all.
If temperature had anything to do with it then all of the balls on the sidelines should’ve deflated at the same rate. The colts balls were fine.
@itzblissy: There would have to be an 80 degree change in temperature for there to be any weather-related change to the balls.
@ itzblissy. It wasn’t that cold outside, certainly not enough to affect the air pressure. He has been a QB for a lonnnggg time, he would definitely be able to tell the difference as soon as he put his hands on the ball.
He knew. And while it might be slightly out of context they found an interview where he commented on deflated balls. Or rrather that he liked how a teammate would spike the ball so hard it would deflate a bit.
And #flexball behind Billy B was awesome 😉
SEATTLE SEAHAWKS….!!!! YES!!!!
Haaa. #gohawks!
Yes, Go Seahawks!!!! I hope they crush the Patriots like the Colts were.
People don’t seem to be understanding this:
Brady checks the footballs five hours before kickoff to make sure they feel right and are to his liking-THE SAME as every other QB in the league. After that, the process is that the refs or league officials inspect and weigh them–that’s THEIR responsibility, not the responsibility of the QB who is preparing for the game.
Brady says he didn’t alter them in any way after that and there is zero evidence to the contrary. Do you REALLY think Brady is in there, taking air out of the balls right before a game? I mean SERIOUSLY? I doubt he even would know how to take the air out of a ball if they asked him to.
The ref, Walt Anderson, touches the football on every play and wasn’t the one to notice any difference in the way the ball felt. Q’ Well, who intercepted the ball said he didn’t feel a difference. So are they lying too?
Brady, whose job it is to run an NFL offense in the AFC Championship game, break down defensive schemes and find the open man is the guy who is supposed to know if the PSI has increased or decreased in the 5 seconds each play he has the ball?
I seriously doubt any of us could tell the difference if we held two balls at different PSIs in our hands. QBs are no different-their head is in the game and yeah, they don’t know shit about PSIs, that’s what ball people and refs are for. All they know is how a ball feels and whether they like it.
Also, I’d just like to say, if deflated balls was part of the Patriots strategy to beat the Colts, then why did they outscore the Colts 28-0 in the second half AFTER they switched out the balls?
@kitten your comment is amazing. #fan 😉
Finally a sane response!
And given that the inflation of the ball does not affect the running game, three of the touchdowns were scored by Blount, when Brady did not throw anything.. A Blount touchdown and a Gostkowski field goal were enough to win the game.
The NFL hasn’t proven anything and could quite possibly be doing this for the PR value. They’ve pulled crap like this before.
I LOVE YOU, KITTEN!!!!! Please give a press conference!!!! You explained it better than anyone!!!!! GO PATS!!!!
I don’t think anybody is accusing Brady of actually letting air out of a ball. But, I don’t think it’s far fetched to believe that Bellichek ordered someone on the staff to let some air out. And, sorry, but in my opinion an NFL QB who holds a football every single day of his life, would be able to tell a difference in how a football feels.
My passion lies in CFB, so I consider myself an impartial viewer when it comes to NFL, I don’t hate the Pats and I think Brady is an amazing QB, but this is how I see it.
+1000000. I love this comment.
Thanks, guys.
Exactly, Lilacflowers. Deflated balls didn’t give them their running game.
I just laugh my ass off at the image of Brady in there deflating footballs:
“Ok, I’ve deflated eleven footballs! I’m going to leave that twelfth ball inflated though, so it doesn’t look suspicious…”
I mean, REALLY????
I don’t think anyone is actually saying that Tom Brady was in the room himself letting air out of the balls… but this wasn’t exactly the first time that Bill Belichick is being accused on being shady, and I think thay ultimately that’s what’s coming home to roost. And as you pointed out, the Pats didn’t NEED to do something like this. They completely dismantled the Colts, but unfortunately this is what’s dominating headlines. Plus, they have to find SOMETHING to talk about in the 2 weeks leading up to the Super bowl, it’s not like its going to be the Pro Bowl.
Do I think Brady did it? No and I think it’s crap that Belichick shifted the responsibility on him but I think Belichick knew all about it. I mean come on, this isn’t the first time he’s been accused of cheating. Would it have changed the outcome of the game? No, because the Colts were outplayed. There’s no excuse for all the dropped balls or incomplete passes.
** But I do think Brady knew the balls were deflated when he was playing with them. In 2011 he said he liked playing with under inflated balls. Just like Rodgers likes his balls over inflated (which is legal) All I’m saying is, if that’s your job then you know when the ball feels different.
Because of their success, the Patriots are the most despised team in professional sports.
The Colts were beaten badly and humiliated. So they decided to make a federal case out of a frivolous violation that provided no competitive advantage to the Patriots.
But there are people saying that, Bridget.
So then who decided to underinflate 11 out of 12 balls? Remember this had to happen AFTER the pre-game inspection.
The chain of command is very specific for footballs pre-game: the only person with access to the balls after the inspection is the ref. The referee is the sole judge of whether a ball is fit for play and marks each one approved for the game. The rule says the footballs “shall remain under the supervision of the Referee until they are delivered to the ball attendant just prior to the start of the game.”
So either they switched the balls after inspection or they weren’t inspected properly. Those are the only two options. If the former is true, then that means Anderson is either complicit with the Pats or he f*cked up by not keeping the balls in his custody. Or it was the ball attendant but it’s not like the ball attendant has the footballs in a secret room. It would be pretty f*cking hard to take drop the PSI on ELEVEN balls without anybody noticing. This is RIGHT before a game starts–do you know how many people are around at that point? Press, players, cameras, fans.
Also, BALLS.
I’m just saying that if the NFL investigation clears Brady and Belichick of having any involvement in the decrease in PSI below the limit, they need to come out and admit that the fault lies with their inspections of the balls.
Also, no one has answered my question about whether Q’Well Jackson was lying as well. Was he in cahoots with the Pats and their Grand Scheme to Underinflate Footballs?
@Blue Marie-Yay! You’re here. I do think that he could feel a difference, I just don’t think he would be able to feel a ball and say “this is 11.5 PSIs” or “this is 13.5 PSIs”. These guys pay people to know about PSIs so that they can focus on the game, you know?
I can agree with that Kitten. And I kinda love Brady for all the ball variations, I laughed so hard listening to him.. (yes I am that immature)
When he was like “They know how I like it” in reference to the ball attendants I lost my sh*t, Blue Marie.
Also (sorry I can’t stop) if Brady felt the ball during the game (which would be a FLEETING thought–football moves fast and they only have the ball in their hand for second) and thought “hmmm, this feels kinda soft” it’s STILL not his responsibility to report that or to be concerned with it at all. He has absolutely no reason to think that the refs didn’t check the PSI level and approve it.
His responsibility is as a quarterback, PERIOD–he’s paid to play football, not to be concerned about football regulations.
I’m repeating myself at this point but I just don’t think this is on Brady.
Thank you for bringing Some common sense, Kitten! On top of that, his body language tells me he was telling the truth.
Balls balls balls balls balls. I am 12 years old.
Not gonna lie, my first reaction to what you said was “don’t people realize that Tom Brady has plenty of other people to handle his balls, why would someone think he was doing it himself?”
And again, I’m not even arguing the merits for or against “deflate-gate”. I’m merely pointing out that after years of skirting (and occasionally crossing) thr line, it’s no surprise that people are so quick to believe that Belichick would be capable of engineering this. It speaks to his reputation.
I completely agree with you on all that Kitten. I don’t think it’s on Brady either, Belichick is a different story. He’s such a control freak that there’s no way he wouldn’t know.. I think if anything comes of it, the penalty will be a few draft picks and a fine at most.
A theory:
Ravens coach Jim Harbaugh was pissed off about his game with the Pats because we used eligible and ineligible receiver plays within the rules that he had never seen before and didn’t know how to adjust properly (because he’s an idiot). He then decided to have the Colts call them out on a rule that he KNEW the NFL was slipping up on, because the NFL has never been as tight with their football regs as they should be. Harbaugh knew the Pats would get busted for it like any other team would because the NFL was slacking with their football pressure protocol and of course they had to follow-up and save face. The thing is, football pressure has never been an issue for the NFL–it’s not something they’ve ever cared about in the past. Personally, I don’t think it should be an issue at all–it might give a tiny advantage but it’s not gonna win a game.
Anyway I just don’t see Belichick risking a first-round draft pick and another fine for a VERY minimal advantage in a game that we were expected to win anyway. You can say he’s a d*ck but no one can say that he’s stupid.
Thanks Kitten for your commentary. Seriously, now I understand what the hell they’re talking about!
Kitten
Well said. So, why can’t this just be addressed so clearly?
And this morning my gym had footballs and an air compressor. Asking people to tell which ball is deflated. We would stand in the cold for a little bit, be handed a ball, and see if we could tell. Even tossing it around.
4 out of 6 i knew the ball was deflated. Maybe it was just luck. We had 4 footballs.
To add. A football is at this point an extention of Brady. He knows it completely. If I could tell, I bet he could too. Lots of Pats fans were in bad moods this morning too.
@ FLORC-I want to be in your gym class 🙂 I was actually thinking that I’d like to try that experiment.
I think Brady could tell it felt “good” to him. If by “good” that means softer, then yeah. But that doesn’t mean he was lying when he said he couldn’t tell the difference between the footballs he was playing with in the Colts game and the footballs he normally plays with. If the NFL is as loose about their regulation of the refs testing the PSI as I expect they are, then Brady could have been playing with footballs that were below the regulation PSI for a long time, you know?
Even then though, the NFL as a league and the referees who are responsible for the testing are at fault, not Brady.
Thank you, Kitten!!! Everyone outside of New Englad will look for any reason to hate on the Patriots. It’s so f’ing aggravating!
Kitten, I asked my son about this a couple of days ago, and he said pretty much what you did in your comment above, and also, that the NFL are jerks and were made to look bad over the Ray Rice thing and were looking for anyone to deflect their own shadiness onto. That, plus the 24 hour media, and you get a lot of bs over nothing. Enjoyed your comment.
Oh, son also says that the Colts owner is a horrible person. (He said it in much worse language.) He thinks he shoudn’t be allowed to be an owner. We’re at NAMM Show and having an exciting time. Gotta run! Hang in there Kitten!
Kitten- Today my mantra will be- “Also- BALLS”. That made me laugh out loud! I love the football talk here! Go Packers! Oh, wait…..I sorta remember crying Sunday but have decided to wipe my memory of the last 5 minutes of the game so…..Go Packers!
I love your comment Kitten. Here’s the problem. In the press conference Brady said AND I QUOTE: “I like them at 12.5 (PSI). That’s the perfect grip for a football.” He didn’t say I like them deflated or inflated or whatever. He said that at 12.5 that’s the perfect grip. So then, one would assume a deflated ball would NOT be the perfect grip and, since he knows what the perfect grip feels like and that’s 12.5, he’d know that he’s not getting the perfect grip on 11 out of 12 balls and said something at some point in the game.
I don’t know what he did or didn’t do or who he told to do something or not but it’s clear based on his own words that in the first half of the game he knew he was not getting the “perfect grip” because those balls were deflated.
Personally I think the real perfect grip to him is around 11.5 . . . but I digress.
Finally! It’s been frustrating reading all these opinions. Like Brady has time for all that crap. And when exactly would any of them have had the time to do it with the cameras on them?
No is saying that Brady actually deflated the balls himself. But, he either ordered them to be deflated, or if he didn’t, he would have realized it once he picked them up during warm up before the game that they felt different.
Here is what some former players have been quoted as saying to the press:
Troy Aikman, former Dallas Cowboys quarterback:
“It’s obvious that Tom Brady had something to do with this,” Aikman told Dallas sports radio station KTCK-AM on Thursday. “For the balls to be deflated, that doesn’t happen unless the quarterback wants that to happen, I can assure you of that.”
Mark Brunell, former Green Bay Packers quarterback:
“I did not believe what Tom had to say,” Brunell said on ESPN. “Those balls were deflated. Somebody had to do it. I don’t believe there’s an equipment manager in the NFL that would, on his own initiative, deflate a ball without the starting QB’s approval … That football is our livelihood. If you don’t feel good about throwing that ball? Your success on the football field can suffer from that.”
John Madden, former Oakland Raiders coach:
“That would have to be driven by the quarterback,” Madden told The Sports Xchange on Wednesday. “That’s something that wouldn’t be driven by a coach or just the equipment guy. Nobody, not even the head coach, would do anything to a football unilaterally, such as adjust the amount of pressure in a ball, without the quarterback not knowing. It would have to be the quarterback’s idea.”
Hines Ward, former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver
“It’s cheating,” Hines Ward said on Wednesday. “Regardless of how you may want to spin it. It helps Tom Brady, provides a better grip on the football, especially in bad weather conditions like rain.”
Kitten, I just need to say that you should will a Pulitzer Prize for your posts on this topic!
This argument is good but it falls flat on one major point. Brady CAN feel the difference, hence the preference for under inflated footballs in bad weather. And the fact that only the kicking ball was of normal inflation lends one of reasonable intelligence to believe that there was mischief. The kicking ball needs to be as easily propelled as possible. Of COURSE TB didn’t deflate them himself. That’s a ridiculous assumption. But something happened. And Belicheck is already guilty and fined for cheating. It’s not a stretch.
Thank you, Kitten!!
Every former QB that was asked about this said they did not believe Brady did not know he was using soft balls. Those are the experts, I take their words of experience seriously. Either they turned in deflated balls and the checkers missed it or some ball boy deflated them after they passed check. Pretty simple. Only question is how long has this practice been going on.
I find the whole thing pathetic on Brady’s part. I suppose he liked the psychological edge of knowing you have an extra advantage.
You raise a lot interesting points, Kitten.
Pats fan here, not defending cheating – but I blame this on the NFL.
I don’t even know anything about this story but straight up its ridiculous to put the blame on any one player or team for an issue like this. There are umpires on every sports field in every game in every country who’s responsibility it is to make sure the playing equipment is to standard.
ETA: people have already said most of what I had to say. I didn’t realize this thread was so long. Anyone who is questioning why only 11 footballs were under inflated doesn’t know football too well. Kickers prefer a highly inflated ball; it goes further on field goal attempts. If anything this evidences the fact that the deflation was intentional. Second, there is absolutely a competitive advantage provided by footballs that are less inflated, as my former wide receiver hubby would tell you. Any pass is more easily caught and even a handoff to the running back or gripping the ball to throw a pass becomes easier with a football that is less inflated.
I’m sure Brady would know how to deflate a football, same process as a tire/basketball/etc. However, I don’t think anyone is saying that he himself did the deflating. General consensus seems to be that the ball boy who holds the balls after the refs inspect them took the air out of the balls (leaving one hard for the kicker) most likely at the instruction of some one. Did he take it upon himself and risk his job and reputation to deflate the balls because he knew that was Brady’s preference? Who knows, but I don’t buy it. The Patriots have a history of doing whatever it takes to win; that is the accepted culture in the Patriots locker room and I can absolutely believe some one higher up had something to do with this.
Additionally, the score of the Pats/Colts game is besides the point. Who knows how many times the Pats could have done this, and gotten away with it. I have heard that there were questions about ball pressure in the Pats/Ravens game as well. That was a very close game and you definitely do gain a competitive advantage from balls that are less inflated.
Sorry for the huge post; big sports fan here.
Ok since I can’t reply to every person, I’m just going to post this Boston.com link. If you still disagree with me after reading this, if you STILL think that the Patriots “cheated” then I doubt you’ll ever be convinced otherwise. Belichick broke “Deflategate” down to a damn SCIENCE right here:
http://www.boston.com/sports/football/patriots/extra_points/2015/01/bill_belichick_defends_patriots_on_deflategate_we.html?p1=feature_pri_hp#comments
“Footballs do not get measured during the game,”
“Belichick said. ‘We have no way of knowing – until we went through this exercise – that this is really taking place. So when we hand the balls to the officials, the officials put them at whatever it is they put them at, let’s just say it’s 12 ½, then the air pressure at that point from then on until the end of the game, we have no knowledge of and honestly it’s never been a concern. What is a concern is the texture of the footballs and that’s the point that Tom [Brady] hit on hard on Thursday.’ ”
I believe Belichick.
I believe Tom Brady.
I believe the Pats will win the Superbowl.
I get that this is sports-people will always get heated and people will always defend their team, but the Pats have gotten an inordinate amount of sh*t for doing the same things other teams have done for years. My opinion is that Troy Aikman, ESPN and others should apologize for all their sensationalized coverage and for calling Tom Brady a liar with ZERO proof.
Spoken like a true Bostonian
Its imperceptible. They did a test yesterday about the difference – they had people hold them at the different weights and no one could tell the difference. Not even a pats fan but this whole thing is so stupid. The colts didnt complain twice, they complained once and the leauge is now admitting that they waited until halftime to try to “catch” the patriots. Honestly that should be the story- the NFL is going after them because they hate Bill.
If this was any other team it would be a non story. People just love to hate the patriots.
Believe Belichick. Watched Brady’s press conference on TODAY this morning, and I don’t believe him AT ALL. (Meant to respond to PunkyMomma and somehow hit the wrong Reply button.)
I don’t hate the Pats, nor Brady. I watched him play in Ann Arbor when he was at Michigan. He’s an outstanding player. But throwing that ball has been his life for decades. Brady knows the feel of the ball. I might not be able to tell the difference, but Brady would. JMO.
Except Brady himself said he can tell the difference because the “perfect” grip according to him is when the ball is at 12.5 PSI. So while none of us may be able to discern the difference, Brady himself says he can and knows what he likes and it’s 12.5.
Pants on fire! He absolutely knew. And the Pats are known cheaters. It’s too bad, because could play an honest game and win. I would hate to play with a team that resorts to illegal tricks.
Brady probably was not responsible, which means the coach put him in a tough spot. He couldn’t blow the whistle on his own team. He tried to make the issue go away by saying “I just laugh this stuff off.” He’s not laughing now.
I agree! Why cheat when you didn’t even have to? And why isn’t anyone calling bluff on the fact that…….Brady cheated on his pregnant model girlfriend for the next model du jour? If he will cheat in his private life, OF Course he will cheat in his professional life! That’s a character issue. Period.
Yes. He’s lying. I have yet to hear any quarterback say that they would not notice a football under inflated by that much. However, it seems a gray area whether or not he would be obligated to report it. Like – he noticed the footballs were under inflated (so many good balls jokes) but didn’t say anything. Is that OK? Also, it seems that this is an ongoing thing. It was reported in an earlier game and in the Indianapolis paper today, they say that the Colts were given the heads up by the Ravens to try to check it out. When they intercepted Brady early in the game, that was their chance. That being said, I think the Patriots could have played the game with a wet bar of soap and still trounced the Colts.
It’s not a gray area at all–it’s actually very very clear.
The football players have NO responsibility to report whether a football feels soft or not. That is very specifically the responsibility of the refs to check and approve the PSI level before they hand it off to the ball attendants.
I just have to say it again: Brady’s head is in the game. This is football–it’s all strategy and athleticism. His focus isn’t on a football being to regulation PSI when he’s in the middle of a play-off game. That’s why they have the chain-of-custody. This is what they PAY referees to do.
Kitten
So, if a player notices the ball feels like there’s some extra squeeze he can still report it, right? Because it’s not their responsibility doesn’t mean they can’t notice and mention it. They are the ones playing with it after all.
They can report it but they have ZERO obligation to. They have that ball in their hands for second before it gets thrown. After that, they have to have their head in the game. Brady’s not gonna stop and be like “hey, this ball is soft” especially if it feels good for him. Again, this is all predicated on the idea that we agree that while a QB can feel a difference in softness, they’re not able to break it down to a specific PSI level.
So if I was a QB and a ball felt good to me, why would I report it as feeling soft? I would just go with it under the assumption that it’s regulation-level inflation.
Kitten, that was my point. If Brady noticed (and there is no way he did not) he doesn’t really have to report it.
Also, this is Tom fucking Brady we’re talking about. he is a god. end of story. the patriots are amazing. And I’m a niners fan so i’m not some biased bostoner.
Kitten, with all due respect, according to your theory TB wouldn’t ever be able to detect different inflation levels. That being said, how can you give credibility to the fact that he himself states that he prefers footballs of a certain inflation level? Therefore, he would most definitely know if he had a ball advantage, no?
Oh, a Niners fan. My condolences pre-Harbaugh’s exit. Congratulations post-Harbaugh exit! From a Seahawks fan that loves the rivalry with the 49ers. Muah!
Exactly. QB’s are very particular about how the ball feels in their hands. They have to feel comfortable throwing the ball, in order to have a good game. There is no chance that Brady wouldn’t have felt a difference when he held the ball.
It’s pretty sad when you have other QB’s (Jesse Palmer, Mark Brunell, and most importantly, Troy Aikman) saying Brady is full of s@%t.
We have to remember this is the Pats, and Bellicheat, what else is new? Fining these crooks isn’t enough, as has been proven by their constant shenanigans. The only way teams like this will learn is by harsh punishment. If you aren’t going to eliminate them from playing in the Super Bowl, then both Brady and Bellicheat should be suspended from participating along with anyone else deemed responsible for deflategate.
As a proud NY Giants fan (despite an awful season), I am so glad my team has defeated those cheaters twice out of a Lombardi trophy.
Because the receiver’s elbow was properly tucked when his helmet caught the ball. And Parcells was always a paragon of ethics
I was referring to Coughlin and Manning as the ethical pair who beat your precious Pats. Please don’t even put them in the same discussion as Bellicheat and Brady. Nice try, like the Pats, at deflection though-LOL!!
I call BS too. These are professional athletes. In his biography, Wayne Gretzky (or his ghostwriter) wrote about how one time his skates felt “off” like he was skating at a steep slope and it was affecting his game. They looked at the skate and noticed that they were sharpened a little off angle. Those are skates! We’re talking fraction of a millimetre angle but he felt it.
That’s what happens with elite athletes and their quirks. Brady is famously anal about the footballs. They petitioned the league for the club to have control over the balls.
You would know if it’s squishy or hard. And you better believe Brady would have whined if it were hard.
They shouldn’t be talking about revoking draft picks. They should be pulled from the Super Bowl. They shouldn’t be division champions. The league has pages and pages of rules on the psi of the balls. You break the rules you should forfeit your right to win.
But of course this is the same league that only acted on a woman being knocked out in an elevator after it was publicly released.
I guess the irony in all of this is the NFL has no balls. I can’t believe I came *here* to talk sports!
Tania – ITA
It’s different. With skates the edges take the whole weight, provide the only stability, and direct every single m8ve. Anyone who skates at an average and upper level will feel any change in the sharpening. We all go to the same sharpeners for that reason but if the hand goes off a bit (even when just holding a skate for a machine sharpening) or if our weight has changed a bit and we didn’t let the sharpener know, and the edges therefore feel off, it makes a difference and it’s easily noticeable. Only amateurs skate on full blade and can ignore it. Edges are felt strongly as we rely on them only.
At all levels Tana ITA!! Brady gets paid HOW MUCH for knowing every single aspect of exactly whats happening with ANY of those footballs at any given moment in time?! I call total BS on him..
He is so lying. The Patriots should not be going to the Superbowl. This is just wrong.
Someone has a sound bite of him saying he PREFERS deflated balls so he can get a better grip! BS indeed!!!
He actually helped to write the rule that allows teams to use their own footballs. Guilty!
The issues is cheating – regardless of the outcome. It doesn’t matter if they would have won the game anyway, or if the ball was noticeably lighter, the fact is that they (the Patriots) violated the rules of the game and thus they – the organization, should be punished. The NFL loses any shred of credibility they may have left if they fail to address and rectify the fundamental issue of cheating!
The Colts player who supposedly alerted the officials now says he did no such thing. If the league is going to do something, do it and get it over with. What’s interesting its that players from other teams say this is no big deal and they do it all the time. The NFL doesn’t take its own rules seriously.
As for Richard Sherman. He’s a trash talker. That’s part of his game and he was trash talking Brady before this. It’s just what he (and many other players) do and has always done to prepare for a game. It’s part of the game and nobody takes it seriously.
I like Richard Sherman, and I don’t think what he said really did anything to discredit Brady or to make this a bigger deal than it is, and I don’t believe it affected the outcome at all, especially considering they changed the footballs at half time and NE won by even more. In fact Sherman said it wouldn’t affect the Super Bowl and basically meant nothing. He just said that everyone sees Brady as this clean cut white guy who does no wrong, and that the opponents on the field know otherwise, and I believe Sherman on that. I think Brady is a fierce competitor and talks trash with the best of them and uses every advantage he can think of. Sherman did complain that the NFL gets all hyper about shoes and logos, but lets the balls sit for two hours without anyone knowing what happens to them. He is right that should be on the NFL.
I think Belicheck kind of hinted at what he thinks happened. Brady must like the footballs at the low end of the allowable scale, and after they were checked and as of yet we have not seen the the NFL report so we do not know they said happened with the check, whether the equipment manager or as some have said maybe the weather decreased the inflation who knows. The equipment manager was probably instructed to keep it as low as possible and he could have made an error or deliberately cheated who knows. Now the Colts are saying they didn’t complain about it, so it must have been an official. This is all speculation until the report, as the Ravens were drawn into this too. Supposedly the Ravens said the kicking balls, which are separate, were messed up, but according to their coach they never had a complaint. I am not a Patriots fan, actually a Ravens fan so I should hate them, but this is a bit overkill if you ask me.
The kicking balls are supplied the by NFL and are opened before the game. Neither team has access to those balls. Ever. So I don’t understand why the Ravens needed to add their 2 cents
Because AJ, the Ravens are still pissed that they lost. Harbaugh pretty much called it cheating, which it wasn’t, it was completely legal. Pats told the refs about their ineligible receivers but the Ravens didn’t catch on.
Blue Marie, I know! I was trying to be nice. I hate the thug-life Ravens and their whiney coach. I’m a die hard pats fan and I am tired of them complaining about those formations. The ref told you who to cover. Shut up already!!
@AJ, because the Payriots eliminated them a week ago and they’re still whining. And they also can’t get over Edelman’s touchdown pass that made them look like fools
Oh okay AJ, gotcha.. The Ravens are whiners anyway
I don’t care what Sherman meant, I am so freaking sick and tired of hearing him. He LOVES to put in his two cents on every single thing. NO ONE CARES
Ashley, you mad bro?
Lol Bridget
Ashley hates Sherman for busting her QB’s chops. She’ll get over it. He’s a standup guy and I’m willing to bet that Sherman has done more for his community than Kaepernick has.
Wow I love how this has gone now to the Ravens, because to be honest if this gave the Pats a slight edge it most likely didn’t have an affect on the outcome of the Colts game, but it could have affected the Ravens game. I am not sure if I would be bringing the Ravens into this conversation, if I were the Pats. Now for Harbough to tell the Colts about the footballs, I guess that means he suspected they were under inflated before the Colts played in order to check them at half time. This means that pretty good coaches, Harbough’s won quite a lot, think the Pats are a bit shady to say the least.
Now as to the other points that it may be sour grapes. I think Harbough has been publicly complimentary of Belicheck and the Pats especially at the Pro Bowl, and he publicly stated the Ravens never intercepted the ball so they didn’t know anything about this. Also, saying that the kicking balls are under inflated actually helps the Pats, not hurt as it seems like the refs have an issue as no one touches those but the refs. The rest has just been conjecture from supposed insiders. At this point until we see the report from the NFL this is really getting to be just stupid. It may be a bit wrong what the Pats allegedly did, but I don’t think it really changed the game that much, and the NFL needs to get their act together and make it seem a bit more fair. If they had kept the balls as they do the kicking balls it wouldn’t have been a problem.
Now with the play the Raven’s publicly complained about I agree with Harbough. It may be legal, but not in the spirit of the game and I think it should be changed. Same as I feel the catch by the Cowboys should be a catch, and they need to look at that too. It’s a fluid game and if people didn’t complain when things seem a bit unfair we would have all kinds of crazy rules.
No – the Colts player never was the one to alert the league. The fact that the accusation came after the interception was falsely linked to him reporting it. Colts had already been alerted based on their prior game early in the season, and also by the Ravens after their game the week before. They took the opportunity to grab that ball after the interception. It wasn’t the player.
Richard Sherman tends to bring up interesting points – and clearly he feels the need to stand up for Marshawn Lynch, who’s continually coming into conflict with the league. Because threatening to DQ Lynch for his cleats was ridiculous.
And Tom Brady is a huge trash talker himself, but he does get away with an awful lot with that clean cut, Teflon Tom image of his (THOUGH while I think his good looks help with that, I think a huge part of that image comes from the fact that he has won and consistently produced for years)
You mad, bro?
😉
I don’t watch football, so I really have no dog in this fight.
But common sense shows that if a football is under inflated, and you’re playing in crappy, cold, rainy conditions, it’s going to be easier to grip, and easier to run plays with.
If the other teams interception allowed them to be like ‘well holy shit this ball isn’t inflated enough’ the Pat’s must have noticed and just weren’t going to say anything. So either Brady is a moron – which is possible – or he was in on the deflation.
Judging by the points of the game they’d probably still have won. But how many plays that were successful wouldn’t have been successful if the balls were up to full inflation levels.
Again – no dog in this fight. Limited interest in football to begin with. I just find this whole thing kind of amusing. And really – it’s not like the NFL is known for it’s truth telling.
The Colts player who intercepted now says that he didn’t notice anything about the ball and didn’t report it. 25 of the points came in the second half, after the officials changed out the balls. A field goal was scored in the first half, which is a different set of balls completely.
This whole thing seems like half the story. And the way Belichick danced around the issue, makes you go hmmm. If it was that simple as you state Lilacflowers why wasn’t it addressed and put to bed that quickly?
And I do believe it is as simple as you stated. I just don’t trust Belichick.
I don’t trust Belichick either, and he’s my team’s coach, but in the scheme of things, this is a minor offense in the NFL and it carries what, by NFL standards is a relatively minor penalty (minor penalties in the NFL are the equivalent of some people’s annual income). Other quarterbacks are coming forward and saying they do stuff like this all the time and the league does nothing. One guy admitted to paying someone thousands of dollars to stick pins in the balls for him before a Super Bowl game. The NFL has become a joke in what it enforces and how it enforces. They’re making a bigger deal out of this than they did with “bounty gate”, which was far, far more serious, and as somebody else said, they’re using this to deflect from something else. If they can prove wrongdoing, assess the fine and move on. If they can’t, admit it and end it – and with the Colts player saying he never reported it, they are having difficulty proving it.
Meanwhile, I have to refill my car tire again because the temperature changes cause it to deflate.
@lilacflowers you are dead on. Best comment I’ve seen online – “millions of people went to bed Sunday night and woke up Wednesday an expert of football and balls.” Lol and the reason why it’s a big deal is because its the Patriots.
You’re everything this morning, Lilacflowers!
Thanks, Tifygodess and Kitten. Meanwhile, those of us here in Boston have heard more about pressure and gas and weather and science and balls to last a lifetime.
Lilacflowers – get your rims checked out. I know that temps can cause them to deflate a bit – mine were doing it A LOT. It eventually got to the point where I had to top up every other day or it’d go fully flat. Turns out the rim was bent, and the tire wasn’t sealing to it. Bought four new cheap steel rims and haven’t had a problem since.
And like I said – I’m no big football fan. I’ve picked up on some things over the years at work, and reading online. It seems like it IS being blown out of proportion because it’s the Pat’s – I will agree to that. And when I saw the fine the other day I kind of like ‘well if it’s such a low fine, it sounds like they expect a certain amount of it to happen’.
I live in a huge Boston loving area – we actually send a big ass Christmas tree to Boston every Christmas because of their help with the Halifax Explosion ( year before last it came from the property my gram grew up next to) – so believe me – I’ve heard a lot of fans raging. We love their football teams and hockey teams here, haha.
I just find the whole thing sketchy more so because of how it’s being addressed I guess. And I stand by the players noticing it and not saying anything – but if this is a common occurrence in games, it’s not surprising.
@Erinn, I love our Halifax tree every year and the story behind it makes me so proud of my city.
It is a minor infraction as I have already posted. 25 thousand dollar fine and loss of a draft pick. But just because other QB’S and players have admitted to doing similar things doesn’t make it right. The game has lost its integrity.
I don’t think people are making a bigger deal out of this than they did with bountyGate. In bountyGate there was a huge investigation with hell to pay for those involved in it. Williams was suspended indefinetely, Saints head coach Payton was suspended for the 2012 season and Loomis was suspended for the first 8 games. They suffered real consequences, whereas if the Pats are found to have done something wrong they get a slap on the wrist.
I follow sports shows such as First Take , Mike and Mike and so on all year round. BountyGate was still being talked about long after the 2012 season was over.
I do think they’re making a big deal out of it because it’s the Pats but IMO it’s because of BB is known for cheating.
Look the Colts got spanked and could barely score. But what some are wondering was if Brady had used the balls with the proper weight would he had made all the plays he made when using the deflated balls; who knows. What we do know for sure is that Brady is trying for his fourth SB win and if he pulls it off the only thing that’s going to be deflated is a lot of egos.
LilacFlowers
True enough.
Something funny. I was at the gas station and someone was filling up their tires. The worker there was trying to explain to this woman why her tires went flat. He said she filled her tires up with summer air which expands more. When winter air came in it deflated summer air. And that the air compressor would fill her tires with winter air since it takes more winter air than summer air to fill a tire.
I looked right at him and shook my head laughing. That poor woman!
+100000000
I wish I read your comment first because you said it so well.
Here’s what I don’t quite get…both teams used the ball so where’s the advantage/disadvantage? Unless the Patriots routinely practice with underinflated balls…balls (hee hee).
It could be an advantage to some. Even though it didn’t seem to help the other team, this team should still be punished IF they actually knew something (but yeah, the coach and Brady probably knew).
I was under the impression that each team uses their own ball when they have possession.
The teams use their own balls (and the ball jokes that we’ve been inundated with for the past 4 days have been hilarious) and there are different balls for the kickers and for the quarterbacks. The referees handle the ball as much as the quarterbacks do; yet they supposedly didn’t notice anything.
They don’t all use the same balls. They each have their own set of balls; 11 IIRC. They only touch the other team’s balls when there is an interceptions.
Damn it is funny to be using the word BALLS so much.. lol.
How could you not tell? Also, betting money he wore the hat to make him look young and innocent. The whole thing appeared so staged.
Hahaha seriously he’s being wearing the hat all season.
He’s been wearing the hat for the past two seasons.
brady is one of the most sincere and proud athletes going.
he didn’t have to wear a hat to come off as innocent.
i’m sure he is mortified that this is happening given his pride for his game.
i just don’t think that brady would stoop so low to win.
he’d want to win on his merits and his team’s merits.
would belichek stoop?
absolutely.
maybe tom knew and said something and was told to shut up.
sorry…not tom’s doing.
not in a million years.
and, yes, i’m a bostonian and love tom brady!!!! 😉
Um, that’s the hat he wears. LOL…
I can believe that’s a hat he wears all season, but because all of the major networks broke into regular programming to cut to the press conference as if he was President Obama it was funny to see this guy with a ski cap addressing the press looking the way he was. It might not have been as hilarious if the networks had just left the issue to the regular 6 o’clock news.
Giselle has one too.
@ Perplexed-I didn’t realize it was a national thing? I honestly thought it was just a big deal here in New England.
Did he just come from practice or something? I was kind of surprised that he wasn’t wearing a suit…
It’s a pretty big national story. I’m assuming because they are going to the Super Bowl. If it had happened during a regular season game, I doubt there would be this much coverage. I do know when it’s your local team, you are inundated with the story 24/7.
Well to me he looks better without the hat so if it was a ploy it failed, and he has worn it all season.
A lot of QBs wear that awesome beanie. Johnny Manziel looks like one of Santa’s elves when he wears his. They couldn’t find one big enough to fit Peyton Manning’s head, though.
Half the NFL has worn that hat this season – it’s been a hugely popular merchandise item. He’ll, I’m wearing the Seahawks version right now!
Not. At. All. And the fact that he threw the equipment managers under the bus is just wrong. And can we talk about how he went to the press conference dressed like a college student who refuses to shower? Dude, you make millions and millions, dress like an adult. (Perhaps there was some reason that he dressed like that and I just don’t know it but really?)
Clothes are planned – even with sports celebrities. The Patriots are a multi-million dollar enterprise and such enterprises don’t leave anything to chance.
“College student who refuses to shower” – hits the nail on the head. Maybe they think that a somewhat naive looking guy appears to be more honest in a “too dumb to lie” kind of way.
Tom is known for that ‘All American look”. it works to his advantage.
It didn’t mAke him sympathetic in my opinion. Today it made him look smug.
My boyfriend is so pissed by the whole thing. He is a Football FAN..but he doesn’t like Brady so he is a bit biased.. lol
But it was interesting to hear from other quarterbacks saying it would be impossible for Brady not to have felt something different about the balls he touches all throughout the game.. And the ISIS analogy was kind of GROSS to me. I get what he meant; it is not life or death, but he should have said it that way. I think he knew the balls were “flatter” but like the feel of them and just said hell let’s play. Obviously someone altered them for his benefit. Doesn’t mean he said to do it; but he didn’t alert anyone because he didn’t mind.
It just makes you Side Eye the win; even though they won by such a large margin. I think a lot of people will be hoping they lose the Superbowl who didn’t before.
The ISIS analogy is straight out of a politician’s playbook to deflect from the situation at hand. Our mayor just pulled it on me when I commented that some public officials were acting like buffoons at a recent meeting…he claimed I was overreacting “like the terrorists in Paris.” Nice.
Agreed. We can care about a number of things at once, Tom. “This isn’t ISIS”. Well, if that’s the standard–geez–then there’s very little we should actually be paying attention to. If the Pat’s win the Superbowl, is he going to tell everyone to forget about the victory and focus their attention on ISIS? Nope. Total cop-out BS.
Can we send Tom over to fight ISIS? Then we’ll REALLY hear the sound of balls deflating!!
The isis comment is spot on ONLY because the point that he was trying to make was more Americans have cared about this and put more time and effort into this then they have real issues going on here and overseas. Should it be a story? Of course but should it be at this level ? No. It’s the lead story on the nightly news , some news stations even broke into programming just for Brady’s news conference. I mean really? I could see that in Boston or even Indy but it was all over. Yet most stations didn’t want to air the presidents immigration reform speech. I mean priorities.
Yeah, I don’t think the networks should have cut into regular programming to cover this press conference, That was weird. I have no idea if Brady knew that was happening while he was talking, but the comment did seem to make sense in conjunction with the news networks playing their dramatic music to cut to…… Tom Brady.
Exactly.
I’m embarrassed that this is such a huge story out here.
Very good points, although I do still think it can be a deflection tactic. It seems that this is a huge story for one reason only — to increase ratings and of course dollars.
As I said below, Esmom, the conspiracy theorists are going nuts about this in Boston. I’m not sure the NFL is out to get the Pats, but I do think it’s RIDICULOUS that this story is as big as it is. I mean, people cared so much less about Ray Rice knocking his wife unconscious. Now maybe I sound like the one deflecting…haha..No, but seriously, I think we all just love saying BALLS.
On a personal note, as a Pats fan, I know how this could be a huge distraction for them going into the SB. On the flip-side, I can see Belichick using this to fire them up in a “Us against the world” strategy.
CNN also had in-depth analysis about the press conference. Don Lemon seemed to get a weird smirk on his face any time the word “balls” was mentioned.
I’m switching gears just to say Brady is fine. What a good looking man. This is coming from a CB fan. Being from NY you would think I’m a hard core Giantsfan. I will admit that I was cheering for the Giants both times they faced the Pats, just because.
As for the posters complaining about the way Brady dressed for that brief press conference. He’s a FB player, not a politician. He wasn’t going to the Espy awards. Let him be comfortable
@kitten I’m from Rhode Island but right now we are station here in Maryland right outside of Baltimore – a sad place for any Pats fan to be – so anytime the Patriots so much as fart the news stations are all over it. So imagine their delight when all of this went down. I know it is bad back home, justifiable so, but O.M.G the attitude down here is insane. I wore my Pats hat out yesterday ( still proudly may I add ) and I couldn’t believe the things people were saying to me. Like I’m on the team or something! Haha. I’m like wait are you a Ravens fan? Have you looked at your team by chance? I was here for all that Ray Rice crap and not to mention all the other arrests of their players over the summer and their questionable tactics. This whole thing is so out of control I’m blown away.
No idea about American football but isn’t it kind of a crappy thing for a coach to throw his own player under the bus? Coach should be just as responsible, i think.
Coach Taylor would NEVER do that!
(shout out to the best tv show on the planet, you are sorely missed.)
Yes it is crappy. It is also crappy for the Quarterback to throw the Equipment Manager under the bus too.. Brady kind of did that.
They all seem to be playing the Blame the other guy.. because I don’t know anything about it.
Yeah, it was terrible of Brady to throw the equipment people under too, but as a coach, Belichick should step up, no? Instead of leaving Brady there to fend for himself.
Yeah, I was surprised the coach did that. If I were Brady I’d be pissed.
And you’re right about Coach Taylor! He was a man of integrity. Love that show.
I’d be pissed too. And yes! Coach was a great man. I’m still obsessed with FNL and watch it every now and then.
I’m not surprised BB would do that. He’s a great coach and I believe Brady will go down as one of the greatest QB’S of all time. He’s good under pressure , has a good football IQ and he’s a great in the pocket QB. Im not a Pats fan but Brady is amazing and I don’t see a need for him to cheat. But my opinion is that he knew. We with our untrained hands wouldn’t be able to tell but Brady is a train professional who has lived this game almost his entire life and could recognize a 2 pound difference. A lot of us know that The Patriots have been tainted with controversy. Remember 2007 videotapeGate. BB was accused of having his crew tape the Jets plays.
Brady will probably be bringing home another SB win and though a win is a win, this will be remembered as the year the Patriots cheated to guarantee a victory.
I’m losing faith in the game from refs making messed up calls such as in the CB’S /Packers game which to me was just a make-up call for making a call in favor of the CB’S the week prior. The sports has lost it’s integrety. If the Pats are found guilty the punishment is only a twenty-five thousand dollar fine and the loss of a draft pick. Pretty much a slap on the wrist.
It would be great if the Seahawks pulled off a consecutive SB win though.
My bf is a diehard Cowboys fan and he was livid for 3 days over the CB/Packers game. I guess i am by default a CB fan too but i really don’t care. My American football knowledge and experience goes as far as Friday Night Lights (as you can tell) 😀
Will he though? Does the hall of fame admit of cheaters? BB may or may not have known about the balls, but you can’t tell me TB didn’t.
I’ve been a Cowboys fan since I was a kid, but stopped watching football in favor of nascar (don’t judge me lol) and I really only pay attention to scores and if they are going into the playoffs. So, I watched the playoff games since nascar is in it’s off season. I wanted to die. I like the Packers (Clay Matthews anyone? He’s super hot.), but I reallllly wanted Dallas to win. That was such an upsetting call. It was an upsetting game. Dallas did so good in the first half and then they just kind of sucked. To be a Cowboys fan. *Sigh*
My bf and I are both New Yorkers but we’re CB fans. I still haven’t let it go. I understand what your bf is going through.
I hope he was as excited as we were when the Seahawks beat the Packers.
tifzlan, you said COACH TAYLOR!!! *le sigh*
Honestly, that was the only reason i clicked on this post. To see if i could talk about FNL somehow, LOL! That show is my life!
I’ve been revisiting it on Netflix myself. I had a major boner for Coach Taylor.
Is there any advantage for any team to inflating the balls?
#nocluesaboutAmericanFootball#
YES.. you can grip the ball better when catching and throwing.. and when the weather conditions are like they were.. that is in fact an advantage.
Underinflated balls are easier to catch because you have more grip, i think.
I don’t get it either and I’m feeling really stupid. Don’t they all play with the same ball?
Under inflating the balls makes them easier to catch. The phrase in the third sentence should be “under inflated,” instead of “inflated.”
Not necessarily, that’s the thing. It’s completely subjective-some player prefer the ball more inflated and some prefer the ball more “softer” on the under-inflated side.
It would be easier to grip, but I would think overinflated balls would go further. Come on how funny is it that Tom Brady likes his balls under inflated?
I think the idea is it’s easier to grip and the spin too, right?
You can control the spin more if it’s softer.
This all bullcrap! First of all, yes, ALL Quarterbacks pick out the balls they want to play with during the game. They are given to the ball boy who basically guards the balls until game time. Just before the game the Refs CHECK THE BALLS! The Refs held the balls throughout the game…why didn’t they feel anything??? And since the Colts mentioned they thought something was wrong with the ball at halftime…the refs got new balls, and the Patriots killed the Colts in the second half…Its just a bunch of whiny, jealous, wannabe’s…I don’t think Tom was lying, I think he cannot believe that this rediculousness is going on before one of the most important games of his career. There have been many players from other teams coming out and saying this is stupid, that NE was just the better team…
One of the Colts players said that the Patriots could have been playing with a bar of soap and still would have won. If the NFL is going to do something, do it, get it over, and start enforcing the rule consistently, which other players on other teams say they never do.
Go, MrsBPitt! I love it when you get fired up.
Bleh. I’ve already invested too much time in this sh*t. This is the stuff I hate about sports and why I pretty much stopped watching the Red Sox. I just get way too over-invested and it stops being fun.
Also, isn’t it weird that everyone’s getting all hung up about the “integrity” of football? I mean, seeing as how this is a league who hires rapists, murderers, domestic abusers, and the like?
Ben Roethlisburger. That is all.
No sh*t. That POS wasn’t even a blip on the radar of the collective conscious.
I call him Ben Rapistburger.
Doofus I call him Rapistburger too!!
Me too! @doofus
GOOD! I’m glad they are under scrutiny. The game between the Patriots and the Raiders years ago when they pulled the Tuck Rule out of mothballs to take away points from my fave team just so they could win caused me to stop watching the game altogether. Yes, I was so upset I actually stopped watching Football. How is this even enjoyable? There’s so much money being thrown around teams, refs, officials, players, etc. will do anything to win. It’s not a sport, its a money grab.
Those would be the Oakland Raiders who revolutionized steroid use and whose receivers used to put Velcro on their hands to help catch the ball?
That’s exactly my point. The game is no longer about the game. It’s about who will do the most to win the most money. I just cant anymore. No team is immune to it. I grew in the Bay Area loving the Oakland teams so it’s more nostalgia for me.
This story is meaningless.
It is a perfect distraction from Mike Brown and the other victims of police violence.
Please. Even our racist DOJ found Darren Brown not guilty of any crime. Next.
If you ‘re asking was Brady directly involved in reducing the football’s inflation, no I don’t think so, but all the players knew there was an issue during the game, as the officials kept checking the footballs. The responsibility for this rests with Belichick. Bill was a ruthless, mean spirited, amoral jerk way back when he coached for the Browns, and he’s shown over and over since then that he’s only gotten worse. Belichick will do anything – anything – to win. You think the ball deflation, and Spygate, are the only times he’s cheated? Please. Those are the only times he’s been caught.
I heard about this on NPR and their sports analyst said it’s a very minor infraction, even if true, and is being blown way out of proportion by news writers. Many people think the quarterback should be able to use balls with that level of inflation if that’s their preference, as long as everyone would have the same advantage.
Yay. GNAT’s voice of reason.
It’s just so stupid especially because it was the running game that gave the Pats their last win. A deflated football isn’t gonna do sh*t for that. In fact, a deflated football can’t tackle or sack or so much of anything.
That being said, if they intentionally broke the rules, then they should be punished. But I also think that the NFL should have been testing EVERY team’s balls, not just the Pats. They should investigate every team. It’s the only fair way to do it.
I’m trying so hard to be objective which I guess is probably impossible as a Pats fan, but I just honestly think this would never happen if it was any other team. Then again, no one cares about teams that don’t ever win.
The conspiracy theories out here are pretty out-of-control. Most of them are stemming from the fact that the NFL hasn’t interviewed Brady yet, which is…pretty insane.
The fact that Luck spent the game running away from Ninkovich makes the actually ball condition rather irrelevant
Yep, precisely.
@Kitten: Girl, you sound pretty much the OPPOSITE of objective. LoL
And deflated balls can potentially help the running game much more than the passing game actually. Especially in wet conditions, having a slightly less inflated ball makes it much easier to grip and therefore less easy to fumble or be punched out.
I hate to admit it, but Troy Aikman actually made a good point. If they intentionally played with balls not up to the standard for a playoff game they were extremely likely to win, then there’s pretty much no way this is the first time. Just like Spygate, it’s pretty likely they’ve been doing it frequently and this is just the time they got caught. And, to be fair, who knows how many other teams use advantages like this that are against the rules because they haven’t gotten caught yet? Look at the Saints–how long were they bounty hunting before finally getting caught? I think this is getting ‘so blown out of proportion’ as you say not so much because it’s the Pats (altho Spygate certainly doesn’t help their cause), but because it’s leading up to the Super Bowl, and because chances are it’s been going on for awhile and not just a one time thing.
What’s wrong with Troy Aikman!?
@ ScarletVixen-That was my point? It’s hard to stay objective when I’m a Patriots fan.
My point about the running game was that their running game DOMINATED in the second half, after the footballs were switched out, so….?
So last Sunday’s game definitely wasn’t evidence of what you say here: that deflated balls help with the running game.
Ok..I mean, look let’s wait for the results of the investigation. But that’s kind of what I’m saying here: the NFL has been loose as hell with their ball regs for a long time so how many other teams have had the NFL come in and test their footballs? Only one so far.
Yes, he also said they should test all the footballs the same way for every team.
Easy solution tbh. Throw the Pats out, put the Packers in. Packers get revenge on Seahawks. All is right in the world* again.
*world of American football
+1
That was such an exciting game to watch-one of the best games I’ve seen in years
Games like that is why I love play-off football even more than the Superbowl.
Aaron Rodgers over inflates his balls. And the Super Bowl has to have a representative from both conferences
I bet he does!
The Packers wouldn’t play the Seahawks, they’re in the same conference. If they disqualified the Patriots it would be the Colts playing the Seahawks. Either way, I hope the Seattle wins their second Super Bowl!
Richard Sherman is an ass, so I’m going to go with the opposite of whatever says. Just a general rule.
How is Richard Sherman an ass? He’s a loudmouth (which he’s ridden all the way to the bank) but he’s intelligent and funny, and he’s acknowledged as the best corner in the game, and he has HEART. I’m pretty thrilled he’s on my team!
I’m not a Seahawks fan, but I like Sherman. Someone called him a thug last year and I was offended. I like his super weird Pine Bros cough drop commercial!
I enjoy a good trash talker so more power to Sherman’s motor mouth
@lilacflowers: Richard Sherman is FUN. He’s the guy you want to watch during and after the game.
He’s an ass because I think he’s a dirty player, taking cheap shots. I have no respect for players like this:
http://thebiglead.com/2013/12/02/richard-sherman-decked-kenny-stills-with-this-cheap-shot-in-the-end-zone/#sthash.9oIYmcDj.uxfs
+ a million. I can’t wait to be the pants off smarmy Tom Brady. He’s a good player but shady as $&@! Go hawks!’
I LOVE Richard Sherman and don’t think he is an ass at all. He is extremely intelligent and I tend to love the trash talkers who can back it up with skill.
Agreed- remember, he is a Stanford Communications major – there’s no doubt in my mind that his image and “outbursts” and well thought out and intentional. Not that he doesn’t have passion – he has that in spades, but he also has self-control. There’s a purpose to his public demeanor and I love that he’s chosen to control his image and narrative in an occupation that tries to cast him into a very particular stereotypical image.
Brady’s pants or shorts on fire!! I don’t like this guy, doesn’t feel like he is a honest guy somehow. LOL @ his “I like my ball in certain way”. Yeah, I am sure. Fail.
A human lie detector analyzed him during this interview and she concluded he’s lying. She has a 98% accuracy rate. Google eyes for lies. He’s got a lot of “tells” & he is totally lying.
Considering the history that The Patriots has with cheating (Spygate was the only time they got caught) you would think they would know this story will blow up.
It also makes me wonder who got to the Colts player. My money is on Goodall for him to completely flip the script.
Trash talker or not, Sherman is dead on.
This^^^. This isn’t the first time Pats have cheated and won’t be the last.
The Colts deliberately lost almost every game they played a few seasons ago in order to ensure they’d receive the #1 pick in the draft.
They also pipe fake crowd noise into their stadium in order to confuse the opposing offenses.
If the NFL is so concerned about integrity to judge the Patriots so harshly then they need to investigate instances of malfeasance throughout the league.
The Colts piped sound has been an issue for years. A friend in Indy brings earplugs to the games.
Not to mention, the Colts’ owner is a complete sleaze. Just saying.
Don’t forget the Colts turning up the heat in the stadium on the Pats in their 1st game when they knew several Pats were recovering from the flu. Most of the guys became dehydrated and cramped.
the fact that this is a thing in this country terrifies me and makes me believe there is something huge and actually important happening elsewhere or is going to happen soon and the media doesn’t want us to know about it/report on it/talk about it.
millionaire meatheads cheating for a game. pathetic and embarrassing.
Yes. It is shocking to me that this is a story. ALL OF THE BALLS WERE CHANGED AT HALFTIME. the second half is when the patriots got most of their points. The quote about people waking up on Wednesday an expert about balls is dead on. Honestly this is such a non story. Aaron rogers admitted to the press that he tries to over inflate the balls because it gives him an advantage. This is a non story if its any other team. This is worth one or two small articles on espn, max. Like the fact that people are in the grips of this really makes me sad about our nation’s 1) values and 2) critical thinking skills.
The double entendres are epic with this one.
I know. I giggle every time some one brings up deflated balls or Tom Brady’s balls.
I don’t know how the players can address this with a straight face.
yes! even reading the comments I am feeling so sophomoric. “People know that these balls were inflated ahead of time inside in room temperature. Then they are out in the cold. Do you know what happens when air gets cold? It compresses, so it feels as if its deflated.”
and
“Brady’s not gonna stop and be like “hey, this ball is soft” especially if it feels good for him.”
and
“First of all, yes, ALL Quarterbacks pick out the balls they want to play with during the game. They are given to the ball boy who basically guards the balls until game time. Just before the game the Refs CHECK THE BALLS! The Refs held the balls throughout the game…why didn’t they feel anything??? And since the Colts mentioned they thought something was wrong with the ball at halftime…the refs got new balls,…”
This is the kind of stupid “controversy” that just validates “they hate us cause they ain’t us” philosophy.
“I didn’t deflate the balls”…of course neither belicheck or Brady deflated the balls, they would tell someone else to.
Kitten is going to blow this thread up. I always love their New England sports comments.
Bring on the Balls!
I’m embarrassed to admit how many times I giggled when listening to Brady’s press conference yesterday. And yes, I have the sense of humor of a 13-year-old boy.
Same!
Only his team knows how Brady likes his balls pumped.
(crosses fingers this makes it through)
This is pretty major if true. The Patriots are supposed to be one of the best, so why cheat?!!
No.
Whole bunch of whining over something that was not a huge factor in the game. If they were under inflated, the refs should have caught it earlier. It still wouldn’t have changed a darn thing. The Colts played badly. They got beat. The state of the balls didn’t help the Pats defense stop the Colts each and every time they had the ball.
He is lying. When asked if he was a cheater, his response was not an instant no, It was , “I don’t believe I am.”
He was trained and prepped. The Patriots are cheaters.
Yep, he wasn’t even convincing.
I’m a Patriots fan, and I think that Brady is lying. I completely agree that he had to have noticed that the footballs were under-inflated during last week’s game. I also agree that his attire was completely thought out before his press conference. Do you think that Giselle would have let him leave his house looking like that?
I’m angry at the team and their actions have tainted the Super Bowl this year for all football fans. I hope that people just opt-out of watching the game, and the NFL gets the message that they overall need to clean up their act. While this is a minor issue compared to domestic violence, cheating to win shows a lack of ethics.
Oh…and I am not mature enough to sit through Brady’s press conference and not snicker throughout every time I heard the word “balls”.
Carrie –
TMZ has a Tom Brady remix. Let me post it here. Hysterical and we can snicker together. http://www.tmz.com/ Scroll down. I’m still laughing!
Oh Lordy, that was funny! My mantra for today is: “I like the balls…I like the balls…”
Long work day, glad you liked it! Happy Weekend to you.
It’s certainly fishy. I’m not into football but my husband told me this isn’t the first time Brady has been involved in a cheating scandal. Hopefully whoever is in charge is hyper-vigilant during the Big Game and the Patriots lose because they didn’t get to sabatoge their balls and thus play terribly because they can’t grip their balls right. My favorite part about this thing is hearing everyone discuss balls all day. Balls balls balls. Love it.
I’m just waiting for Gisele to start defending Tom’s balls.
+1 !
My sister, a Patriots season ticket holder, has volunteered to inspect all the Patriots’ balls before, after, and during the Super Bowl and most of next season’s games. She’s not traveling to Buffalo in the winter.
LOL!
My husband and I went to Buffalo in Dec for the pats game a few years ago. It wasn’t that cold…except for the 75mph winds! What a craphlole stadium though. It made the old Foxboro Stadium look good. And that stadium was horrible.
Lilac, your sister is a true Patriot.
Yes, she is willing to make such sacrifices.
why not check with Bridget Moynahan on the “I never lie” statement.
I just don’t believe he is out there underinflating his balls.
I’m a Patriots fan, my home team and where I worked for years. Love them. So many people always have sour grapes when it comes to Brady. Was reading the Colts comments saying they couldn’t beat NE, admitting the Pats are better. Refs check balls, but if this ends up cheating, they are NOT the only team who have
His bloodshot eyes are freaking me out. Is that a big broken blood vessel in his right eye? At first I thought he had been crying. Darth Hoodie has an amazing poker face and an emotionless voice, you would never know if that guy is lying to you. I was honestly hoping there would be more ball jokes. I mean, of course Pats fans are going to defend them and fans of other teams are going to think they are lying. That’s been the direction of every comment section on this topic all week and because of obvious bias, I take them all with a grain of salt.
The one right eye is still blood shot because he was poked in the eye by a Ravens player during their game 2 weeks ago
Eww!
Gouged in the eye, actually.
After watching Brady’s interview- I think he’s lying. So obvious, after saying he wasn’t involved he immediately goes into a story about how he picked which balls he liked and they were “perfect.” First, why divulge that? Unless he’s trying to create a convenient aliby. Second, I’m sure they were perfect- perfectly under inflated.
Anyone who is an athlete knows an under inflated ball is a huge advantage. I was a soccer player and a slight under inflation is great for grip and makes the ball a lot less bouncy which when dealing with high speed, milliseconds and fractions of an inch, it can be the difference between a drop or fumble and a completion.
Even if the touchdowns were running plays- they threw completions to get close enough to run in.
In conclusion, once a cheater, always a cheater.
This is being blown way out of proportion by the media and Patriot haters.
I almost expected one of the press conference reporters to ask Coach Belichick if he ordered the Code Red.
Way out of proportion. Something has to be found to put the Patriots down. Haters are mad that they made it again. Go Pats!
Bigger question is why are all other quarterbacks so silent.
Secondly you do realize that Brady was also using Colts balls during the game. The next question is when the Colts started to fall apart was that when they cried foul and one of the balls could have been there’s. These are all valid questions. Maybe why the NFL has been so quiet. Someone just got caught and it could have been any quarterback
Some have admitted that they deflate the balls but, yes, most are silent because they all try to alter the ball in some way
Isn’t that why there are now special ‘kicking’ balls? Some kickers got so good at ‘prepping’ their balls (tee-hee) the league had to put a stop to those measures, which included microwaving and other things.
It’s the nature of pro sports to always test the limits looking for an advantage, they all do it. I think it’s a stretch to call this instance outright cheating but I’m still not a fan of Belichek, Brady. Sorry Lilac, I love you- but Go Hawks!
Yes, Darya, exactly and I am respectful of other fandoms. Hoping for an exciting game and no injuries on either side.
C’mon people–Gisele wants Tommy to have another Super Bowl ring–so lil ole Tommy seems to be trying his best to do what lil ole Gisele wants. Anything to keep the little woman happy! Only ooops he might have gotten caught!!
I can hold up a grapefruit and know it’s lighter in juice weight! Brady knows the tools he works with backwards and forwards. So what about him breaking Joe Montana’s record? I call BS that he knew nothing about the balls and the record. Boy, is he arrogant.
Now Susan, for the rest of the day I’m going to be thinking about you holding grapefruits and measuring their juice!
Now, this is a prime example of first world problems.
I don’t know, the Patriots scored more after the 2nd half. (footballs pulled at halftime to check air) Did they check the other side’s balls also, might be physics of cold/rain in play. Sounds like Brady and his team are just better football players. Congrats to the Seahawks!
Doesn’t matter if they cheat during the Super Bowl, Seahawks are going to kick their butts! 😃 GO HAWKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃
SEAHAWKS!!!!
I just came here to say he’s gorgeous.
You know, it’s funny. I can’t stop staring at his teeth. They are weird – like over whitened and totally distracting. Don’t you think? He is a real teeth-talker….shows all his teeth when he talks. I agree he is good looking but I think I prefer him with his mouth closed. It looks freaky for some reason!
So, he’s pretty, even more so than his wife, but, I have zero respect for him. So, those baby blues and cleft chin can only take him so far.
BTW, Aaron Rodgers also has beautiful eyes , is a phenomenal QB and doesn’t need to cheat.
Go Giants (in 2015) 🙂
Personally, I think the NFL has something to do with the drama of all this. The NFL has not officially announced anything relating to DeflateGate. Everything that has come out (11 of 12 balls underinflated) came from unnamed sources within ESPN. NOTHING has come officially from the NFL investigation. ESPN’s sources aren’t impeccable either. They’ve released 3 different stories for how the underinflated balls were discovered: 1. The Colts equipment manager realized it when the Colts player showed him an intercepted game ball 2. The Colts knew about this from their game with the Pats in November so came into the game looking for underinflated balls and 3. The Ravens tipped them off that the balls might be underinflated. ESPN must be making up stories, right?
I think the NFL is purposefully enhancing the drama of this story by not announcing any concrete facts.
I don’t think the deflation caused them to win. They were so far ahead. They played better. j Don’t like the Patriots but they didn’t win bc of balls size and now their win is tarnished.
However if the other team could easily tell they were uninflated how can the player on the other team NOT notice?
Brady probably didn’t order them to be lighter but he probably noticed and just kept playing assuming no one would know (plus it’s slightly easier to throw)…. it’s like finding $5 bill in an abandoned lot (he took it as a gift but he didn’t look to steal the money). Still what a poor showing by the team. Bad sportsmanship.
I feel like all this takes a little shine off the AMAAAAZING comeback the Seahawks made over the Packers, Sunday. But it’s all good, we’ll beat the Patriots no matter what they do with their balls…..heheh, balls. GO HAWKS!!
The balls will be checked every second and the Patriots will beat the Seahawks. GO PATS!!!!
As a Cowboys fan I was thrilled that the Seahawks beat the Packers. They didn’t earn that win against my CB’S .
Seahawks earn every win. They play like it’s their last game, every game, and they never give it away for free at home. And they’re going to win the superbowl AGAIN! Romo can never do that. Rodgers, maybe, but never Romo.
@koolkitty, she meant the PACKERS didn’t earn their win over the Cowboys. The Seahawks definitely earn every one of their wins, even if it causes heartburn and high blood pressure to the fans watching the game, lol!
Thanks for clarifying, I got it now…I’ve been living on TUMS all season with these guys, I think it’s catching up with me :o)
Go HAWKS!
Too.Many.Jokes.Possible.
He sure is pretty.
I don’t know what Tom Brady knew or felt or didn’t know or feel because I am not Tom Brady. I do think the Center would have more of a feel because his hands are on that ball much longer than the QB’s. All in all it has been a horrid year for the NFL as far as pr goes. If this as serious as the media would have us believe than stop talking and starting doing whatever it is they will do. Don’t wait to hand down a punishment until next year. And of course this is just my opinion!
Everyone stop touching the balls!!
LIAR! Look at him shaking his head no as he talks about believing in fair play. He needs to work on his body language. Also, usually when innocent people are accused of something that didn’t do, they don’t laugh about it, they get indignant or mad or upset and vehemently deny it, I know I would. I’d get pissed if someone accused me of cheating when I didn’t. He doesn’t seem all that up upset about this, and not because he didn’t do it. It doesn’t matter if the deflated balls helped them win or not, breaking a clearly set rule is CHEATING. I loathe to bring up the race card, but yeah, Tom Brady is seen as an all-american boy with the beautiful wife, and Richard Sherman gets called a thug when he yells during an interview after a very heated game. The No Fun League is getting ridiculous and harder to watch with all the crap that’s been going on.
Tom Brady is lying through his teeth. The football is his career and he knows when it’s underinflated. Please! He has more likely been doing this for years. He is a cheat and all his accomplishments will forever be tainted. He wanted an edge so he cheated. This is not his first day at the rodeo. The Patriots have a history.
All teams in all sports have history of cheating. There’s just a spotlight on the teams that win.
Think of it like Lance Armstrong did. Since everyone is cheating you have to cheat just to make the playing field level.
But yea. Pats cheat. Brady is no stranger to it. Let’s just not pretend like they’re the only ones.
I haven’t read all the comments here, so if this has already been said, sorry for the repeat.
The teams inflate their footballs, give them to referees to be tested for complying to rules, and then they are given back to the teams.
Duh. What do you think could happen after that? I am not accusing any player of anything because I really don’t care. But what good does it do to hand the balls back to the teams?
The refs should be the ones to control the balls after that and no one on a team should be able to put a ball into the game except the refs.
If spiking the ball could deflate them at times, then penalize any team whose player spikes a ball and/or immediately remove that ball and put in a new one. In other words, be proactive about what they already know is going on.
I don’t know much about football and I haven’t read all of the posts above me because all the football talk would give me a headache, but why isn’t it policy that the refs continually check the balls throughout the game with a mobile psi tester or whatever?
Because the NFL ignores most of its own rules. The league should do exactly as you ask and ALL QBs alter the ball in some way.
As I said above, if the NFL can prove wrongdoing, do so and access the proper discipline as outlined by that oft-ignored rule book. The penalty BTW is not to void a victory or anything along those lines. This is a minor infraction with a minor penalty. Assess it, pay it, be done with it.
But all this gnashing of teeth and screaming of cheaters as if every other team were innocent victims? Please. Every QB doctors the ball, every team spies on others, and on and on. Not saying it is okay; it isn’t. Not defending it; if it happened it is indefensible, but watching people act as if no other team does such things is hilarious. They ALL cheat; it’s the NFL
Lol…so much venom towards the Patriots here.
GO PATS!!!!!!!!!
The venom won’t stop the Patriots. No way. Can’t wait to see my team win. GO PATS! !!!!!!!
GO SEAHAWKS!!!
Some of us who reside in Costa Rica several months out of the year don’t care for Tom and his wife, but we also reserve the word “venom” when talking about the snakes down here. They both need to go quietly into their Costa Rican jungle.
Here’s a good article that sums up the inflate ball deal.
http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/2015/1/21/7856953/deflategate-new-england-patriots-footballs-nfl-investigation
Full disclosure: I am a Seahawks fan and I REALLY want them to repeat, but hear me out.
I don’t think Brady is at fault. Do I think he could figure it out? Very probably. Companies that manufacture baseball bats have to have machines calibrated several times a day and baseball players have demonstrated their ability to tell if a bat is just a smidgen off. I don’t believe a QB who has been playing professionally for 10+ years couldn’t tell. I also don’t think it’s his responsibility to report it.
I’d bet that Belichek was the man behind the curtain. They didn’t need to cheat, but the story doesn’t add up the way the Pats are telling it. The refs checked the balls two hours in advance and then they’re left largely unguarded. And each team supplies its own balls for offense. And 90% (11/12 balls) were deflated at halftime. That seems odd, to me. That being said, the Colts got blown out any way you slice it. The balls may have been messed with, but it didn’t decide the game. But I do think Belichek has a history of shady behavior and at least one major instance of cheating, so I find it ignorant of him to suddenly act surprised that people doubt his word. And in my experience, culture in a company filters from the top down. If Belichek has no problem cheating (or even “bending” the rules) he’s probably hiring others with a similar attitude.
I wanted to edit this to say, though, that although I think Belichek is shady beyond belief, I don’t hate the Patriots nor do I dislike their fans. At the end of the day it’s just a game. Every team has its problems. I’m not standing here saying that the Pats are dirty, dirty cheaters and everyone else is an angel. I’m just saying I think that the way the Patriots are telling the story doesn’t add up for me.
Also Richard Sherman may run his mouth but he is a good guy. His foundation is dedicated to giving underprivileged kids an equal shake at a good education. He gives backpacks and clothes and school supplies to children who struggle to afford these things so that when they go to school they don’t feel otherized. His mother also worked diligently to take care of the neighborhood kids so that those same kids wouldn’t let Sherman and his brother into gang life. Sherman’s father was a former gang member who now works as a sanitation worker and has spoken many times about why it was so important to him that his kids not participate in the gang lifestyle. Sherman’s dad still works and plans to continue until he hits retirement age so that his son doesn’t have to pay for anything. I can understand feeling that he talks a lot of trash, but welcome to pro sports. Overall Sherman has shown himself to be a good person.
@Anna- bravo for your love of Sherman! I too am a Seahawk fan, and the more I see and hear about the guy the more impressed I am. I’m not usually a big fan of the trash talking loud mouth persona, but because I know in his case there is a smart, talented, charitable guy underneath it all, I’m learning to love it.
Go Hawks!
Except now the NFL is saying that the balls were in the referee’s locker room until 10 minutes before the game. I am a Pats fan, and I really don’t trust the NFL on this, no matter what the truth is. There have been lots of contradictory unofficial leaks. My theory is that Brady likes his balls on the under-inflated side (ha, ha) and they give them to the officials, who rarely check with a gauge (per ball boys making comments in the media). I doubt the refs actually checked ever ball with the gauge, unless this really was some sting operation. It seems pretty risky to deflate all the balls in a 10 minute window with cameras everywhere.
Other QB been have document saying publicly that they like the balls over inflated …just saying.
No, I do not believe Tom Brady. The Patriots have proven themselves willing to cheat to win, more than once. I’m sick of it, and I believe the NFL should void their win. They should have the Ravens and Colts play each other, then the winner should go to the Super Bowl and play Seattle. As long as the NFL slaps them on the wrist every time they pull this kind of SH@T, it is going to continue.
I am not a Seahawks fan, but I would like to see them kick the Patriots A$$E$
Did the NFL test the Colts balls? According to Tom, the NFL hasn’t even spoken to him yet.
I think the NFL has done a piss poor job in handling any of the issues that have put in front of them–domestic violence, head injuries and the players, etc. All the NFL is interested in is to make money, pretty sad for a “nonprofit organization.” The NFL has made this whole thing a joke.
Cannot stand this pretty boy. Period. End of story. I hope Seattle crashes this team. Screw him and his ego.
First of all, Bill Belichick is a known cheater. Cheating accusation have been floating around him for years and he was even once fined $500,000 for spying on the Jets. After the Ravens loss to New England, they too noticed under-inflated balls and went so far as to warn the Colts. Interesting that 11 out of 12 of the Patriots balls were under-inflated, while none of the Colts balls were under-inflated. Cheating? Oh yeah. Would it have made a difference in the game? Doubt it. It’s not like it was 100% passing game. Deflated balls don’t account for the Patriots superior running game. Cheating or not, I think the Patriots would have won anyway. That said, Belichick and Brady are both (obviously) playing dumb and the NFL should at the very least fine them (as they did when they spied on the Jets) and take away one of their draft picks. I guarantee, however, that nothing will be done – if at all – until after the Super Bowl.
No, I do not, this team has a history of cheating.
We will deflate his balls and his team on Feb 1. for repeat win.
GO SEAHAWKS.
Thank you. Once cheaters. always cheaters.
Plus, we all know pretty boy Brady has deflated balls because Giselle carries them in her purse. That ole gag, but it happens to be true.
I’ve read this woman, Eyes for Lies, for years. she is a deception expert who trains law enforcement. She says Brady is lying.
http://www.eyesforlies.com/blog/2015/01/tom-brady-deflate-gate/
So does body language expert Dr. Lillian Glass. Love her!
Call me old fashioned . Rules are rules. I don’t know who knew what about who did what. But it was deliberate and yeah–I think he’s lying.
But then again…I’m a Cowboy fan and I’m STILL pissed about the Dez Bryant catch that wasn’t a catch. But it was the RULES.
So for that….Go Seahawks.
Richard Sherman is hotter, younger and smarter than Brady. Never went for Brady’s pretty boy, vanilla looks. He cheats to win in love and football. End of story.
Agree!
Agree. Belichick also had an affair with a married woman. Brady and Belichik play by their own rules and they get away with it. Sending all my best wishes and energy to the Seahawks – I hope they sack the hell out of Brady and crush the Patriots.
Belichick ALSO had an affair with a married woman? Belichick had an affair? It’s sad, but Tom Brady DIDN’T. You don’t know what you’re talking about, do you?
My feeling? The Patriots lost their right to the benefit of the doubt when they were found cheating a few years back. When you’ve already proven you’re willing to play dirty, why would anyone believe you?
Come to think of it, they got a slap on the wrist for that one, too. I suspect Sherman is right on in his criticism. The financial machine of the NFL is too powerful at this point to care about ethics.
Well said.
don’t watch football
dont care
know nothing about any balls
but saw a bit of his interview and that man is a moron
wow – I am surprised I guess.
dumb wife
dumb husband
kids don’t stand a chance
The equipment guys will take the fall which is bs. Of course Belichick knew, of course Brady knew and the receivers knew, too. Nothing will happen.
This is not the first time the Patriots have been caught cheating and it is time to kick the coach out of the league and suspend Brady, now before the Super Bowl.
Whether or not a correctly aired football would have changed the outcome of the game is irrelevent. It is cheating and there have to be consequences for their actions. An no, no one died, but this sends a message to everyone in sports that cheating is ok in order to win.
Should we throw the Ravens player who gouged Brady in the eye two weeks ago out of the league too? That was against the rules, was cheating, and the team got a yardage penalty for it.
lilacflowers: if the ” gouge” was indeed intentional then the NFL will levy a fine. Just like they fined Brady for his cleats up slide into a Ravens player in a prior game. Brady himself said he was “poked” not “gouged.”
Many teams break the rules. The Seahawks are not innocent. They were found cheating over the years and then last year, were caught cheating at the super bowl. If they can go again, so can the Patriots.
LIES. The Seahawks are perfect angels descended from heaven, and always have been.
How exactly did they cheat….? And I’m not understanding how two wrongs would make a right.
All NFL teams have been found to break various rules – ALL OF THEM. Not saying it is right, it isn’t, or defending any team that does but these claims here that only one team cheats is ridiculous.
With as many times as Belichick and the Pats have been caught doing shady shit, like videotaping opponents pre-Super Bowl practices, I’m amazed anyone expects them to NOT cheat anymore.
It’s quite amusing watching Patriots fans try to defend this by saying Brady didn’t do it himself (of course, he didn’t, but he could have had it done) and that the Patriots would have won anyway. So? That doesn’t absolve them if they cheated. So it’s ok to cheat only if you are good? Absurd.
What’s really amusing is watching people pretend other teams don’t do the same thing and demanding wild over-the-top penalties. The league needs to prove its claim, which it has not done, assess the appropriate fine, which is relatively minor in the rule book, and apply and enforce its rules regularly. If they did wrong, fine them, move on and treat all teams equally. All NFL teams cheat.
@lilacflowers: the league has not proven anything that the public knows of and per the NFL statement , are still investigating.
“All NFL teams cheat.” Here we go, over & over with this comment…losing focus.
This is not about ‘all teams do it’ , is it?
I agree: Once caught and proven guilty the team/player/coach should get punished. The Patriots were severely punished in the past for rule violations as have other teams that have been caught violating the rules.
But: This is about the Pats and the use of balls not in compliance with league rules. That is the only focus as of now.
Quick comments . . .
– there’s no “i” in TEAM so it does not matter if Bill Belichick or Tom Brady knew who deflated the footballs, the TEAM should FORFEIT the game and the COLTS should represent the AFC in the Superbowl.
– this is the 2nd time Bill Belichick’s TEAM, New England Patriots, has been caught CHEATING . . . the NFL should exercise the rule – FOOL me ONCE shame on YOU, FOOL me TWICE, FORFEIT the GAME and the right to play in the Superbowl.
– since the NFL will NOT suspend the game, nor the New England Patriots prior to the Superbowl, the NFL should take a page from NCAA football and basketball where they PENALIZE the New England Patriots by suspending their TEAM from the 2015-16 Playoff season.
I HATE THE PATRIOTS!!!
The rules do not require a forfeit of any game, let alone a season. All NFL teams have been caught cheating more than once.
Nobody wants to see a team win over and over again that isn’t theirs. Not only is Brady braking records, but he’s good looking while doing it. If people don’t want to believe that other teams cheat, they can take a second off from always hating the Patriots and look it up
No team should cheat. Ever. And if they’re caught they should own up to it and take their punishment.
I am shocked at the disregard for poor sportsmanship. If they are found to be cheaters they should suffer the same type of punishment Lance Armstrong did. You can make the same arguments here as you could for him. He probably didn’t need to cheat to win either, but he did. Everyone else did it too, and he got caught. And now he’s poster boy for it too. Yet the Patriots are just victims? Hardly.
Coach Belichick held a press conference yesterday and basically told all the media vultures and Patriots haters to #INFLATETHIS.
He personally conducted testing and research which proved that atmospheric conditions were responsible for the drop in pressure and steadfastly refuted any wrongdoing.
The league must now either prove their allegations or $TFU.
Personally I think that the Patriots should be awarded extra draft picks in order to compensate for the slander and libel they’ve been subjected to.
The league is investigating.
What did you expect the coach to say? His press conference, no matter how angry he was, ends nothing. He’s known for being terse anyway. His testing did not prove “atmospheric conditions were responsible for the drop in pressure” – that is an untruth.
BUT: He said there was some differentiation when there was the 2 PSI difference. Re-watch the video.
And, it isn’t all about ” haters–” that is such a juvenile dismiss of people with a different view.
I don’t think the coach knew or had a part in this but someone did. Unfortunately for the coach, his history and manner work against him ( along with those who do root against the team) but what remains is —the team was punished for breaking the rules in the past and that cloud is likely why some are so vehemently calling them out, they won’t get the benefit of doubt.
Further, Brady can’t have it both ways: he notices and likes the feel at X psi but didn’t dislike or notice the feel at Y psi? Something does not add up and yes,the league will continue to investigate. As they should.
I agree with this comment! Coach Belichick held a press conference yesterday and basically told all the media vultures and Patriots haters to #INFLATETHIS.
He personally conducted testing and research which proved that atmospheric conditions were responsible for the drop in pressure and steadfastly refuted any wrongdoing.
The league must now either prove their allegations or $TFU.
Personally I think that the Patriots should be awarded extra draft picks in order to compensate for the slander and libel they’ve been subjected to.
Because Mr. Belichick is a totally unbiased observer with no stake in the outcome, right?
But perhaps I’m misreading sarcasm.
Funny how the opposing team’s balls were subjected to the same “atmospheric conditions” and their balls were the correct pressure. Each offensive team uses their own balls. Even though it probably wouldn’t have made any difference in the results of the game, it’s still cheating and probably the cover-up is even more interesting. TB’s demeanor at his conference sure points to lying.
his chin-cleft sure is perfect.