Bettis rips Brady on ESPN

Each team supplies 24 balls. 12 are selected by officials as game balls 12 are designated as backups. The refs put the Patriots backup balls in play in the second half. Or so I read on the internet...and we all know the internet would never lie to us.

 

I have a friend who is an attorney for the IRS. Talk about a person you can pick on. One day, while sitting at a bar, there was a group of us, she just blurted out "lie and stick to your story". She wasn't even looking at any of us, she was just staring into space. That has been our battle cry since then. "Lie and stick to your story".

 

Obviously there wasn't a ball boy on the sidelines with an air gage and a needle taking out air. All the balls are inspected by the officials and stamped. Were the balls that were altered stamped? Where are the balls? Why is the wonderful NFL not speaking about it? Oh where or where is Goodell? This might give you all the answer. The liar with Kraft at his home Saturday night before the AFC Championship game. They are bestest friends reports say and old Rog crashes at Kraft's when in NE. Oh, and it looks like Rog had a little urination accident....

 

Someone will get paid off for taking the fall,

 

Imagine if this was in baseball, if one team got to play with scuffed up pitcher's choice balls.... there would be a huge uproar and advantage. The umps feel the balls whenever they want and supply new ones all the time. Still scratching my head as to why the NFL doesn't just send the game balls with the referees to the games. Seems that would alleviate this fiasco.

 

I'm not one for serious conspiracy theories, though I guess we can entertain any ideas after spygate and now this.

However, I think the NFL is in a very difficult position right now PR-wise - far more so than if this was midway through the regular season.

A lot of people don't seem to be buying the "hey guys, it was nothing! Hey - look at that squirrel over there!" approach. Especially given the problems the league has had regarding evidence and punishments this season and before.

But at the same time, the NFL is in a bind about what can happen. They have the Superbowl coming up very soon, which is one of the world's biggest sporting events. It CANNOT be tarnished. So they can't kick up a huge amount of dust if it jeopardises the game. They'll want the story to go away for just that reason. Even if they fine them, or take draft picks, it still suggests they've broken rules which casts doubt over their place in the Superbowl. But at the same time, they have no time for any kind of drawn-out inquiry, and very little space for implementing any response that would be deemed suitable.

I don't envy them, that's for sure.

 

Incidentally, if I was the Seahawks, do you know what I would be doing right now? Making the Colts a very public offer of a 'friendly' match once the season is over. Just to, you know, see who's better after all, if results had turned out differently.

They should be milking this for all the mind games they can going into the big game...

 

Exactly. The NFL is going to get crucified either way. Overall, they have a product to protect, and right now, that product is the Superbowl. They need this to go away, regardless of what happened and how it happened.

 

Not disagreeing with this. All I can say is I remember before a Bears/Packers game they did a little documentary on Aaron Rodgers and his big responsibility of being Brett Favre's backup was to test the footballs pregame for if they were inflated to his liking, buffed properly, the whole 9 yards if you will.

I can't think that the deflated balls played that big of a factor in the game. However to the point that most people are making, cheating is cheating. The NFL isn't going to do anything dramatic about this though. Emperor Goodell will continue his nut sucking of the Patsies and find some way togive them an excuse.

 

Were the balls ever checked again after the game?

There seems to be 2 stories - 1 is the balls were inflated at halftime to proper levels, 2 replacement balls were used (were they checked prior to going into service, I assume so?)

Were the Patriots told about either the swap or the inflation that occurred at halftime?

 

I wouldn't want that.

Finish the season and punish them severely next year. Severely. Heavy fines, draft picks, BB gets 4 games, Brady 8.

But none of that will happen. 4th rd pick and $25,000 is my guess.

 

it matters a bunch and that's how Teams win the Team that can bend and stretch the rules the most are going to win more .

The Pats will do this until it actually cost them something.

 

Every Pats player ever considered for the HOF..... will have a big fat asterisk next to their name forever. As good as Brady has been, I would think this will tarnish his chances of being a 1st ballot HOFer

 

I think the Rats have a bigger gripe. Brady's TD to Gronk in the 3rd Q of that game that tied the score was a quick slant laser throw that was right on target. This is the kind of throw where you would see the most benefit from deflated balls.

On a side note, TTF can we get a deflated football emoticon to pick from? Something tells me that we are going to be writing "deflated balls" a lot over the next several months and an emoticon would really save us a lot of time.

 

We still have no proof they cheated. What if the balls were under inflated before the game and the refs missed it? Is that a possibility? If it is in sure the NFL will look into it. The NFL might have all the evidence, but us fans don't, so I don't see how anyone is calling for anything at this point, let alone disqualifying a team from the Superbowl, which will never, ever happen.

 

Good point, but don't you think that if this was the case the NFL would have come out and said that already? It would be as simple as asking the refs "did you physically measure the PSI of the balls before the game?" The NFL could end and squash this whole controversy in about 3 seconds if this were the case.

 

If that was the case, it would mean that the cheating happened earlier than we thought, and that the refs are either in cahoots (no) or super incompetent liars. I do not subscribe to the theory that the balls somehow got that way on their own. And I believe the ref did inspect them, like normal, a couple hours before the game. No way he makes 11 mistakes. The balls were deflated during the couple hours leading up to the game. You may not believe they cheated, but the circumstantial evidence (which is evidence) is overwhelming. It's completely binding.

 

It's a bit harsh on Irving Fryar, but probably still justified.

 

billicheat and brady BOTH knew what was going on. The NFL knows this, I know this and everyone alive with half a brain knows this. Now some teenager in NE is going to be told he should never do that again and let go. He will find a lot of money soon The NFL will assign ball boys from here on out and that will be it.
UNTIL NE IS STOPPED THEY WILL CONTINUE TO THUMB THEIR NOSES AT THE WORLD. SEND THE COLTS TO THE SUPERBOWL RIGHT NOW AND THE CHEATRIOTS WILL STOP CHEATING

 

Any news on my emoticon request?

 

To be honest I don't think the NFL is to wryd about it.. T hey might say the are, but they havent even came out and made a statement, saying this matter will be settled after the SB.. If I think they are a afraid of what they might find if they try to hard.. . Everyone knows That Tom Brady new what was going on!! but for the NFL to admit that Brady would have to be suspended from the league.. and the NFL just can't allow that to happen with the SB coming up, IMO Lets face nothing gona come of this and what ever the NFL decides to do non of us can do anything abt it .. and in a few weeks later it will be blown over and not talked abt much again,