The Patriots are cheaters!

[buzzcut]

So sez this ESPN article:

Monday, September 10, 2007

Sources: Camera confiscated after claims of Pats spying on Jets

By Chris Mortensen

ESPN.com

NFL security confiscated a video camera and its tape from a New England Patriots employee on the team's sideline during Sunday's game against the Jets in a suspected spying incident, sources said.

The camera and its tape were placed in a sealed box and forwarded to the league office for investigation, the sources said.

"The rule is that no video recording devices of any kind are permitted to be in use in the coaches' booth, on the field, or in the locker room during the game," the league said in a statement from spokesman Greg Aiello. "Clubs have specifically been reminded in the past that the videotaping of an opponent's offensive or defensive signals on the sidelines is prohibited.

"We are looking into whether the Patriots violated this rule."

The Patriots' cameraman was suspected of aiming his camera at the Jets' defensive coaches who were sending signals to their unit on the field, the sources said. The league also is investigating some radio frequency issues that occurred during the game.

The league's competition committee could conduct a conference call about the incident, which violates NFL policy, and ultimately recommend a penalty that could cost the Patriots a future draft pick or picks if it verifies that the team was spying on the Jets.

"It's not their first time," a member of the committee, who did not wish to be identified, said.

In fact, Green Bay Packers president Bob Harlan confirmed a similar incident that occurred when the Patriots played at Lambeau Field last Nov. 19. The same cameraman who was questioned by NFL security on Sunday was also the one whom the Packers removed from the sideline and escorted from the field during their 2006 game, according to Packers security official Doug Collins.

"From what I can remember, he had quite a fit when we took him out," Harlan said. "We had gotten word before the game that they [the Patriots] did this sort of thing, so we were looking for it."

A Jets official declined comment Monday, directing an inquiry to the league office. The Patriots also did not have immediate comment.

"With anything along those lines, those are all league-related matters, and anything that deals with an issue like this or anything on a team-by-team basis, those all go to the league," coach Eric Mangini said in his news conference Monday.

New England cornerback Ellis Hobbs said he was unaware of the controversy, and unwilling to believe his team had cheated.

"We put too many hours in as individuals and a team to have to go out and cheat," he said. "If it's true, obviously, we're in the wrong. But I'm standing behind my team, my coaches. I don't think we do that stuff."

[BB61]

If this were Australia, they'd probably dock them points like they do in NASCAR.

[Audiodrama]

They claim something like this every year against the Pats. Last year it was the Packers making the accusations.

First off, all this information is readily available on tape regardless of whether the Pats filmed it or not. It's not like it's hard information to find. Secondly, the Pats beat the Jets 38-14. If they got any supposed advantage from this "cheating," then the game would've been 38-21. But, I do hear that these tapes make Randy Moss faster and Tom Brady more accurate, so maybe there *is* something to it.

This "scandal" will blow over just like every other one has.

[Brass]

Well said, Unwind. Every year something is brought up against the Patriots and how they "cheat". However, the NFL will probably be harsher on the Patriots now, just like when the Colts said they were sticking them beyond 5 yards and few years, and THEN the refs starting calling it....

[OB33]

Reche Caldwell is shocked by these allegations*!

*-Yes, I know he's not on the team anymore, and these claims are probably untrue or irrelevant but the Colts are still the defending champs so I still get to use this joke. At least I didn't pull out the "Maybe they should've had a camera on Marlin Jackson" joke.

[Brass]

Reche Caldwell is shocked by these allegations*!

*-Yes, I know he's not on the team anymore, and these claims are probably untrue or irrelevant but the Colts are still the defending champs so I still get to use this joke. At least I didn't pull out the "Maybe they should've had a camera on Marlin Jackson" joke.

And at least I didn't pull out the "3 > 1" joke.

[rams80]

Well said, Unwind. Every year something is brought up against the Patriots and how they "cheat". However, the NFL will probably be harsher on the Patriots now, just like when the Colts said they were sticking them beyond 5 yards and few years, and THEN the refs starting calling it....

And every year the Patriots fans act defensive when this happens...

Actually, I'm more mad at my team for not doing the same thing. And I'm not accusing you guys of cheating this way in the Super Bowl (rather, the old-fashioned "mug the Ram receivers after 5 yards and 'whoops, no flag' cheating".)

(Hey, look on the flip side....I was refraining from posting this, and I've known about it since it broke.)

[twi]

I think it's kinda sketchy, but it's the onus on the defense to switch it up, at least signal-wise.

Not surprised Belichick is the coach of the team most accused of this though. Not sure why, and I don't dislike him, just not surprised.

[speedy]

Well said, Unwind. Every year something is brought up against the Patriots and how they "cheat". However, the NFL will probably be harsher on the Patriots now, just like when the Colts said they were sticking them beyond 5 yards and few years, and THEN the refs starting calling it....

And every year the Patriots fans act defensive when this happens...

Actually, I'm more mad at my team for not doing the same thing. And I'm not accusing you guys of cheating this way in the Super Bowl (rather, the old-fashioned "mug the Ram receivers after 5 yards and 'whoops, no flag' cheating".)

(Hey, look on the flip side....I was refraining from posting this, and I've known about it since it broke.)

Still bitter after all these years Rammy? C'mon you're angry at the wrong people, the Patriots didn't beat the Rams in the SB, Mike Martz did.

[rams80]

Well said, Unwind. Every year something is brought up against the Patriots and how they "cheat". However, the NFL will probably be harsher on the Patriots now, just like when the Colts said they were sticking them beyond 5 yards and few years, and THEN the refs starting calling it....

And every year the Patriots fans act defensive when this happens...

Actually, I'm more mad at my team for not doing the same thing. And I'm not accusing you guys of cheating this way in the Super Bowl (rather, the old-fashioned "mug the Ram receivers after 5 yards and 'whoops, no flag' cheating".)

(Hey, look on the flip side....I was refraining from posting this, and I've known about it since it broke.)

Still bitter after all these years Rammy? C'mon you're angry at the wrong people, the Patriots didn't beat the Rams in the SB, Mike Martz did.

I didn't know he played Cornerback and Safety for New England.

[See Red]

I love how Patriots fans get so defensive and act like everybody's against them and then continue on with their "classiest organization in the League" stuff. They've been caught doing it before, and they'll probably be penalized for it this time.

This would have no effect on the game that was being played at the time, so don't bring up the score of this one for arguments sake. It would for the next game that they play against the Jets. And as far as I know, there's no tapes like this "readily available" because CBS or Fox doesn't have their cameraman focusing solely on a guy giving signals. The problem comes with the fact that it's remarkably easier to decipher these things when you have them on tape than it is in real time.

Pats fans, can you, for once, just own up to these things? It's getting ridiculous. "Rodney Harrison took HGH? Yeah... but... um... he was just doing it to recover from a serious injury." -- "We broke NFL rules about taping the other teams signals?... everybody does it, they're just targeting us because they're jealous".

[Mac the Knife]

Whether they were doing it or not, it didn't have any effect on the asskicking they gave the Jets Sunday.

Where's Officer Barbrady when you need him? "Move along ya lookie-loos... nothing to see here, people."

[speedy]

I love how Patriots fans get so defensive and act like everybody's against them and then continue on with their "classiest organization in the League" stuff. They've been caught doing it before, and they'll probably be penalized for it this time.

This would have no effect on the game that was being played at the time, so don't bring up the score of this one for arguments sake. It would for the next game that they play against the Jets. And as far as I know, there's no tapes like this "readily available" because CBS or Fox doesn't have their cameraman focusing solely on a guy giving signals. The problem comes with the fact that it's remarkably easier to decipher these things when you have them on tape than it is in real time.

Pats fans, can you, for once, just own up to these things? It's getting ridiculous. "Rodney Harrison took HGH? Yeah... but... um... he was just doing it to recover from a serious injury." -- "We broke NFL rules about taping the other teams signals?... everybody does it, they're just targeting us because they're jealous".

I don't recall reading any of that in this thread, buddy.

Before continuing, might I add I'm a born and bread Packer fan who likes the Patriots because they're a hometown team (yes, I liked them before the Parcells era), but your whining really irked me. First, yeah, they probably did tape the coach's signals, but your accusations are wrong. They were never caught doing this before, they were accused by the Packers and nothing was proven, so please, when bitching make sure your facts are straight. Secondly, nobody here defended Rodney Harrison, and the line about him doing it just to recover from injury was spat out by him and various media outlets. Thirdly, I don't see anyone around here saying this isn't wrong, they're just not totally buying it. Finally, don't group all Patriot fans in the same boat here, do you enjoy it when people call every Red Sox fan obnoxious and whiny? I don't. So I for one, as a Patriots fan, do think this is a ridiculously stupid thing to do, and am ashamed of the organization. But does this tarnish anything? No. Having the Jets signals aren't going to help against the other 11 teams they play this year, and they clearly didn't need to use these tapes to beat the Jets the first time around.

[Hat Boy]

"claims of Pats spying"

"suspected spying incident"

"We are looking into whether the Patriots violated this rule."

"suspected of aiming his camera"

That doesn't sound like definitive proof to me. All the people that love to point fingers and all the Patriot fans that love to cry "persecution" need to wait until the NFL completes their investigation.

[Coast2CoastAM2006]

new england don't cheat, they just hand out ass kickings.

[speedy]

Some follow up reading, per ESPN...

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3014677

[OB33]

Reche Caldwell is shocked by these allegations*!

*-Yes, I know he's not on the team anymore, and these claims are probably untrue or irrelevant but the Colts are still the defending champs so I still get to use this joke. At least I didn't pull out the "Maybe they should've had a camera on Marlin Jackson" joke.

And at least I didn't pull out the "3 > 1" joke.

What do Tom Brady's girlfriends have to do with this?

I know, that was a lame joke but it was all I could think of.

[Nick 1733]

"The rule is that no video recording devices of any kind are permitted to be in use in the coaches' booth, on the field, or in the locker room during the game," the league said in a statement from spokesman Greg Aiello.

Also, the "cameraman" could easily relay the signals he sees via hand signals of his own to a defensive coach and/or player in real time. There's no need to have a live feed to the coaching booth in order for this to work. Even if he didn't/couldn't communicate the defensive signal for that play he could easily build an understanding of the signals early in the game and relay that information to coaches/players personally for use later in the game. That kind of stuff takes place across the league without the use of video cameras, but regardless, the alleged actions are clearly against the rules

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=301467

Sources: Goodell determines Pats broke rules by taping Jets' signals

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has determined that the New England Patriots violated league rules Sunday when they videotaped defensive signals by the New York Jets' coaches, according to league sources.

NFL spokesman Greg Aiello: "No decision has been rendered, we haven't announced anything and the club hasn't been notified."

NFL security officials confiscated a camera and videotape from Patriots video assistant Matt Estrella on the New England sidelines when it was suspected he was recording the Jets' defensive signals. Sources say the visual evidence confirmed the suspicion.

Goodell is considering severe sanctions, including the possibility of docking the Patriots "multiple draft picks" because it is the competitive violation in the wake of a stern warning to all teams since he became commissioner, the sources said. The Patriots have been suspected in previous incidents.

The Patriots will be allowed an opportunity to present their case by Friday, sources said, most likely via the telephone.

NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said on Tuesday that no official decision has been made and that the club has not been notified.

The league also was reviewing a possible violation into the number of radio frequencies the Patriots were using during Sunday's game, sources said. The team did not have a satisfactory explanation when asked about possible irregularities in its communication setup during the game.

Goodell is expected to have a decision no later than Friday but that is not set in stone.

[udubs03]

They claim something like this every year against the Pats. Last year it was the Packers making the accusations.

First off, all this information is readily available on tape regardless of whether the Pats filmed it or not. It's not like it's hard information to find. Secondly, the Pats beat the Jets 38-14. If they got any supposed advantage from this "cheating," then the game would've been 38-21. But, I do hear that these tapes make Randy Moss faster and Tom Brady more accurate, so maybe there *is* something to it.

This "scandal" will blow over just like every other one has.

I love the "even though they cheated, they still would have won defense"....priceless.

[DEAD!]

You would think with all the technology and money available, the Patriots would have found a BETTER way to spy on the opposition.