A condition the Patriots share with Boehner, McConnell, and the Executive Branch.

So, if they knew that at halftime, why did the refs let them continue to use the balls?

http://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/2015/0...saeO/story.html

I has a confuse. 1) is two pounds that much of a difference (I don't know. Football isn't a sport I follow) and 2) if both teams were playing with balls that supposedly favored the offense, doesn't that mean the Colts also benefited?

This could have been inadvertent, too. What if the balls were inflated indoors, then taken outdoors? Sure the change in temperature changed the PSI of the balls. Boyle's law?

This is turning out to be a colossal mess for the NFL leading up the Super Bowl.

It is becoming pretty clear what happened, now the only question is what the League will do about it.

I will try to summarize:

- Each team presents the Referee with a bag of 12 official balls 2 hours and 15 minutes before game time. (The teams actually receive 24 more balls each week from Wilson, the official supplier, for a total of 36 balls for each game week -- the other 24 are used for practice during the week.) The Referee inspects each ball (including inflation pressure) and puts his own "mark" on each approved ball. This is the set of balls that each team is to use for the game (except for the balls that are used for kicking, they are handled separately, and are also inflated to a higher PSI per regulations).
- The balls are turned over to the "ball boy" for each team, no one is supposed to handle the balls at this point, except to provide them to be introduced into play by the officials (although at times the QB will carry his own ball out on to the field when they take possession).
- The other team doesn't normally have a chance to touch/handle the other team's balls UNLESS there is a fumble or an interception. And that is what kicked this off on Sunday -- the Colts intercepted a ball late in the 1st half, he turned it over to the Colt's equipment manager (to save as a souvenir, you know, Interception in the AFC Championship game). As soon as the equipment guy took possession of the ball, he immediately noticed that it was seriously under inflated (I just did a test with a regulation size football, 2 pounds of PSI makes a noticeable difference!!) and told the head coach, Pagano, about it. (I have also heard that the DB that intercepted the ball also noticed it and told the equipment guy that it seemed 'soft' to him.)
- Pagano let the GM up in the box know what happened via his intercom system. The GM then notified the league.
- The league discovered that 11 of the 12 balls that the Patriots had in their bag were under-inflated by about 2 lbs. psi. (They test all 24 balls at half-time and all 12 of the Colt's balls were properly inflated.)
- We also don't know what the refs did with those balls at half-time. It is assumed that they re-inflated them, but that has not been confirmed. There was also a noticeable delay before the Pats took possession at the start of the 2nd half, the ball was suddenly taken to the sideline for some time, but the TV cameras did not cover what happened, after a pause, a ball was then re-introduced back onto the field.
- There are also reports that the Colts Mike Adams, who picked off Brady twice in their Regular Season game, had noticed something wrong with those balls and the team brought it to the league's attention at the time. Not sure if these reports are confirmed at the moment.
- The only question that we do not know the answer to at the present (I assume that the league knows at this point) is whether or not they switched out the whole bag of balls (if they did, the referee's "mark" would not be on them), or if they opened the bag and deflated the balls. Most people assume that it is the latter, as trying to play a game with balls without the mark would be insanely risky.

That is about all that I know at this point. But the real questions now are:
1. What is the NFL going to do about it?
2. Will they be able to "satisfy" every one enough to be able to diffuse it as an issue.

Everyone agrees that it had no impact on the game, the Pats would have won if they used an old shoe as the football. That is what is maddening about it, there is no reason that the Pats would think that they would need to use those under-inflated balls to win the game against the Colts.... Some speculate that the insanity of the quest to win at all costs has overcome Belichick to the point that he would either approve, or mastermind, a scheme that was totally un-necessary.

But here is the real mess: Super Bowl week starts on Sunday.... How do they minimize the impact of this??

There is a TON of media for the Super Bowl, including many that are not 'sports' reporters and will not fear retribution from Belichick (as do the usual football media) for asking "probing" questions. Belichick (as all coaches are) will be in front of the media several times during this upcoming week, this is no way for him to avoid that. There are also a lot of people around during Super Bowl week that are still ticked off about the prior Pat's cheating scandals. Someone is going to find Mike Martz (former Ram's coach) and ask him what he thinks...... Marshall Faulk (Ram's RB during that Super Bowl (in which the Pats were caught video-taping the Ram's practices during the week before the game)) has also said that "some day I am going to open up about what I really thinks/feels about that game." I am sure that the media will be seeking Faulk's comments as well.

So, this is a giant mess for the NFL, that has been fighting off attacks for the whole season (starting with the Ray Rice situation) and is still in damage control mode to a certain extent.

In my mind they will have to decide what the punishment is going to be (and in their minds have it be "tough enough" to avoid undue scrutiny), and announce it to the world BEFORE either team arrives for Super Bowl Week this coming weekend.

It will certainly be interesting to see what continues to unfold, and how the "world" will react to it.....


f

Zitat

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So, this is a giant mess for the NFL, that has been fighting off attacks for the whole season (starting with the Ray Rice situation) and is still in damage control mode to a certain extent.

In my mind they will have to decide what the punishment is going to be (and in their minds have it be "tough enough" to avoid undue scrutiny), and announce it to the world BEFORE either team arrives for Super Bowl Week this coming weekend.

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What's hard about the punishment ??

The team & coach didn't play by the rules !!

The COLTS win playoff by default .....

Go Andy !!!!



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Quote: FWP wrote in post #8

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Zitat

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So, this is a giant mess for the NFL, that has been fighting off attacks for the whole season (starting with the Ray Rice situation) and is still in damage control mode to a certain extent.

In my mind they will have to decide what the punishment is going to be (and in their minds have it be "tough enough" to avoid undue scrutiny), and announce it to the world BEFORE either team arrives for Super Bowl Week this coming weekend.

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What's hard about the punishment ??

The team & coach didn't play by the rules !!

The COLTS win playoff by default .....

Go Andy !!!!



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It isn't that easy. The "punishments" that can be meted out are not totally arbitrary, a lot of it is collectively bargained, and agreed upon through ownership committees. There are no entries in the current rules and bylaws that prescribe game forfeiture for these types of offenses.

It will probably come down to lost draft picks (some are arguing that the picks taken away from the Pats should be given to the Colts), fines, and possible suspensions (of Belichick, unless it is proven that he had no prior knowledge). I've heard people calling for anything from 2 games to a whole season!! The real question is whether or not they suspend him for the Super Bowl......


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Quote: Sanguine wrote in post #4

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So, if they knew that at halftime, why did the refs let them continue to use the balls?

http://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/2015/0...saeO/story.html

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Oh MY !!!! I better shut up ....right F ??

Bucs QB Johnson paid to have footballs altered before SB 37

http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/bucs/bucs-...e-sb-37/2214490

Four days before the biggest game of his life, quarterback Brad Johnson broke an NFL rule to help the Bucs win Super Bowl XXXVII.

At 34, Johnson had developed a few compulsions during his career. He changed his socks and shoes every quarter, and over the course of a game he replaced everything but his pants. Johnson always sweated profusely, and he liked the clean, dry feeling.

This was particularly true when it came to footballs. He had trouble gripping a wet football, a cold football or a new, out-of-the-box football.

It had been enough of a problem during the NFC title game in Philadelphia the week before — where it was 26 degrees at kickoff — that he was forced to wear a glove.

"I wouldn't have been able to play without it," he said.

At the Super Bowl, the NFL had 100 footballs. They were new, slick and supposedly under the league's watchful eye. But not leaving anything to chance, Johnson made sure the balls were scuffed and ready well before the Dixie Chicks sang the national anthem.

"I paid some guys off to get the balls right," Johnson now admits. "I went and got all 100 footballs, and they took care of all of them."

How much did it cost Johnson? "Seventy-five hundred (dollars)," he said.

"They took care of them."

Johnson made the revelation several years ago, prior to the 10-year reunion of the Bucs' Super Bowl champion team.

The NFL has found that 11 of 12 of the New England Patriots game balls were inflated significantly less than the NFL requires in Sunday's AFC Championship win over the Colts, ESPN's Chris Mortensen reported.

Prior to the championship game, the game balls provided to each team for preparation were inspected and approved by referee Walt Anderson two hours and 15 minutes before kickoff before they were returned to a ball attendant before the game, Mortensen reported.

Prior to the Super Bowl, the NFL was in custody of the 100 footballs until the start of the game, Johnson said.

The difference, of course, is that both teams used the same footballs in the Super Bowl. But the point is, quarterbacks want to control the feel and grip of the football and will do anything to ensure they are taken care of. For the record, Raiders QB Rich Gannon threw five interceptions in Super Bowl XXXVII.



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Quote: Cyber Liberty wrote in post #6

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I has a confuse. 1) is two pounds that much of a difference (I don't know. Football isn't a sport I follow) and 2) if both teams were playing with balls that supposedly favored the offense, doesn't that mean the Colts also benefited?

This could have been inadvertent, too. What if the balls were inflated indoors, then taken outdoors? Sure the change in temperature changed the PSI of the balls. Boyle's law?

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Quote: FWP wrote in post #11

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Oh MY !!!! I better shut up ....right F ??

Bucs QB Johnson paid to have footballs altered before SB 37

http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/bucs/bucs-...e-sb-37/2214490


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Quote: Cyber Liberty wrote in post #12

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Quote: Cyber Liberty wrote in post #6

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I has a confuse. 1) is two pounds that much of a difference (I don't know. Football isn't a sport I follow) and 2) if both teams were playing with balls that supposedly favored the offense, doesn't that mean the Colts also benefited?

This could have been inadvertent, too. What if the balls were inflated indoors, then taken outdoors? Sure the change in temperature changed the PSI of the balls. Boyle's law?

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Story that supports my theory it was just a temperature variation.

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A Dali take on it!!