PATRIOTS SHOULD BE FLAGGED …
|| By FITSNEWS || The National Football League has determined that eleven of twelve game balls used by the New England Patriots during this year’s AFC championship game were “inflated significantly below the (league’s) requirements.”
Specifically, the Patriots’ balls were determined to have been at least two pounds per square inch below league specifications – which call for them to be inflated between 12.5 and 13.5 pounds per square inch (and weigh between 14 and 15 ounces).
The Patriots’ balls were inspected (don’t laugh) by NFL referee Walt Anderson roughly two-and-a-half hours before kickoff – and deemed to have been up in compliance. Anderson marked the balls to signify their readiness for play and returned them to the team. And of course the NFL forbids teams from altering game balls in any way once they have been marked for play.
Fast forward to the second quarter of the championship game – in which the Patriots handily defeated our founding editor’s beloved Indianapolis Colts 45-7.
With the Patriots leading 14-0, Colts’ linebacker D’Qwell Jackson intercepted a pass from Patriots’ quarterback Tom Brady. After returning to the sideline, Jackson gave the football to a member of the Colts equipment staff, who noticed it wasn’t properly inflated.
That prompted the league’s investigation – which is now attempting to determine exactly how all but one of the Patriots’ balls wound up being deflated in the period leading up to kickoff.
Why would a team take some air out of its footballs?
Under-inflated balls are easier for players to grip – especially in slick, rainy conditions like those that prevailed at Gillette Stadium on Sunday evening. They’re also easier for wide receivers and running backs to catch. Brady has made his preference for under-inflated footballs well known, telling a New England radio station in 2011 “I like the deflated ball.”
Now – assuming the Patriots deliberately under-inflated their footballs, did these actions contribute to the outcome of the game? Yes. Of course they did.
Did they change the outcome of the game? That’s unlikely. The Colts simply couldn’t generate any offense, nor were they able to contain the Patriots’ ground game – which is far less prone to the impact of manipulated footballs.
“They could have played with soap for balls and beat us,” Colts’ tight end (and former Clemson University star) Dwayne Allen tweeted. “Simply the better team.”
He’s right … but that’s what makes the Patriots’ latest alleged cheating incident so disturbing: They didn’t have to do it.
In 2007 the NFL fined New England head coach Bill Belichick $500,000 for his role in “spy-gate” – a scandal in which the Patriots were found to have illegally videotaped the New York Jets’ defensive coaches’ signals. The team was fined another $250,000 and docked its first round pick in the 2008 NFL draft as a result of the scandal – which allegedly involved a long-standing team practice.
We wonder … how long have the Patriots been deflating balls? Because similar allegations surfaced back in November when the Colts played in New England.
Bottom line? The Patriots have a history of cheating – one that appears to be alive and well.
And that’s disappointing …
New England is – year-in, year-out – one of the most talented teams in the league. And Brady is without question one of the greatest quarterbacks in the history of the league (and hands-down the NFL’s best-ever post-season passer).
But the Patriots continue to sully the integrity of the game with their unnecessary and unsportsmanlike efforts to gain an unfair competitive advantage.
RAPID REACTION
@fitsnews bias in journalism alive and well at Fits, yell if your shocked,(crickets)
— Tim Sweeney (@KelticSC) January 21, 2015
@fitsnews @KelticSC @Colts @Patriots You're still biased. Just transparent about it. Which is really all anyone should ask of journalists.
— bryan wendland (@bryan_wendland) January 21, 2015
75 comments
Carroll vs Belichick…. 2 of the biggest cheaters in the game.
Liberal will b!*ch like a MoFo when the people you hate kick the F*#k out of your ignorant #$$#$…
Like you do, all the time, everyday?
Hey, isn’t Romney from New England – that guy that was gonna win the last Presidential election in landslide? Go back to Crapville TV.
It’s funny that both of these guys were caught with their pants down, and people still get mad when you say that.
When did Carroll ever cheat? Yeah we’ve had a few drug suspensions (in PREVIOUS years), but just go ahead and ignore all of the other teams that have more of those than us. And refs OBVIOUSLY aren’t on our side *cough* most penalized team in the entire league *Cough.* It has also been looked at that the Seahawks literally – as a fact, not just an opinion of a fan – have the highest amount of bad called made AGAINST them over any other team. Yes, we’re so good that we can still win even when being cheated. Does that mean we’re cheating? Not a chance.
When did Pete Carroll ever cheat? Are you kidding me? Google “Pete Carroll’s legacy at USC”.
Let me know what you uncover.
smh
I don’t follow college football so that would be why I don’t know of that – and in any case, he doesn’t cheat as a Seahawk and that’s all that matters right now. We play fair, hard football… vs Bill who… well…
No, his cheating legacy is from college. As a NFL coach, he hasn’t done anything. My personal opinion is that he’s overrated and gets a lot of credit for having the best GM outside of Baltimore and New England, but he is a good personnel coach and manages the team well.
LOL … FITS humor …
From now on, they’ll have the stigma as a team of cheaters. It won’t go away.
One can only hope.
When liberals get your @$$#S kicked…you simply try to smear the @$$ kicker…Why is that?
Remember when you whined that not enough people voted in Nov., 2014?
I didn’t say that. Stop, drop and shut the hell up… Crazy bastard.
Not having the slightest interest in the game’s outcome, I’ll have to confess some measure of reluctant admiration. You’ve got to appreciate anyone shrewd enough to think of letting a little air out of the ball & almost getting away with it.. It’s like putting too much pine tar on a baseball bat. It’s not a steroid stoked players cold-cocking his girlfriend, betting against his team …. or torturing his dogs to death. This is nothing more than a good case of ‘boys will be boys’ & I kind of like it.
There are just many unwritten rules that are hard and fast. One of them is that Liberals and the media (synonymous) HATE the Patriots…and Bellicheck.
So when you you get your @$$#$ kicked by a team you hate…like everything else, you have to make up some lame F*#king excuse…(Remember FITS whining that not enough people voted in Nov. 2014, when Obama got the S#!* kicked out of him?)
And this is just another case..
The same was true about Tebow. You HATED him because he was a Christian, white, and probably the best college player ever…
So you all claimed he had a bad mechanics…and despite an 8-2 record, and completely turning around the Broncos from 1-7…they benched him…That fool (and very sorry-a$$#d coach) Rex Ryan even got to stay in his job way too long for doing the dirty work…
And liberals, idiots and Christian-hating bigots like FITS squealed w/ delight…
You liberals DESTROY all that you touch..and you are bound and determined to do that the NFL…
One of your best ever. You identified the problem in our culture today.
Liberalism=Bigots=Christian haters.
Professional sports today mirrors the disintegration of the moral in our society today. ESPN has become a forum for racists and the LGBT-with occasional sports programming.
Yes, we’re all bigots, not you, who openly calls people “faggots” on here.
Suuuuuuuuuuuuuuure….
Not all liberals are ‘bigots’. You are, not all. Your regular mocking of Christians and people of faith in fact puts you at the top of list on FITS .
p.s. don’t get excited-you are tied for 1st.
Flip, I feel confident that if you and I showed up infront of St. Peter together, one of us would get in, the other would get their ass kicked. And BTW – I’m not helping you out – you fight St. Peter on your own.
Not my calling to decide who gets into Heaven, Rocky. Above my pay grade.
I just show up everyday to fight evil-and you are evil. :-)
It’s one agenda to another. Reality means nothing to them…from Hands up, to telling people who don’t beat women that domestic violence is our fault..Bunch of F*#king idiots…and the NFL lets them do it….
“here are just many unwritten rules that are hard and fast. One of them is that Liberals and the media (synonymous) HATE the Patriots…and Bellicheck.”
Well that doesn’t make a whole lot of sense, does it? Being that the Patriots are based out of one of the most liberal states in the country, why would liberals hate their own home state’s football team?
You’re just not that smart are you?
The Patriots, CHEATING?! How DARE you insinuate such a thing! It’s not like they’ve been caught before or someth…
Better question why do all liberal outside of the state of Mass, hate the Patriots. I think I know why…but why do you ALL march in lockstep against them???…can you tell me your idea as to why???
…because they cheat?
Come on, dude, if Clemson deflated the footballs when playing against Carolina you’d be popping blood vessels on here.
Actually, you Clemson fans are about as ignorant as the fans claiming the Patriots cheat, after they kick your @$$#$…
you Clemson fans
Psst! Dude, I’m not a Clemson fan, never have been, never will be.
I’m not even sure why I’m bothering with you, honestly. Whatever. Have fun with your EEVIL LIBRULS HATE PATRIOTS motif.
Yeah, I know…You’re not an Obama-mite either..no matter how much you sound like one…LMAO…
Liberals always de-claim your gods when called out for their failure…
Haley’s a Clemson fan. I guess she’s librul too.
I’m just saying they are always making excuses when they lose…just like you…Dumb@$$…Can you not read????
The Liberals Hate the Pats motif… only slightly less bizarre than the Tim Tebow obsession. Creepy.
Nothing matches your obsession w/ me…I’ve rendered you irrelevant and worthless. …you think of nothing but what I say….
Really, the only people who care about Tebow anymore are the religious right who still get boners about his public displays of faith. All this conspiracy crap about him getting “forced out” by the “god-hating NFL” is really ridiculous. The dude played great in college football and was mediocre in the NFL. Athletes like that are a dime a dozen.
You’d really think people would be over Tebow by now, but some people just can’t get over that victimhood mentality.
Seriously. If he was any good, do you think anyone in the NFL would care that he is a Christian? Hell, Russell Wilson talked about God for a full 10 minutes after the Seahawks win Sunday.
That being said, I think GT’s mancrush is kind of sweet.
Russell Wilson talked about God for a full 10 minutes after the Seahawks win
TBG is upset that God abandoned the Packers late in the fourth quarter…
You are right, but Tebow drew in the viewers. You would think the NFL would try to find some way to capitalize on that.
Yeah, they overlook that he had the worst throwing arm in the NFL. In a game that requires a quick snap and a fast release, he threw the football like he was pitching a baseball.
You said you used your Obamacare last week…sex change?
Nah, that’s what you did when you changed your name from Sandi to Flip.
Sandi? Another one of your obsessions?
TBG (not a liberal, btw) absolutely hates the Patriots motif.
Liked the old motif of the Patriot in the point stance from back in the day, though.
I’m a Carolina fan. I share none of the views that GrandTango is posting, they’re quite embarrassing to me. I’ve yet to meet a “liberal” or “conservative” football team. We also have a grand total of five or Patriots fans here, so I’ll probably run into GrandTango without even realizing it, and it will probably be at Wild Wings using a Tom Brady fathead as a dinner bib.
But I’ve met a Lot of weak-minded liberal F*#ks who have trouble w/ comprehension and reasoning…The liberal media, pretty much in lockstep, goes after (constantly and gratuitously criticizes) the Patriots routinely…
If you don’t know that you don’t watch the NFL pre-game shows or SportsCenter, Dumb@$$…
lulz..they “go after” a football team based in one of the most liberal state in America, whose owner is an Obama supporter.
You just aren’t that smart, are you?
You are a F*#king detached Idiot if you don’t think the media is going after the Patriots, and blowing this NOTHING into a big deal, because they are P!@$$#d Bellicheck and the Patriots are back in the SuperBowl…They CANNOT stand it…
If New England beats Seattle, they will become unhinged..and try ANYTHING and EVERYTHING to diminish it (they already are) …That’s what liberals do when they lose…You CANNOT be that STUPID, not to know that…
You’re funny, dude. They should put you in a museum somewhere. I hear if you say the words “liberal media” three times in a mirror, Don Lemon will appear and turn all the crosses in your house upside down.
Don;t be so butthurt, GT. You couldn’t get accepted to walk in the door of Clemson University, much less to attend any of it’s colleges.
You’re just not too smart, are you fat guy?
Limp balls in New England. Guess we know where Mitt his this week.
TBG, a lifelong Raider fan, hates them because of the “Tuck Rule” game. The Raiders should have won the Super bowl that year and the past dozen years of abject suckered track back directly to that game.
Admittedly, the NFL, itself, is more at fault than the Patriot franchise..
If they want to lay down the law, they just need to sit Belichick for the game… financial penalties and draft picks don’t seem to affect him. The coach is responsible for all actions by his team during a game, if they’re going to cheat then let the coach sit and watch the SuperBowl from his living room.
Or better yet, make him wear a sweatshirt WITH SLEEVES for an entire season.
What? Wait, no, they can’t do that! Bill! Get out of there, Bill!
“But the Patriots continue to sully the integrity of the game”…
Sorry FITS but the NFL has long had NO integrity in their game.
How much longer before FITS and Obama are telling us the name PATRIOTS is offensive..and the gov’t tries to make them stop using it???
Sounds kooky…but so did Obamacare and changing the definition of marriage for a small gaggle of political special interests…
PS: wonder if the New England received an automatic audit from Obama’s IRS like any other group with “Patriots” in their name, did? Even Francis Marion University ain’t safe under these Anti-American B@$t@*ds….
I am going to have to say no, probably not, based on 2012 donations. It’s Daniel Snyder who may need to worry.
Robert Kraft (Owner, New England Patriots) – Obama $22,900; Democratic National Committee $12,900
And look how much good it’s doing him…
It might be a good idea for the media to get wind of this…or maybe Bellicheck or Brady can drop a check down to the DNC, The Birth Certificate Creation Fund …..r the Bill and Hillary Foundation for the Legal Defense of Rape and Harassment Charges…
Yes, there are better ways to spend your money, like perhaps an air pump and some inflating needles. Here is the complete list from which I got that info:
http://thebiglead.com/2012/11/06/nfl-political-donations-jerry-jones-and-daniel-snyder-gave-to-mitt-romney-mike-tomlin-to-barack-obama/
Get F*#ked Dumb@$$…when you lose, STFU – and take it like a man…..
A loser looks bad enough…F*#king whining like a baby makes you look doubly STUPID….
Seriously, you have huge issues. tt’s a freakin’ game. It lasts 60 minutes. Three hours and fifteen minutes with commercials. Can’t you even learn how to enjoy life?
I enjoy life by calling out ignorant F*#ks like you…Not enough people do it…and it makes me unique…You on the other hand are a cliché and a lemming ….You’re simple-minded and there is not much to you.
Pseudo cussing on the internet is what you enjoy?
Wow. You just aren’t that smart, are you?
You cared until you found out that Kraft gave to Obama, which debunked your audit argument. So wrong again. STFU
P.S. Tim Tebow is not an NFL QB b/c he is not an NFL QB. Period.
I still don’t care that who gave to Obama, you Brain-less liberal F*#k…People do that for a vast array of reasons…
Everything I said about the lockstep ideology of the media, their targets and their enemies, I still get sick of, and care about…
Your problem is that you’re SO fixated on me…you can’t offer anything of value or substance….You’re worthless as a contributor to the debate because of your ignorance and irrational hate, contempt and hostility…
You know Bob Kraft is an Obama guy, right?
Who cares, you F*#king idiot…Does that make you not an ignorant F*#k all of the sudden???…NO!!!!
The Patriots ARE offensive. They cheat at sports. Your defense of their actions is offensive.
When your liberal myths are not fulfilled, or your corrupt and immoral prophets prove false…you always whine and make excuses like the Dumb F*#k you are….
Are they sure it was air in the balls? It might have been helium.
The Patriots have been caught cheating again. No one should be surprised. The Colts complained about deflated balls in an earlier game this season. All of the Patriot’s wins are tainted. I guess they aren’t as good as they claim to be.
Does Nikki favor limp balls? Just asking.
Fact: First half balls were deflated a bit. The score was Colts 7, Patriots 17.
Second half the balls were all up to sniff. Score for second half Colts 0, Patriots 28.
Someone screwed up by deflating the balls.
Yes liberals, “YOU can’t handle the facts.”
Deflated Balls kill your momentum.
Trending on ESPN: #ballghazi
Tom Brady: the Richard Nixon of football.