As expected, the NFL has suspended New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and imposed team sanctions for “deflategate.” As we discussed this week, the NFL investigation found rejected the claims of innocence in all of the balls being deflated after inspection in the New England’s AFC title game against Indianapolis in January. The NFL report stated “We found these claims not plausible and contradicted by other evidence.” The report found that Brady “was at least generally aware” of all the plans to prepare the balls to his liking and that it was “more probable than not” that two Patriots employees – officials’ locker room attendant Jim McNally and equipment assistant John Jastremski – carried out the plan. McNally is accused of demanding expensive shoes and signed footballs, jerseys and cash. Now, Don Yee, the agent for New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, has lashed out at the NFL and suggested a bizarre pre-game collusion between the NFL and the Colts.
The sanction against the team is tough, though some felt that Brady should have been banned for the year. Most people agree that the deflation of these balls were not some colossal coincidence but an act of cheating by a team that has a checkered history of violations. Indeed, the Patriots are viewed by some of having a problematic team culture in terms of allegations of cheating. That may have deepened the resolve of the NFL to come down hard in this case. The Patriots will lose their first-round selection in the 2016 NFL Draft and fourth-round selection in the 2017 draft. The team will also pay a $1 million fine and locker room attendant Jim McNally and equipment assistant John Jastremski have been indefinitely suspended. However, it was the four game suspension of Brady that was the step too far for Yee.
Yee insisted that Brady did cooperate with the investigation and that the investigation lacked standards and objectivity. However it is this ditty that most surprised me:
“The report also presents significant evidence the NFL participated with the Colts in some type of pre-AFC Championship Game planning regarding the footballs. This fact may raise serious questions about the integrity of the games we view on Sundays.”
What exactly does that suggest? It sounds like Yee is alleging a trap set for the Patriots and Brady. That seems more than paranoia. It seems positively delusional.
Yee then states “[t]he NFL has a well-documented history of making poor disciplinary decisions that often are overturned.” Of course, the Patriots have their now damning history of cheating that makes the teams a recidivist in the eyes of many football fans. If one assumes that this was no coincidence and that the balls were intentionally deflated for a quarterback who previously stated a preference for under-inflated balls, it does not matter that the Patriots were clearly the stronger team in the championship game. It was an act of cheating. The team sanctions in that sense are unassailable except to the extent that they are viewed as too lenient. The report clearly does not include smoking gun piece of evidence tying Brady to the deflation. However, absent a confession, it was unlikely to find such evidence. The assumption is that the deflation was not just done for Brady (who will be unpaid for the four games) but that he had to notice the difference (as other players and the referees). It also did not help that Brady not only called the whole matter “ridiculous” and denied any knowledge of pressure issues related to the balls — a press conference people found highly implausible and evasive. Nevertheless, that case against Brady is clearly a circumstantial case however.
Yee accused the NFL of “playing games on Park Avenue” but fails to explain what the point of this game would be. It is hard to believe that the NFL relishes such actions. The question is what is to be done when there is strong circumstantial evidence of cheating.
What do you think?
Here is the entire Yee statement:
“The discipline is ridiculous and has no legitimate basis. In my opinion, this outcome was pre-determined; there was no fairness in the Wells investigation whatsoever. There is no evidence that Tom directed footballs be set at pressures below the allowable limits. In fact, the evidence shows Tom clearly emphasized that footballs be set at pressures within the rules. Tom also cooperated with the investigation and answered every question presented to him. The Wells Report presents significant evidence, however, that the NFL lacks standards or protocols with respect to its handling of footballs prior to games; this is not the fault of Tom or the Patriots. The report also presents significant evidence the NFL participated with the Colts in some type of pre-AFC Championship Game planning regarding the footballs. This fact may raise serious questions about the integrity of the games we view on Sundays. We will appeal, and if the hearing officer is completely independent and neutral, I am very confident the Wells Report will be exposed as an incredibly frail exercise in fact-finding and logic. The NFL has a well-documented history of making poor disciplinary decisions that often are overturned when truly independent and neutral judges or arbitrators preside, and a former federal judge has found the commissioner has abused his discretion in the past, so this outcome does not surprise me. Sadly, today’s decision diminishes the NFL as it tells its fans, players and coaches that the games on the field don’t count as much as the games played on Park Avenue.”
They could sentence him to house arrest.
Which I’ve shown you can’t prove.
Be serious, you read one article which reinforced your pre-existing beliefs. You act as if any criticism of process is fatal. I remember “Was it calibrated?” from My Cousin Vinny.
Rick,
Your premise is based on there being wrong doing. Which I’ve shown you can’t prove. I’ve shown you that the gauges did not read the same and the ref does not know which one he used.He believes he used the higher reading one which would mean the Patriots did nothing wrong and the NFL has egg on their face. so the investigator assumes that he used the lower reading one which fits the NFL’s preconceived guilt of the Patriots. This doesn’t bother you? I’m not sure why you want to ignore it.
Jim22,
The argument that deflating the footballs doesn’t deserve this punishment is stronger than the argument the Patriots didn’t deflate the footballs. This punishment is stronger than I expected, perhaps in part because this is the second infraction they’ve been punished for.
Ultimately I think it’s inappropriate to accept the pro-Patriot position because they had the benefit of the advantage. If the advantage was effectively nothing as the pro-Patriot position holds the Patriots should not have tampered with the ball. This was their choice, and if the team made a poor decision they and no one else bear the responsibility.
Making risky decisions for very small advantage is not out of line with Patriots philosophy. After spygate Robert Kraft asked Belichick how much an advantage this gave the team. Belichick responded 1%, after which Kraft responded “So why did we do it?”.
Here we see them going through the same evaluation and reaching the same conclusion, yet somehow Patriot defenders seem to think this demonstrates they wouldn’t take such an action.
Rick,- “Each official had his own gauge in accordance with established procedure and noted small differences. ”
But he doesn’t know what gauge he had. You told me that these gauges are calibrated, it appears they aren’t. The “small differences” is the amount that they are accused of. And, the ref can’t even tell what gauge he used. Are you just ignoring all of this?
“UPDATE 1:25 p.m. ET: As to Anderson’s recollection regarding the gauge used to set the PSI levels before kickoff, his “best recollection” is that he used the gauge with the logo, which generates higher numbers. But he conceded that it’s “certainly possible” he used the other gauge, and the Wells report concludes that he did.”
You have no case here because do NOT know the pressure in the balls before the game started. the ref admits it. What else do you need?
Jim22
This guy sums up all of my thoughts.
http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2015/05/10/is-football-inflation-a-big-deal-its-too-late-for-the-nfl-to-say-it-isnt/
This is a switch from “it didn’t happen” to “it’s not a big deal”, which is an admission they did deflate the footballs. More on this in a separate comment.
“First, the officials had two pressure gauges available — and those pressure gauges generated very different measurements.
Each official had his own gauge in accordance with established procedure and noted small differences.
You need to face the fact that the NFL is the problem here, not the Patriots. It was a stupid rule that no one cared about because it has/had no bearing on a game.
The NFL erred in believing teams wouldn’t tamper with the footballs. The tamperers still bear primary responsibility.
bambam, You really believe that a PSI in a football is hurting the “integrity” of the game vs. all of the other issues going on with the NFL? A PSI is as important as having pine tar 1 inch over the rule on a bat. Integrity and professional sports do not exist. It’s all about the money.
Jim22
What all of this boils down to is one thing: the integrity of the game. Like many others, I happen to enjoy watching sports, where the bats haven’t been corked or the pressure of the footballs hasn’t been compromised. If that’s no big deal to you, perhaps you should partake in viewing wrestling. At least one is under no delusions that the spectacle is anything other than a staged and fake event. Not my cup of tea, but it may be great for those where fairness and honesty in a sport are not critical.
Rick,
Video of the very scientific methodology used by refs to inflate footballs on game day.
http://mmqb.si.com/2015/01/22/deflategate-video-how-nfl-officials-check-game-ball-pressure/
You need to face the fact that the NFL is the problem here, not the Patriots. It was a stupid rule that no one cared about because it has/had no bearing on a game.
The ref in the championship game can’t even tell you what “calibrated” gauge he used to start the game. To me, the argument is over.
Rick,
This guy sums up all of my thoughts.
http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2015/05/10/is-football-inflation-a-big-deal-its-too-late-for-the-nfl-to-say-it-isnt/
and… It would seem you are wrong about the gauges.
“First, the officials had two pressure gauges available — and those pressure gauges generated very different measurements.
One gauge had a Wilson logo on the back. The other didn’t. One had an obviously crooked needle. The other didn’t.
The gauge with the Wilson logo and the longer, crooked needle typically generated higher readings, in the range of 0.3 to 0.45 PSI.
The measurements taken at halftime of the AFC title game by the two available gauges demonstrated this reality. Here’s the gap in PSI for each of the 11 Patriots footballs, based on the two gauges: (1) 0.3 PSI; (2) 0.35 PSI; (3) 0.35 PSI; (4) 0.3 PSI; (5) 0.35 PSI; (6) 0.35 PSI; (7) 0.45 PSI; (8) 0.45 PSI; (9) 0.4 PSI; (10) 0.4 PSI; and (11) 0.45 PSI.
Second, referee Walt Anderson doesn’t recall which gauge he used to measure PSI at the start of the game.
The absence of a documentation regarding the air pressure in the Patriots footballs prior to kickoff can be justified by Anderson’s clear recollection that he ensured each ball was set to 12.5 PSI. However, Anderson doesn’t clearly recall whether he used the gauge that generates the higher measurement or the one that generates the lower measurement.”
http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2015/05/10/pressure-gauge-discrepancies-undermine-wells-report/
And yet you are convinced that the Patriots are guilty? I’m the one with issues?
Jim22 Said:
“[t]hat a football games outcome can be determined by a PSI in the ball, then the NFL has bigger problems than the Patriots.”
Not to mention the owners are wasting millions each year on their players.
I wouldn’t have turned over my cell phone either. Cell phones contain not just private conversations but, at times, intimate musings between people. Can you imagine if Brady had handed over his phone? Within a week, text conversations between him and his wife and who knows who else would be available for public consumption — not just embarrassing to him, but to whoever was on the other end of those conversation. A cell phone in this day and age id a key to some of your most private thoughts. Pee in a cup, take other drug test, and now give us your cell phone. Nonsense.
Shadow – I agree with you. Just because you don’t turn your phone over doesn’t mean you are guilty, just that you didn’t turn your phone over.
bam bam, So how many games should have George Brett been suspended for, for the famous pine tar incident? How much money should he have been fined. Should have the Royals lost draft picks or minor league players? Baseball initially took the home run away and gave the Yanks the win. They later came to their senses and realized the rule was asinine and had no effect on the game and reversed their initial decision. Football should have gotten in front of this and said that they blew it and will now keep better track of football pressures.
Cheating goes on in every game of every sport. If you don’t think so, then why do we need ref/umps/officials?
I am with Yee on this one. The NFL does have a history of being over ruled. The penalty is too harsh.
Jim22
1. The balls were initially properly inflated.
By who? Was it documented? By what gages? Where the gauges calibrated and certified ?
By the referees, and yes it was documented. The rest of your questions are irrelevant.
2. The person who refers to himself as “The Deflator” was the only person in possession of the football outside the presence of numerous others.
How is this possible since the balls where used for the first half of the game.
There weren’t numerous others witnessing this usage?
3. Sometime after #2 the footballs were found to contain less air.
Same gauges used in #1? where the results documented?
In fact they were. Both these facts were covered extensively in various news reports. It’s quite revealing you’re so insistent there can’t be any evidence the team tampered with the footballs yet you have zero knowledge of even the most basic facts about the investigation.
4. Scientific evaluation has ruled out the possibility the volume of air loss could have occurred naturally.
Still see no proof of anything.
And it seems quite clear you never will. Nevertheless there is no doubt among reasonable people they deflated the ball.
Jim22
It’s about cheating, whether that cheating is in the form of manipulating footballs, using performance enhancing drugs or blatantly lying and misrepresenting one’s credentials in order to obtain a job. Lying and cheating have consequences. Learn to follow the bouncing ball.
Rick,
1. The balls were initially properly inflated.
By who? Was it documented? By what gages? Where the gauges calibrated and certified ?
2. The person who refers to himself as “The Deflator” was the only person in possession of the football outside the presence of numerous others.
How is this possible since the balls where used for the first half of the game.
3. Sometime after #2 the footballs were found to contain less air.
Same gauges used in #1? where the results documented?
4. Scientific evaluation has ruled out the possibility the volume of air loss could have occurred naturally.
Still see no proof of anything.
bam bam, Moral equivalency of a football being a psi to low is the same as Lance Armstrong taking PHD’s shows just how stupid this whole topic is. If you really believe this, that a football games outcome can be determined by a PSI in the ball, then the NFL has bigger problems than the Patriots.
So, correct me if I’m wrong:
Football’s Golden Boy, with the innocent face and toothy grin, gets a four game suspension for, what is tantamount to, cheating during an NFL game? Would the repercussions have been more severe if he weren’t such an important and valuable member of the team? What message does this send, especially to our young? Cheat, and if you’re caught, the consequences will be so minimal that you will hardly notice a difference in your 26.5 million dollar salary? Compare this situation with what happened to Lance Armstrong. He cheated and was stripped of titles and endorsements. How is this any different? Oh, yeah, I forgot. Brady is cute, married to a former supermodel and extremely valuable to the organization.
I once read an article about a major corporation, which was doing quite poorly. If my memory is correct, it may have been Radio Shack, but, honestly, it is somewhat hazy. A CEO was hired, and he managed to, basically, turn the company around. What once had been a flailing and sinking corporation, the new CEO had now managed to transform into a profitable and successful organization. Ok, here’s the bad part: it was revealed that the CEO had lied about his education on his resume. I think, if I recall correctly, that he had lied about having an MBA. This was discovered, apparently, only AFTER all the good that he had accomplished for the sinking company. He was terminated. Despite the CEO’s stellar performance, all trust in that individual had been lost.
This diversion into sanctioned monopoly, meanwhile, takes our collective eye off more important matters like a President who argues he won’t opt to use what he implies is a Draconian provision of the TPP during his last year and a half in office. No worries! He’s cool!