NFL Suspends Brady 4 Games for Deflated Footballs
 

Deflate gate continues :


The NFL suspended Super Bowl MVP Tom Brady for the first four games of the season, fined the New England Patriots $1 million and took away two draft picks Monday as punishment for deflating footballs used in the AFC title game.

The league also indefinitely suspended the two equipment staffers believed to have carried out the plan, including one who called himself "The Deflator."

NFL Suspends Brady 4 Games for Deflated Footballs - ABC News

Good.

.

what happened? brady deflated some footballs? oh yeah, i vaguely remember.

I think it was the denying and lying that actually made it an issue.

Sort of like Watergate. (where I had my first wedding reception BTW)

Four games, not bad, more than I expected. Good thing the NFLPA is weaker than the NBAPA, the four game suspension might actually stick.

yes. when brady holds his balls, he likes them soft to the touch.

so you're deepthroat! :1orglaugh

i gotta say, the whole thing is stupid and it just makes me dislike the NFL and roger goodell even more. i truly have to try and ignore the shit he and the league do the professional football. off-field dickhead antics by players too, i have to look away or it all would end up destroying my enjoying watching the sport.


:1orglaugh :1orglaugh

they will appeal it :2 cents::2 cents::2 cents:

I don't think it will hold up in appeal. Now I really don't know what the rules of evidence are per say in regards to the NFL player agreements, etc, in this type of situation, but without evidence proving he had knowledge I doubt they can make it stick.

My understanding is that the league decided to the two guys who were ultimately named as the guys who likely deflated the balls were considered to not be honest and forthright with the league. Also, Brady appeared and answered questions, however he too did some dodging. Apparently there was a flurry of texts and emails between he and the those guys right after this whole scandal broke. There are also texts and emails between Brady and those guys going back a few years (which would be normal since they worked together), but when asked for those emails and text Brady and both of the guys declined to turn them over. The league clearly took that as them admitting there was something to hide.

Do you think he should have done nothing or should have handed down a more severe punishment?

and you complain about diving in soccer - at least they have hard balls (that even look like balls)

I think the NFL purposely made their findings vague and Brady/Patriots would be foolish to challenge the penalties forcing the league to get specific doing real damage to Brady.

Yeah like the email nick of the deflator being "the deflator" is going to create reasonable doubt.

:1orglaugh

I truly have no idea. I'm dumbfounded by the entire event. I don't know why Brady would think such a thing would make a difference, especially compared to the opportunity it presented for being caught. deflated balls? come on, they were being bitched about already but Brady kept it up, that's a smart guy doing something very risky for very little reward, which i don't get.

and i don't get the NFL going after him publicly about it either. i mean if this was so obvious that other teams complained, then goodall/the NFL knew too and chose to look the other way until it got to the point they had to prove a point with a probable sting operation.

you're a smart guy, if you were the league/goodell, wouldn't you have dealt with Brady about this a long long time ago, way before it made it to the public? it further proves to me the NFL isn't paying attention.

but now that it's front & center, the league has to punish Brady and honestly since they made such a big fucking deal of it, the punishment should also be a big deal- much more than a 4 game suspension. they publically busted him cheating in a post-season championship game, that's a big deal. they, the NFL, made it a big deal.

Brady didn't cooperate and the NFL hates that.The fine is nothing but the draft picks will stun a bit

My understanding is that nobody had complained until the week before they were caught so the league wasn't aware this was happening.

As for why he did it, to me that is an easy question. At that level every little thing can make a difference. You can't watch an NFL game without the announcers saying at least a few times things like "It's a game of inches." Or "If he had another half step he would have taken it to the end zone." A quarter of a second can mean the different between a guy catching the ball and getting tackled after a 3 yard gain or a guy running it into the end zone for a touchdown. If those deflated balls allow him to complete just one more pass per game that he otherwise wouldn't have completed, it could have a big outcome.

Personally, I think they should have suspended Brady and Belichick for the entire season and I think they should lose all their draft picks from the next draft. The Patriots have a history of cheating with these two leading the team and they should be punished accordingly. If they want to punish people they should make an example of them that this kind of thing will not be tolerated. As it is, It may not have that much of an effect on the team as a whole.

here's the thing though, he simply could not cooperate. the league painted their marquee player into a corner. could you imagine the repercussions that would echo throughout the entire sporting world if Tom fucking Brady confessed to being a cheater?

i thought i recollected that a player from another team had complained weeks before.

but no, yeah, you know me, you know i understand spectating NFL, so i get the game of inches and every little bit matters. but again, the trivial gain from deflating the balls that are open to inspection that requires a scheme amongst several people has to be perpetrated to deflate the balls, is simply a huge matza ball hanging out there to get busted for.

while i haven't spent the time reading the report, it's my understanding bellichick was not aware and based on that, i don't see the need to punish him. but since the league did make such a big deal of it, i do agree with you that Brady should be suspended an entire season and even banned from Canton. again, they made a big deal out of it and as you say are looking to show no player is immune.

yeah, the Colts brought it up to the league/goodell back in mid-November during the regular season, the Championship game Brady was busted cheating in was in late Januaray


NFL says New England Patriots had under-inflated footballs in AFC championship Game

From what I know the Colts complained about the balls the week before the game where the Pats got caught with the deflated balls, but if I understand correctly, they didn't complain to the league they told the coaches on the Ravens' team to complain about it and that is what they did. (I just read what you posted above. If the league knew weeks before, I don't know why they didn't act other than it is Brady and he is NFL Golden Boy).

Here is why I think they cheat. Part of it is that they know they can get away with it. They have been caught in the past doing worse and got barely a slap on the wrist so I feel they likely felt a little bulletproof. Now, it turned out they didn't need it in the game against the Ravens, but lets just say the game was a lot closer. Let's say the Pats are down by 2 with 45 seconds left and it is pouring rain. On third and long Brady throws a perfect pass over the middle that is caught for first down. They then run the ball twice and kick a field goal to win the game as the clock expires. If the slightly deflated ball helped him grip the wet ball better and throw it better in those shitty conditions then it may have been the reason the pass was a completion and that one completed pass wins them the game. If its the game against the Ravens it sends them to the Super Bowl which potentially helps Brady make millions more in endorsement deals.

If he gets caught he will deny everything and assume the punishment won't be that big of a deal. At the end of the day he gets to keep the millions that cheating played a role in him getting and he goes home at night and bangs Giselle. So why not do it?

Also, as far as I know Belichick wasn't involved in anything with the deflated balls, but if they want to punish the team, why not take away their "genius" leader. Pay him as normal, but make the team play a season without him.

in fact, you know what, fuck the league and goodell. they completely mishandled this. i mean fucking really, they were alerted 2 months earlier, goodell could have brought it up while standing on the sidelines shooting the shit with Brady and Billichick.

goodell: hey fellow multi-millionaires, i've looked into some allegations that your balls are under-inflated. It looks like you probably do that. You don't want to do that any more, do you?

brady & billichick: No Sir.

oh, I'm with you. I'm not trying to suggest the league/goodell should or could strive for a cheat-free league. this is professional sports. a multi-billion dollar industry. these Teams are billion dollar businesses whose product is winning. I get that. Cheating will happen and be pushed to the limit. What i'm saying is 1. the ROI v risk on deflated game balls does not make sense and 2) the league/goodell are very much asleep at the wheel running a very elite group of franchises and their billionaire owners.

Here's why I think Billichick is not involved-

imagine the look on his face when Brady runs this scheme by him.

Brady: Hey Coach, i'm pretty sure i have an advantage throwing the ball when it's deflated, not sure about all of my receivers catching a deflated ball but here's the plan:

I'll take the equipment quys out to a fancy dinner with a bunch of giselle's slutty brazilians girlfriends and get them in on my plan to deflate game balls which will be available for each and every opponent team's defensive players on the field to pick up the ball after every incomplete pass, etc.

Billichick: {head explodes}

i mean really, what a stupid plan. a really stupid plan.

I agree completely that the league is asleep at the wheel. They just want to keep the games going and keep the cash rolling in. Don't rock the boat unless they have to.

I think the risk of getting caught cheating is pretty low and the potential return is high. Add in some arrogance and I am not at all shocked to see it happening. I wouldn't be shocked if other teams did the same and just hand't been caught.

It sounds like Belichick wasn't involved, but if her were I would not be shocked and I think if Brady went to him and said, "If we deflate the balls slightly it gives me a small advantage gripping the ball especially in cold, shitty weather which could improve my accuracy and pass completions by 1%, do you think I should do it?" Belichick would have immediately said yes. This is the same guy who thought it would be a good idea to have people on his own sideline video taping the opponents coaches as they sent in signals to their teams.

we're on the same page, Brady doing this is the tip of the iceberg. what the value of the NFL when it's comprised of 32 teams valued at 2+ billion dollars each? there's a lot at stake. goodell needs a stronger pimp hand. it's like if Tony Soprano didn't know one of his luietenants is working an angle and not cutting him in. goodell should be the very first person to know and understand all of the cheating that takes place and it's his fault for not knowing about this and dealing with it out of the public spotlight. fans like you and me don't want or need to be exposed to the seedy underbelly of NFL.

it';s like going to a killer New Orleans Restaurant. don't ask what is in the delicious food you just ate!

They need to adopt rules like baseball has with steroids. The first time you get caught using them you are banned for 80 games (half a season). The second time you get banned for a full season. The third time you are out of baseball for life.

To say that the "scientific evidence" in the Wells report is problematic is an understatement. Pressure Gauge Discrepancies

It seems that everyone is so caught up in this that a huge issue is being ignored. The Colts knew the Patriots were being investigated and that the NFL would be looking for any signs of cheating. Therefore, the NFL intentionally favored one team over another and, assuming the Patriots did cheat, also allowed an entire half of an AFC Championship Game to be compromised by it. They could have rechecked the Patriot?s balls before the game started, especially after they were out of the Referee?s possession, if they were so concerned by this issue.

But as bad as not using a calibrated gauge might be, or how idiotic it was to not record each ball and the pressure thereof for later comparison, by their own admission, the NFL knowingly allowed the Patriots to possibly cheat just to ?catch? them. How can the fans of any team not look at this and be disgusted? I am a Steeler?s fan and I am upset; if I was a Colt?s fan I would be livid. On the other side, I am sure Patriots fans will never trust the NFL again, as it seems they basically conspired with other teams to ?get? them. Roger Goodell just allowed the integrity of the game to be ruined for no reason at all. And all over a rule that the NFL barely seemed to enforce or care about before this.

i'm not as familiar with baseball as i am with NFL. but cheating should not even need to be dealt with in the public spotlight. this is a great example. if the league/goodell investigated the allegations back in november, in private, thy would have come to the obvious similar conclusions the came to in the Wells report, then goodell could have dealt with it with a strong pimp hand.

the game, it's marquee player, and a stellar football franchise in the eyes of millions of people would not be sullied today.

this is a great point. fuck the league/goodell. they are truly asleep at the wheel and even when they are wake do not have the interests of fans in mind whatsoever.

It's a shame that such a great team and QB has to cheat. They deserve the punishment especially for not cooperating. I hope it all stands.

And.... Brady pees sitting down.

1 - yeah it is. i read somewhere the pats have the lowest number of fumbles in their home games for the past several seasons.

2 - they are not asleep as much as they just dont care. NFL is run by stan gable from the alpha betas.

http://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lrrbljaiNf1qzzh6g.png

:2 cents:

i can see the league not caring. maintain the status quo.


but I'm not seeing your point re: Pats fumbles. if deflated balls were an edge that was to be exploited, i don't see the Pats and Tom Brady as being the whipping boys. other teams and coaches would have realized this by now and also taken advantage right? bellichick is a genius but obvious is obvious.

"Taking nothing away from the Patriots, but if they were doing something special to make that happen, everybody else would be doing it. This is a league of thieves,? said former Ravens coach Brian Billick."

But if they cheated shouldn't they deserve to have their reputation sullied in public?

You have a strange interpretation of "innocent until proven guilty".

Waiting to get proof is not the same as conspiring to let it happen.

speaking of off field antics, didn't ray rice get only 2 games for knocking his gf out in public? but this guy who may or may not have let some air out of balls? yeah that's 4 games and huge fines and loss of draft picks...

i'm probably the last to jump on any band wagons but the nfl has got its priorities fucked up and they are making it worse every single day it seems.

Four games... hmm. Assuming they lose those four, then Brady comes back in and they run the table they'll go 12-4, which should net them a playoff birth.

Gaytriots fans can breath a sigh of relief.



:evil-laug


:disgust

Goodell's purpose is to keep shit off the billionaire owners by hook or by crook and I doubt anybody ever said anything about fairness when handing out penalties and fines.

To me it's simple. If you made it a rule and it was broken, then you have to penalize. You can't call it "gamesmanship" and also say it's a rule you can't break. It's one, or it's the other and it may not be both.

I think it's also the denying when accused and lying to the Commissioner that accounts for the penalties.

As far as the million dollar fine, the Patriots will save twice that by not having to pay Brady for 4 games, lol.

i really think the entire thing should have been handled offline, behind closed doors.

come on man, a little bit of fibbing about some bullshit is nothing compared to cracking a girl in the head like that. He should have got the full season.

This is mostly just fans being fans being mad that their team lost reacting to this stuff.

It seems getting caught cheating is a Patriot thing and that also comes into play. Plus it's Brady, the face of the NFL right now and Goddell wanted to send a message that no one is above fucking up.

I'm a Tampa fan so this doesn't affect who I root for at all unless Goddell really wants to penalize Brady and sentence him to playing for Tampa those 4 games.


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The NFL had been informed by the Colts organization, prior to the game, that they suspected the Patriots of deflating the footballs after they had been approved by the Referee. So the NFL was quite aware of, and on alert for, this possibility- and did not double check the Patriot's balls BEFORE they were allowed to be used for the first half, EVEN AFTER these balls were removed from the Official's locker room by McNally WITHOUT the permission of the Referee, Walt Anderson - who says that is the first time it had happened in his 19 year career.

With knowledge that the Patriots had been accused of cheating in this manner, and a highly irregular situation happening to the footballs as well, the NFL did not check those balls again before allowing them to be used in the first half. Even if the cheating allegation alone was not enough to warrant them being double checked before being used, having them taken without permission and the Referee not knowing where they were, in violation of the NFL's procedures, should have been enough to do so.

Also, as others have noted, a simple note from the league to ALL teams that ball security would be a point of emphasis in the playoffs would have ended this issue before this entire fiasco started. Why would the league not do so, in light of the allegation of cheating, except for the fact that they wanted to catch the Patriots cheating? I never used the word conspiring - but what would you call it?