2015 NFL Playoffs

Yankees · Post by **Yankees** » Tue Jan 20, 2015 3:59 pm

That was a truly bad joke, then. My 'your sense of humor is totally stunted' remains in place.

Tigers · Post by **Tigers** » Tue Jan 20, 2015 3:59 pm

Bill Belichick......."If you ain't cheat'n, you ain't trying!"

....or someone like him said that.

Phillies · Post by **Phillies** » Tue Jan 20, 2015 4:01 pm

Padres wrote:
Nationals wrote:Fair play. Great use...Guardians of the Galaxy is pretty amazing.
Yup, great flick. As skeptical as I am about this astonishingly stupid sounding Ant-Man movie, I've got to give Marvel the benefit of the doubt on it.

I'm with you in giving Marvel the benefit of the doubt, but Ant-Man seems pretty dumb. I've never read comics, but I'm really into all the movies. Probably going to wait to On Demand that one. As for Guardians, that was my favorite Marvel movie so far, and by a good bit.

Tigers · Post by **Tigers** » Tue Jan 20, 2015 4:04 pm

Best quote I've seen on the net today......

Anonymous: "The only deflated balls that mattered on Sunday were McCarthy's".

Rockies · Post by **Rockies** » Tue Jan 20, 2015 4:19 pm

LOL.. where's a Like Button when we need it?

Royals · Post by **Royals** » Tue Jan 20, 2015 4:46 pm

Rockies wrote:LOL.. where's a Like Button when we need it?

No joke.

Also, on the subject of balls...
http://espn.go.com/blog/boston/new-engl ... api_public

Royals · Post by **Royals** » Tue Jan 20, 2015 4:53 pm

Oh, and this one...
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/24/sport ... .html?_r=0

BlueJays · Post by **BlueJays** » Tue Jan 20, 2015 5:35 pm

Padres wrote:Oh, and this one...
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/24/sport ... .html?_r=0

My favorite:
“No one is allowed to touch those balls. They’re precious jewels. Too much work has gone into them.”

Cardinals · Post by **Cardinals** » Tue Jan 20, 2015 7:00 pm

Cardinals wrote: The NFL conveniently destroyed all the Spygate tapes. Wonder why? Goodell is such a fine, upstanding guy, surely he wasn't trying to hide anything.

http://boston.cbslocal.com/2015/01/20/s ... rd-levels/

The most forgotten part of the “SpyGate scandal” is the fact that Goodell played the videos on a loop for reporters at the press conference when he announced his punishment. The reporters got to watch the footage on a loop prior to Goodell’s stepping to the podium. (I will always remember this, because the NFL Network’s Rich Eisen cracked one of the better jokes in sports TV history. It was, essentially, “This is the first time ever that a journalist is watching a video in a hotel but doesn’t have to pay $9.99 an hour for it.” What a line, Rich.)
Perpetuating the idea that the footage never saw the light of day is something that is routinely brought up by obsessed Steelers fans who still feel cheated from 2001 and 2004 (even though the Patriots won in ’01 with a blocked field goal and punt return and ’04 in a 41-27 romp), not something that a professional writer ought to spread.

Astros · Post by **Astros** » Wed Jan 21, 2015 7:28 am

Sources tell ESPN that 11 of the 12 New England game balls were inflated significantly less than the league requires during Sunday's AFC Championship Game win over the Colts.
Each team is required to provide their offense's game balls to the referees two hours and 15 minutes before every game. After that inspection, no alterations are allowed. The NFL's investigation reportedly found that the Patriots' footballs were underinflated by 2 pounds per square inch of air less than what's required by the NFL. The speculation is that they did this on purpose so Tom Brady and his receivers would have an easier time throwing/gripping the ball in the rainy conditions. It didn't matter as the Pats physically dominated and whopped the Colts 45-7, but results shouldn't alter intent. Note that in 2007, Bill Belichick was fined $500K for having an assistant spy on the Jets' defensive signals. This time, the team could lose draft picks.

What a shock!

Royals · Post by **Royals** » Wed Jan 21, 2015 8:27 am

http://www.csnne.com/new-england-patrio ... eflategate
I'm inclined to agree with Curran here. There are two possibilities. The balls were inspected and approved by the refs that way and this is the way things are done in the NFL and nobody talks about it because scoring is good for the league. In this case the hammer, justly, falls on the officials and things have to change for all QBs.

Or the Pats deflated the balls after inspection, which would be difficult and highly risky, there are one or two (hundred) cameras on or trained at the Pats sideline. In that case the hammer is going to fall, if it's not by Gooddell, then it will be by Mr Kraft, and BB's days as a coach are over.

Considering what we know about what Aaron Rodgers and Eli Manning do to manipulate the ball, I expect it's the former (and Aaron, if you think Peyton and Luck don't manipulate the ball similarly, you're the biggest damn idiot in the league). In which case there are going to be some disappointed QBs throughout the league and we're going to see a drop in scoring as a result of some rule changes and emphasis.

Astros · Post by **Astros** » Wed Jan 21, 2015 8:34 am

I'm sure every team tailors their game balls to fit the needs of the quarterback, just like a grounds crew has the mound the way their pitchers like it, but when 11 out of 12 balls are deflated that much, given the conditions where that gives you a sizable advantage, and given the history of the franchise with skirting the rules, the hammer is coming down. If you think Bob Kraft is going to do shit then you need to take your homer glasses off. Bellicheck could murder someone in the post game handshake and he wouldn't bat an eye

BlueJays · Post by **BlueJays** » Wed Jan 21, 2015 8:35 am

I love taking any opportunity to take a shot at Tom Brady's stupid face and the Pats, but this kinda seems like a stretch. There's no way the Pats can control which ball enters the game at any given time, so Brady and Luck should have been throwing the same balls, which may have been a little under pressure and supposedly easier to throw/catch. I kind of find it hard to believe this only works for Brady and his receivers but nobody else. It's conceivable the Pats intentionally filled the balls to the lowest end of the tolerance for pressure, the refs checked the pressure indoors, then the balls were brought outside where the drop in temperature brought the pressure below the allowable check pressure.

You see this kind of stuff in racing all the time. Teams find ambiguities in the rules and stretch them as far as they can. It doesn't mean they cheated, it just means perhaps the rules need to be redefined.

Tigers · Post by **Tigers** » Wed Jan 21, 2015 9:10 am

Cardinals wrote:I'm sure every team tailors their game balls to fit the needs of the quarterback, just like a grounds crew has the mound the way their pitchers like it, but when 11 out of 12 balls are deflated that much, given the conditions where that gives you a sizable advantage, and given the history of the franchise with skirting the rules, the hammer is coming down. If you think Bob Kraft is going to do shit then you need to take your homer glasses off. Bellicheck could murder someone in the post game handshake and he wouldn't bat an eye

Aaron, all I know is that someone is getting fired on that Patriots staff. Belichick is going to be pissed when he finds out what happened to that 12th ball. That kind of lack in quality control is unacceptable in the Patriots franchise. Sloppy play like that could cause a fumble and cost the Pats a game sometime.

Guardians · Post by **Guardians** » Wed Jan 21, 2015 9:26 am

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vd3D2gsPUR0

Dodgers · Post by **Dodgers** » Wed Jan 21, 2015 9:33 am

Orioles wrote:I love taking any opportunity to take a shot at Tom Brady's stupid face and the Pats, but this kinda seems like a stretch. There's no way the Pats can control which ball enters the game at any given time, so Brady and Luck should have been throwing the same balls, which may have been a little under pressure and supposedly easier to throw/catch. I kind of find it hard to believe this only works for Brady and his receivers but nobody else. It's conceivable the Pats intentionally filled the balls to the lowest end of the tolerance for pressure, the refs checked the pressure indoors, then the balls were brought outside where the drop in temperature brought the pressure below the allowable check pressure.

You see this kind of stuff in racing all the time. Teams find ambiguities in the rules and stretch them as far as they can. It doesn't mean they cheated, it just means perhaps the rules need to be redefined.

Each team provides their own balls to be used by their offense only.

Cardinals · Post by **Cardinals** » Wed Jan 21, 2015 9:35 am

Orioles wrote:It's conceivable the Pats intentionally filled the balls to the lowest end of the tolerance for pressure, the refs checked the pressure indoors, then the balls were brought outside where the drop in temperature brought the pressure below the allowable check pressure.

You see this kind of stuff in racing all the time. Teams find ambiguities in the rules and stretch them as far as they can. It doesn't mean they cheated, it just means perhaps the rules need to be redefined.

Yep, pretty much.

BlueJays · Post by **BlueJays** » Wed Jan 21, 2015 10:01 am

Dodgers wrote:
Orioles wrote:I love taking any opportunity to take a shot at Tom Brady's stupid face and the Pats, but this kinda seems like a stretch. There's no way the Pats can control which ball enters the game at any given time, so Brady and Luck should have been throwing the same balls, which may have been a little under pressure and supposedly easier to throw/catch. I kind of find it hard to believe this only works for Brady and his receivers but nobody else. It's conceivable the Pats intentionally filled the balls to the lowest end of the tolerance for pressure, the refs checked the pressure indoors, then the balls were brought outside where the drop in temperature brought the pressure below the allowable check pressure.

You see this kind of stuff in racing all the time. Teams find ambiguities in the rules and stretch them as far as they can. It doesn't mean they cheated, it just means perhaps the rules need to be redefined.
Each team provides their own balls to be used by their offense only.

Ah, I see. I guess I have no idea what I'm talking about, but complaining about ball pressure seems pretty similar to complaining about how far up a bat somebody has pine tar...

Cardinals · Post by **Cardinals** » Wed Jan 21, 2015 10:15 am

Lots of egg coming on the NFL's face: http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/20 ... uper-bowl/

Royals · Post by **Royals** » Wed Jan 21, 2015 10:41 am

Dodgers wrote:
Orioles wrote:I love taking any opportunity to take a shot at Tom Brady's stupid face and the Pats, but this kinda seems like a stretch. There's no way the Pats can control which ball enters the game at any given time, so Brady and Luck should have been throwing the same balls, which may have been a little under pressure and supposedly easier to throw/catch. I kind of find it hard to believe this only works for Brady and his receivers but nobody else. It's conceivable the Pats intentionally filled the balls to the lowest end of the tolerance for pressure, the refs checked the pressure indoors, then the balls were brought outside where the drop in temperature brought the pressure below the allowable check pressure.

You see this kind of stuff in racing all the time. Teams find ambiguities in the rules and stretch them as far as they can. It doesn't mean they cheated, it just means perhaps the rules need to be redefined.
Each team provides their own balls to be used by their offense only.

Yup, see the Eli Manning article above.
This was a rule change the last few years, it used to be that both played from the same pool, but a group of QBs, led by Peyton Manning and Tom Brady, petitioned the rules committee to allow them to condition their own balls.
This is why Aaron Rodgers is able to overinflate his balls and Eli spends months prepping his to be ready for a game. It's a non-issue, everyone adjusts their balls to their own comfort levels and the officials look the other way. Until some dumbass coach makes a stink, not realizing the effect it will have on his own team and QB (and let's be honest, Pagano, like Mangini, isn't the brightest bulb on the coaching tree, if you'll pardon the mixed metaphors). Even the Brad Johnson stuff is a non-issue, since everyone played with those same balls.
If the balls were somehow adjusted AFTER the officials approved them, then that is a different story. But that's pretty tough as the officials have possession until they are given to the ball carriers, who only give the balls out to the officials during the game. Even then, the officials are still handling every ball when it enters play.
Unless there was tampering after the officials approved the balls, dropping the hammer on the Pats but not every other team that conditions, overinflates or underinflates their balls is a pretty major injustice.

And none of that changes that the Colts sucked ass on Sunday. As the Indy sportswriter noted, the Pats could have been using a hockey puck or a beach ball and still whupped them.

Tigers · Post by **Tigers** » Wed Jan 21, 2015 10:49 am

While it obviously did not have an affect on the outcome of Sunday's game, this will be yet another black mark on Belichick's regime. It just goes to show that Belichick will do anything to win.

The intent is obvious. They got caught. Make sure the punishment stings sufficiently and then move on and fix the rule so that it won't happen again. It is just stupid to allow each team to provide their own balls. Just like in baseball, the league should provide the balls and both teams should play with the same ones. No exceptions.

Guardians · Post by **Guardians** » Wed Jan 21, 2015 11:00 am

Padres wrote:
Dodgers wrote:
Orioles wrote:I love taking any opportunity to take a shot at Tom Brady's stupid face and the Pats, but this kinda seems like a stretch. There's no way the Pats can control which ball enters the game at any given time, so Brady and Luck should have been throwing the same balls, which may have been a little under pressure and supposedly easier to throw/catch. I kind of find it hard to believe this only works for Brady and his receivers but nobody else. It's conceivable the Pats intentionally filled the balls to the lowest end of the tolerance for pressure, the refs checked the pressure indoors, then the balls were brought outside where the drop in temperature brought the pressure below the allowable check pressure.

You see this kind of stuff in racing all the time. Teams find ambiguities in the rules and stretch them as far as they can. It doesn't mean they cheated, it just means perhaps the rules need to be redefined.
Each team provides their own balls to be used by their offense only.
Yup, see the Eli Manning article above.
This was a rule change the last few years, it used to be that both played from the same pool, but a group of QBs, led by Peyton Manning and Tom Brady, petitioned the rules committee to allow them to condition their own balls.
This is why Aaron Rodgers is able to overinflate his balls and Eli spends months prepping his to be ready for a game. It's a non-issue, everyone adjusts their balls to their own comfort levels and the officials look the other way. Until some dumbass coach makes a stink, not realizing the effect it will have on his own team and QB (and let's be honest, Pagano, like Mangini, isn't the brightest bulb on the coaching tree, if you'll pardon the mixed metaphors). Even the Brad Johnson stuff is a non-issue, since everyone played with those same balls.
If the balls were somehow adjusted AFTER the officials approved them, then that is a different story. But that's pretty tough as the officials have possession until they are given to the ball carriers, who only give the balls out to the officials during the game. Even then, the officials are still handling every ball when it enters play.
Unless there was tampering after the officials approved the balls, dropping the hammer on the Pats but not every other team that conditions, overinflates or underinflates their balls is a pretty major injustice.

And none of that changes that the Colts sucked ass on Sunday. As the Indy sportswriter noted, the Pats could have been using a hockey puck or a beach ball and still whupped them.

Hey Breny/Toner (haven't decided the best name for your co-gm brohood),

You're on the clock. It's baseball season in the IBC. Stop yapping about your cheating NFL team and make a pick.

Cardinals · Post by **Cardinals** » Wed Jan 21, 2015 11:03 am

Mariners wrote:While it obviously did not have an affect on the outcome of Sunday's game, this will be yet another black mark on Belichick's regime. It just goes to show that Belichick will do anything to win.

The intent is obvious. They got caught. Make sure the punishment stings sufficiently and then move on and fix the rule so that it won't happen again. It is just stupid to allow each team to provide their own balls. Just like in baseball, the league should provide the balls and both teams should play with the same ones. No exceptions.

Yeah, but you don't actually know that they doctored the balls. You're just assuming that they are. Florio has a good article on it today on PFT here: http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/20 ... m_tags%20=

I agree though. The league should provide the footballs for both teams, and that's that.

Edit: if the Pats did doctor the balls, then yeah, there should be a punishment.

Tigers · Post by **Tigers** » Wed Jan 21, 2015 11:18 am

Pirates wrote:
Mariners wrote:While it obviously did not have an affect on the outcome of Sunday's game, this will be yet another black mark on Belichick's regime. It just goes to show that Belichick will do anything to win.

The intent is obvious. They got caught. Make sure the punishment stings sufficiently and then move on and fix the rule so that it won't happen again. It is just stupid to allow each team to provide their own balls. Just like in baseball, the league should provide the balls and both teams should play with the same ones. No exceptions.
Yeah, but you don't actually know that they doctored the balls. You're just assuming that they are. Florio has a good article on it today on PFT here: http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/20 ... m_tags%20=

I agree though. The league should provide the footballs for both teams, and that's that.

Edit: if the Pats did doctor the balls, then yeah, there should be a punishment.

That is fair. I don't know that they actually intentionally deflated the 11 balls so that Brady and the Pat's offense would have a better grip on the ball in the rainy conditions on Sunday. So I am taking a little leap of faith there based on Belichick's history of pushing the rules over the edge and the fact they found 11 of the 12 balls to be deflated a significant amount.

12th ball must have been for the inspection.

Royals · Post by **Royals** » Wed Jan 21, 2015 11:18 am

Brennan,. I hate to say this but there is so much wrong in your post, it's kind of painful.

Mariners wrote:While it obviously did not have an affect on the outcome of Sunday's game, this will be yet another black mark on Belichick's regime. It just goes to show that Belichick will do anything to win.

Yes, he'll do anything to win. Including EXACTLY what the other QB's and coaches in the NFL are doing, doctoring footballs to make them easier to grip and increase scoring. This is what the NFL wants!

The intent is obvious. They got caught.

So did Aaron Rodgers when he admited to overinflating the football. So did Eli when he admitted to all the conditioning he has his folks do. So did the Vikings, who stick their balls in an oven before giving them to the refs to inspect. You're going to hit every team that does this with the same fine, right? And if you think every other QB in the league, including Russell Wilson, isn't doing the same thing, you're kidding yourself. These are highly competitive men who will ALL do everything they can to win.

It is just stupid to allow each team to provide their own balls. Just like in baseball, the league should provide the balls and both teams should play with the same ones. No exceptions.

Slightly different situations. Baseballs are used fundamentally differently than the balls in any other sport. And you're missing the point that the NFL wants its QB's to be as comfortable with their balls as possible to promote scoring.

This is ONLY an issue because it's the Patriots, it's getting ratings, and sports fans tend to be bitter, resentful, biased people. This is something all teams do, the officials knew about it, the league almost certainly knew about it, and everyone let it go because it was good for business. The difference between this and the steroids issue is that steroids are illegal, they are extremely bad for your health and if a bunch of kids with dreams of the NFL start playing with underinflated, overinflated or microwaved balls, it doesn't freaking matter. Aside from maybe the stink from the microwave.