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ESPN: "Spygate to Deflategate: Inside what split the NFL and Patriots apart"

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ParityBit

Member
The Patriots have forever tarnished their legacy.

They have won the same way Lance Armstrong and Barry Bonds did.

But in the mind of Pats fan this is a total win. Oh yeah and standard journalism is really just elaborate propaganda techniques when the story says something you don't want to hear.

Victory!

P.S. The Steelers are going to get worked tomorrow night but that has nothing to do with the Pats cheating. Their defense is not ready and 2 of their best offensive players are out on ganja violations while our started center shattered into a million pieces in a meaningless preseason game.

The steelers who cheated with steroids throughout the 70's? Lots of *'s next to those super bowls.
 

Apt101

Member
Patriot defenders. Where there's smoke there's fire. And smoke is billowing out of their roof, and has been for years. This is obviously why the NFL seems to focus more on that organization's wrong doings than others.

Strip away integrity and sportsmanship and all that's left is a bunch of millionaires playing a game. They're making the entire sport look bad.
 
Patriot defenders. Where there's smoke there's fire. And smoke is billowing out of their roof, and has been for years. This is obviously why the NFL seems to focus more on that organization's wrong doings than others.

Strip away integrity and sportsmanship and all that's left is a bunch of millionaires playing a game. They're making the entire sport look bad.

You're under the impression that the Sport looked good at some point.
 
Patriot defenders. Where there's smoke there's fire. And smoke is billowing out of their roof, and has been for years. This is obviously why the NFL seems to focus more on that organization's wrong doings than others.

Strip away integrity and sportsmanship and all that's left is a bunch of millionaires playing a game. They're making the entire sport look bad.
When the Patriots come to your city don't go. When the Pats are on TV don't watch. What else can you do about it unless you have a hall of fame vote I don't know about.
 

bionic77

Member
The steelers who cheated with steroids throughout the 70's? Lots of *'s next to those super bowls.
Is * a symbol for officially prescibed medical treatment?

Because a lot of the Steelers players had arthritis, respiratory issues and lupus. We also had horrible doctors who coincidentally and incorrectly used the anabolic in the ass steroids instead of the ones normally taken orally.

It was all just a big misunderstanding like the dozen or so desperate accusations of cheating against the Pats!
 

Apt101

Member
You're under the impression that the Sport looked good at some point.

It did. The last team I remember being this flagrant was the Raiders, and everyone came down hard as hell on them (rightfully so, they played dangerously with the full backing of their lich-like owner). That was back in the late 70's to early 80's. There have always been scummy players but rarely flagrantly scummy teams.
 

bionic77

Member
It did. The last team I remember being this flagrant was the Raiders, and everyone came down hard as hell on them (rightfully so, they played dangerously with the full backing of their lich-like owner). That was back in the late 70's to early 80's. There have always been scummy players but rarely flagrantly scummy teams.
The Raiders and their fans embraced being cheaters and criminals.

Pats fans want to pretend that Bill Belichick is a nice man and that this is all a global conspiracy to make their team look bad.

Someone the Pats fans have found a way to look worse than Raider fans.
 
The Raiders and their fans embraced being cheaters and criminals.

Pats fans want to pretend that Bill Belichick is a nice man and that this is all a global conspiracy to make their team look bad.

Someone the Pats fans have found a way to look worse than Raider fans.
Nice? nah
Genius? Hell yeah
 

Diablos

Member
I love watching Football sometimes, but the last several years alone have to really force you to take a step back and think rationally about the NFL and how it is managed, how much corruption there can be, the deep character flaws and criminal activity with an alarming amount of players, and the numerous, severe long-term health issues it can bring to those who play.

I cannot see Football surviving as the most popular sport in the US for more than another decade, two tops.
 

Troy

Banned
If the source is in a position to know the information they've provided it makes it more credible, surely. I don't expect the Patriots' groundskeeper to know about the pressure levels of game balls at halftime but a high-ranking NFL official, one that may have provided you with information which later turned out to be true in the past, may very well do.

Whether that information is actually true is a whole different matter.

Do people here not read news or something? I mean, other than sports news. Jesus.

That's why actual quality journalists seek more than one source for their info. Especially when the story they're writing impugns the integrity of someone else. You know, journalistic integrity.
 
I love watching Football sometimes, but the last several years alone have to really force you to take a step back and think rationally about the NFL and how it is managed, how much corruption there can be, the deep character flaws and criminal activity with an alarming amount of players, and the numerous, severe long-term health issues it can bring to those who play.

I cannot see Football surviving as the most popular sport in the US for more than another decade, two tops.

why do boxing and UFC still exist!
 

chadskin

Member
That's why actual quality journalists seek more than one source for their info. Especially when the story they're writing impugns the integrity of someone else. You know, journalistic integrity.

Mort cited "league sources" which implies to me it was more than one source.

And for this ESPN story they've spoken with "more than 90 league officials, owners, team executives and coaches, current and former Patriots coaches, staffers and players" and had "reviews of previously undisclosed private notes from key meetings".

The attempt to cast this latest story about the Cheatriots in doubt is not working guys.
 
Sherman also had some thoughts on the report from Don Van Natta Jr. and Seth Wickersham for ESPN's Outside the Lines that leveled numerous new allegations at the Patriots regarding the taping of opponents' sideline signals.

"Everybody does their things a little differently, but at the end of the day, it's handled between the lines," Sherman said, per Kapadia. "And if they man up and they beat you straight up, they beat you straight up. You can say they knew your plays or they watched this or they watched that, but a lot of times if you watch film good enough, you find good indicators."

He then argued even the most in-depth preparation before a game can only prove so valuable for a team.

"They still have to intercept the ball. They still have to execute," Sherman said. "Eleven guys have to execute at the same time. And that's what they did, so give them credit. If there's hanky-panky going on, they've gotten away with it."

In response to the OTL report, Bill Simmons hit on a very good point about what it could mean regarding the Patriots' past successes:
http://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/nfl/sherman-on-pats-it-wasnt-cheating/ar-AAe81Rx?li=AAa0dzB&ocid=mailsignout
 

ParityBit

Member
Mort cited "league sources" which implies to me it was more than one source.

And for this ESPN story they've spoken with "more than 90 league officials, owners, team executives and coaches, current and former Patriots coaches, staffers and players" and had "reviews of previously undisclosed private notes from key meetings".

The attempt to cast this latest story about the Cheatriots in doubt is not working guys.

Wow, lots of people who did not put their name to a single allegation. I do not even mean in the report, but to come out after and say "Yeah, I saw them do X."

TMZ has a lot of money. Give someone 100K and if it were true, they would talk.

***********

On a side not, the "Do Your Job" last night was awesome. You can see why he is one of the best coaches of all time.

Even backed up why he did not call a time out at the end of the Superbowl. The video of the sidelines of Coach Carroll was a riot. Pete is a good coach though, he will learn from it.
 

Troy

Banned
Mort cited "league sources" which implies to me it was more than one source.

And for this ESPN story they've spoken with "more than 90 league officials, owners, team executives and coaches, current and former Patriots coaches, staffers and players" and had "reviews of previously undisclosed private notes from key meetings".

The attempt to cast this latest story about the Cheatriots in doubt is not working guys.

"League officials". It was "league officials" who leaked the 2 pounds under bullshit. It was "league officials" who said Brady only admitted to talking to the equipment guys about getting ready for the Super Bowl. It's hilarious watching Pats haters attempt to come to grips with the fact that your teams are bad. Sorry.
 

natjjohn

Member
"League officials". It was "league officials" who leaked the 2 pounds under bullshit. It was "league officials" who said Brady only admitted to talking to the equipment guys about getting ready for the Super Bowl. It's hilarious watching Pats haters attempt to come to grips with the fact that your teams are bad. Sorry.

This was more than league officials.

I don't get the talk that all other teams are bad and everybody is a hater. Comes off as fanaticism.

Past ten Super Bowl winners have been a variety of teams. I think only the Giants have won more than one of the past ten.
 

NH Apache

Banned
It is impressive to observe the lengths at which ESPN will go to manufacture a story. An internal review of the story by the Boston ESPN has to be further edited to cover minor points, points that don't really discredit the original story but add additional perspective.

It is also interesting to see that the "Bill somehow knew when players weren't going to show for a game" point stands in there, as the NFL requires that the team is informed. But the original story hasn't been edited to reflect this.
 
Holy shit, they removed the bit about playsheets being stolen?

But they totally had a low-level source guys. I mean he's a Pulitzer Prize winner

No, Mike Reiss did a follow up article reacting to the original "expose" and they removed one of his points dealing with the play sheets.
 

Troy

Banned
ESPN wants people to believe that teams when they're not playing the Pats just throw their playsheets into the trash without a care. What's funnier is that there's people here defending ESPN on this.
 

dave is ok

aztek is ok
No, Mike Reiss did a follow up article reacting to the original "expose" and they removed one of his points dealing with the play sheets.
So they removed the line "Security’s extremely tight throughout Gillette Stadium. Don’t think too many people, if any, are casually walking into the visitors’ locker room. And let’s just say they are, who leaves play sheets around?"?

Weird. That part of the article is the one accusation that probably needs more than just a 'someone said this happens' and deserves whatever criticism gets thrown at it
 

ParityBit

Member
I am going to the game tonight and I know that they are telling us to get there early. There is going to be "Cards" I guess. I wonder what it will say when we all hold it up?

"Where is Roger"
"#FreeBrady"
"Home Of Brady"
"Why is it raining"
 

Troy

Banned
So they removed the line "Security’s extremely tight throughout Gillette Stadium. Don’t think too many people, if any, are casually walking into the visitors’ locker room. And let’s just say they are, who leaves play sheets around?"?

Weird. That part of the article is the one accusation that probably needs more than just a 'someone said this happens' and deserves whatever criticism gets thrown at it

Not mystery why. ESPN wanted to paint a picture of the Pats at home that involves shady characters skulking around in Belichick hoodies stealing play sheets that unsuspecting visiting teams left hanging around, audio-tapping locker rooms, filming walk-thrus etc etc. Common sense wasn't welcome.
 

diffusionx

Gold Member
Is * a symbol for officially prescibed medical treatment?

Because a lot of the Steelers players had arthritis, respiratory issues and lupus. We also had horrible doctors who coincidentally and incorrectly used the anabolic in the ass steroids instead of the ones normally taken orally.

It was all just a big misunderstanding like the dozen or so desperate accusations of cheating against the Pats!

This post is hilarious.
 

bionic77

Member
bionic77 sounds like a Patriots fan
That is the worst thing anyone has ever said about me.

Also hilarious because I am screwing around while you can sense how hard it is for Pats fans to keep from crying as they keep pushing the conspiracy narrative that no one outside Bostons gives 2 fucks about.
 

diffusionx

Gold Member
I'll say the same thing I did when roids was blowing up, every player and every team looks for every edge it can get, that competitiveness is why we watch these games, the idea that there is some plucky straight edge that only follows the spirit of every law and wins "the right way" is just ridiculous. For years we've had to hear about that idiotic shit with the Cards and their dumb fans, and this year we learn they are hacking databases to get scouting info from other teams.

The Patriots did what every team tries to do, and if teams and players weren't willing to go to these insane lengths to win we wouldn't be interested. However there is supposed to be an enforcement mechanism in place to stop this behavior, and that's what really broke down here.
 

Troy

Banned
That is the worst thing anyone has ever said about me.

Also hilarious because I am screwing around while you can sense how hard it is for Pats fans to keep from crying as they keep pushing the conspiracy narrative that no one outside Bostons gives 2 fucks about.

Yes, it's definitely Pats fans creating all the salt threads lately. The fact that you, and others like you are so mad all the time about the Pats success is just gravy after all the wins. Delicious delicious gravy.
 

bionic77

Member
Yes, it's definitely Pats fans creating all the salt threads lately. The fact that you, and others like you are so mad all the time about the Pats success is just gravy after all the wins. Delicious delicious gravy.
You definitely seem to enjoy eating something that is brown with a smooth and creamy consistency, but I am not sure that is gravy.

I will leave you and the other Patriot fans to continue to discuss the journalist and ESPN conspiracy theories as to why most of America and the world is so mistaken about your favorite team being a bunch of cheating scumbags.
 
That is the worst thing anyone has ever said about me.

Also hilarious because I am screwing around while you can sense how hard it is for Pats fans to keep from crying as they keep pushing the conspiracy narrative that no one outside Bostons gives 2 fucks about.

but you're pushing a constant conspiracy of cheating too

bionic77 has fought his enemy so long he has failed to see the demon he has become!
 

entremet

Member
C'mon, Pats fans.

I love your franchise*, even though I'm not fan, but the defensiveness is ridiculous.

*I respect Bellichek's will to win at all costs.
 
C'mon, Pats fans.

I love your franchise*, even though I'm not fan, but the defensiveness is ridiculous.

*I respect Bellichek's will to win at all costs.

I think most of us know and suspect that the Patriots push the boundaries and are constantly looking for loopholes and edges. We get defensive when misinformation and smear are used in perpetuity against us to completely undermine our achievements.

Personally I was disgusted at the Patriots when Deflate-gate started out and I thought they had meaningfully tampered with the footballs. As the case developed it became more clear who was in the wrong though, seems like some people are just stuck in the initial findings still.

I find it hard to believe that the whole league is still pissed about Spygate, when more serious violations have occurred in the years since.
 

Ricky_R

Member
eli42.jpeg

That's a huge thumb.
 

Furyous

Member
I'll take pics ;)

*

It's great to know that the entire Cheatriots run comes down to A+ cheating. LOOL at Cheatriots fans dismissing everything their responses are completely different if this happens to the Jets, Phins, or Bills.

Once again, thank you G-Men and classy fanbase for saving us from a decade of Cheatriot fluffing by beating them TWICE.
 

Quotient

Member
I think most of us know and suspect that the Patriots push the boundaries and are constantly looking for loopholes and edges. We get defensive when misinformation and smear are used in perpetuity against us to completely undermine our achievements.

Personally I was disgusted at the Patriots when Deflate-gate started out and I thought they had meaningfully tampered with the footballs. As the case developed it became more clear who was in the wrong though, seems like some people are just stuck in the initial findings still.

I find it hard to believe that the whole league is still pissed about Spygate, when more serious violations have occurred in the years since.

Belichick (and Adams) are the folks you want doing your taxes.
 
I don't see anything wrong with finding legal loopholes. That's called being progressive and strategic.

That is why belichick and Brady are the winn ingest duo. Because they think out side the box
 

ParityBit

Member
*

It's great to know that the entire Cheatriots run comes down to A+ cheating. LOOL at Cheatriots fans dismissing everything their responses are completely different if this happens to the Jets, Phins, or Bills.

Once again, thank you G-Men and classy fanbase for saving us from a decade of Cheatriot fluffing by beating them TWICE.

Wow, your as cool as the people who say M$.

I am fine with them loosing twice, you can't win them all. That would be boring.
 
I think most of us know and suspect that the Patriots push the boundaries and are constantly looking for loopholes and edges. We get defensive when misinformation and smear are used in perpetuity against us to completely undermine our achievements.

Personally I was disgusted at the Patriots when Deflate-gate started out and I thought they had meaningfully tampered with the footballs. As the case developed it became more clear who was in the wrong though, seems like some people are just stuck in the initial findings still.

I find it hard to believe that the whole league is still pissed about Spygate, when more serious violations have occurred in the years since.

This pretty much sums up my feelings on the matter. Not a huge Pats fan but still a fan nonetheless, and from my mostly unbiased stance the witch hunt is real. Bear in mind I believe that all top professional athletes are 'cheaters' constantly looking for an edge to beat an opponent. The anti-pats rhetoric has gotten ratcheted up to a point where its completely unrealistic for anyone to have true objectivity on either side of the ball.

I truly hope for Brady and Belichick to have a great couple of seasons now even if they don't win the whole thing so that at least people can say they were great even when they didn't cheat, lol. The saddest thing is the whole tarnish on their legacy.
 
Also hilarious because I am screwing around while you can sense how hard it is for Pats fans to keep from crying as they keep pushing the conspiracy narrative that no one outside Bostons gives 2 fucks about.

You caught me, you have a Kleenex I can borrow? im telling you its all just one big conspiracy! Billuminati!
 
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