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'Report: NFL Probing NE for Deflating Balls'

http://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/nfl/report-nfl-probing-ne-for-deflating-balls/ar-AA8kOM9

Shortly after their 45-7 win over the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC Championship Sunday, the New England Patriots are reportedly set to be investigated by the NFL for the use of deflated footballs during the game.

TV's Bob reported the details, noting the Pats are at risk of losing draft picks if they are found guilty of the accusations:

Breaking: A league source tells me the NFL is investigating the possibility the Patriots deflated footballs Sunday night. More to come.

— Bob Kravitz (@bkravitz) January 19, 2015
I'm told at one point the officials took a ball out of play and weighed it. Should hear more tomorrow on this subject.

— Bob Kravitz (@bkravitz) January 19, 2015
Told if a league investigation confirms deflated footballs it will result in lost draft picks. Stay tuned.

— Bob Kravitz (@bkravitz) January 19, 2015
Deflated footballs or not, the Patriots were the better team Sunday, the Colts by nearly 200 yards and dominating both sides of the ball for the majority of the game. It would be a huge stretch to suggest the final score was a product of a football that may have weighed slightly less than usual.

put it simply:

Nobody is suggesting this is why the colts lost obviously. They were manhandled.

— Bob Kravitz (@bkravitz) January 19, 2015
Still, this is an interesting story. The Patriots, of course, were at the center of the 2007 videotaping controversy—also known as Spygate—in which they were found to be videotaping New York Jets' coaches' signals from the sideline. Bill Belichickwas fined $500,000 for that incident, while the team lost its first-round draft pick.

More than anything, with two weeks until the Super Bowl and media attention significantly increased, the Patriots will be hoping this doesn't serve as a distraction before the most important game of the season.


(end)

This explains why the Colts got beat so bad!

deflated or not, at least the Pats had some balls last night

Indy had none

wait...so the Patriots may be cheaters? no, it cant be

(sarcasm)

Vinatieri just slapped his holder on the back saying, "Yeah, that's how I missed that kick so badly, it wasn't me that was deflated, it was the football."

...and if found guilty they only lose a draft pick. So stupid, even if a 1st rounder, who wouldn't give that up for a shot at the superbowl? heck why not cheat. it's just a bottom four pick.

So you're suggesting this helped them beat the Colts?

It was 45-7. Brady could have been throwing a basketball and still beat the Colts by 21.

If it doesnt help, why would there be a rule against it?

Sounds like a bargain to me. Wouldn't hesitate.

As always, the NFL is the master model of justice and discipline.

Wasn't there something in the press just yesterday where Belichick accused the Jets of something. What the heck was it.

i'm not saying NE deflated the ball.

but from experience, deflated balls are easier to catch in the rain than normal footballs pumped up.

just my 2 cents.

The Browns should be under investigation, my balls are deflated everytime they take the field.

I agree. Not sure it would have changed the outcome of the game, but the Colts receivers sure did seem to struggle.

I see Eric Mangini directing the watching fingers into his eye's and then back toward Bill B.

So I was traveling yesterday and wasn't able to watch any of the game but all of the highlights (or lowlights if you will) of Indy receivers missing the ball would have had no effect if the ball was deflated or not.

This wouldn't have changed the outcome because I don't see how a deflated ball would help Bount rush for 120+ yards and 3 TDs.

J/C .....

I have a stupid question.

The officials touch the ball on every play, as the move the ball to the correct spot, set the ball for play, pick it up and toss it to another official .....

If a ball was deflated to the point of impacting play, wouldn't someone have noticed? Wouldn't one of the players have said to an official, "Hey, this ball doesn't feel right, Can you check it out"?

I mean, did they not realize it until after the game or something? Really?

It literally says at one point during the game they took a ball out and weighed it.

Pay attention

Receiver catches ball instead of it bouncing out of his hands + More first down = less opportunity for Blount to rush for 120

at the end of the day, it doesn't matter.

the deflated ball excuse doesn't fly when colts fans take into account that blount ran for 148 yards and 3 TD's. nor the fact that Luck was gift wrapping turnovers like he always does.

Not that it made a difference, but if they had not had a 2 or more score lead the entire game, do they run that much?

The entire outcome of a game can hinge on just a few plays, if a team gets an advantage on those plays and capitalizes, it could change a lot, I doubt it did, but it could.

Hey, I said it was a stupid question.

So true yet so funny at the same time.

I really appreciated that.

Someone had to say it.... better you than me!

That's exactly it.

Yeah as wonder if someone else has deflated the balls. But really someone may have deflated them over in the wanting a certain team to win.

Bill has been known to try to "gain an edge" over the years, but this allegation is so ridiculous. Is this a way that you make a very boring game more interesting? The NFL between the refereeing and all this type of stuff is starting to look like a joke.

This isn't too juicy, but a little bit interesting:

'Sports Illustrated: Patriots Cross Lines Other Teams Wouldn’t Dare Crossing'

http://nesn.com/2015/01/sports-illustrated-patriots-cross-lines-other-teams-wouldnt-dare-crossing/

By Doug Kyed on Mon, Jan 19, 2015 at 8:42PM

NFL teams visiting Gillette Stadium, deflated balls are the least of your worries.

The New England Patriots apparently are devious, rule-bending jerks. Even building Patriot Place, the shopping plaza surrounding Gillette Stadium, was merely an elaborate scheme to help head coach Bill Belichick cheat, according to Sports Illustrated.

In a column framed around the accusation that the Patriots deflated balls in Sunday’s 45-7 AFC Championship Game win over the Indianapolis Colts, Sports Illustrated listed many other ways in which the Patriots “cut corners.”

Here are some:

–Patriots staffers who supply the visiting team with towels eavesdrop and report back findings to the home team.

–Opposing coaches put locks on their locker room to prevent Patriots staffers from walking in to grab play sheets.

–Head coach Bill Belichick didn’t follow the unwritten rule to run by his ineligible formations with the league office before running them last Saturday

–Belichick instead ran it by NFL referee Bill Vinovich before the game in hopes to confuse and intimidate the official.

–And the best of all: The large monitor outside CBS Scene restaurant in Patriot Place only is visible to the Patriots’ sideline, which gives Belichick and the Patriots the advantage of being able to see replays.

Keep in mind that there are monitors in coaches booths, and teams have a person assigned to watch replays to see if a call on the field is worth challenging.

The column also includes this line: “Maybe some of this is overstated. But the perception is real, and it is not totally unfounded.”

The NFL will decide whether the Patriots cheated or not by deflating balls. The investigation is expected to take time, and a verdict might not be reached until next week. Sports Illustrated’s Michael Rosenberg probably won’t believe their findings anyway, however, because “without hard evidence the NFL probably doesn’t want to embarrass one of its Super Bowl teams.”

That must be why the Patriots haven’t been punished for any of their other dastardly tactics listed above.



(end)

Patriots are "above the law"...

I highly doubt, even if the deflated ball accusation is true, they will be punished much other than a small Lil tap on the wrist. A fine equalivalent to the money Bellicheck keeps in his wallet for spending money. JMO

I hate to be the one but,the footballs are weighed and inspected by the officials before the game,and then in control of the NFL ballboys during it.
The balls are not designated as Colts balls/Patriots balls but are used randomly.
It would be next to impossible to get a deflated ball in the game at just the right time to be effective,but this story sure sounds good.

Come on, don't you dare bring some logic and common sense to this conspiracy discussion. The NFL is obviously going to let the Patriots off because they're the league's favorite team.

I think this is the same thing baseball managers do to get inside the other teams head some times. They'll ask the ump to check the pitchers glove or suggest a bat might be corked just to slow the game down or lay that hint to the media that the other team is cheating. Automatic excuse.

I would bet balls are sometimes over or under inflated throughout the season and then they're just taken out of the game by the refs or if a QB says it's low or high. Nobody cares or makes a big deal, until it's the Pats.

I'm no fan of theirs, but people are ready to believe anything sinister to avoid giving Bill and Tom their due. In a league where teams bubble up and down all the time, it's just not fair that they're this good year in and year out....so there has to be a reason, not just that they're that good.

The Colts could have been playing with beach balls for all I care, they got their butts kicked.

Exactly BpG it had no bering on the game. Actually I think our Browns, when we were healthy and BH was playing well, could have given NE a better game. If you put Luck on the Browns I believe we are a better team than the Colts. JMHO

Yup, I'm pretty sure that the deflated balls had nothing to do with the Colts DLine getting blown up repeatedly, or the fact that they couldn't tackle a RB all day until he reached the secondary.

LeGarret Blount 30 carries for 148: 4.93 yards per carry

Yup, that's totally because of deflated balls.

Whatever, DQwell

ball didn't look deflated bouncing off of cribbs face.

For what it's worth, Mark Schlareth said each team uses it's own balls during the game. Which makes sense as I've heard of quarterbacks who like certain things more than others like more pronounced laces or whatnot...

From 'The Onion':


"NFL Investigating Whether Patriots Played Game With Properly Inflated Vince Wilfork"

I believe that may be where the air went from the balls that were underinflated.

Did he, at anytime, land on a ball? If so, the "deflated ball" theory is proven.