It's Just Business

It was the early in the morning when I called into 105.9 WXDX, a Pittsburgh based rock station. The topic the radio DJs were discussing was the Patriots loss to the Giants in Super bowl XLVI, which happened only days earlier. DJ Tim Benz answered the phone and asked me what my opinion of the game was. I stated over the radio that I was surprised at how well the Patriots had played considering their team’s talent level. “Tim, do you know that a third of their team is made up of free agents, players that literally no one else wanted, and 11 of their players were drafted in the 5th round or later? It’s unheard of! The lack of overall team talent if incredible and they still managed to make the Super bowl.” Tim responded, “But hasn’t that always been their M.O.? The Patriots have always gone against the grain and used no name people, and still managed to win.” “That’s true,” I replied, “but they were cheating then. They are winning now, but they aren’t cheating…we think…we hope…we pray.” “I don’t think they are cheating…” Tim started to say before cutting the line. I punched on my radio and to hear the delayed radio feed of Tim saying, “…there is no proof that the Patriots are cheating, but if they were cheating again, after getting caught before , they would really have to have some…guts…to try to pull that off.”



I had more to say, but as often the case with radio shows, I was only allowed to get out my initial point. Getting cut off wasn’t unusual, but getting cut off while smashing the Patriots on a Pittsburgh radio station was remarkable.

You see, when the Patriots got nabbed for cheating, it was Steeler’s fans who were some of the most vocal critics. In 2004 the Steelers went 15-1, their best record ever, with then rookie of the year Ben Roethlisberger at quarterback. From week 2 on, the Steelers swept the season, beating every opponent with conviction. They even trumped the undefeated and record setting Patriots 34-20 (snapping their 21 game win streak) and the unbeaten Eagles 27-3 in weeks 8 and 9. To everyone’s surprise, their fairy tale season came to an unexpected end when the Patriots beat the Steelers 41-27 in the AFC Championship game. The Steelers hadn’t allowed more than 30 points the entire season and they defense allowed an average of just of 15 points per game; so a 41 point thumping was completely unexpected.

At the time, the flabbergasted fans were merely saddened by their poor luck, but it was over three years later, when the Spygate scandal broke, when they got angry. The average Steeler’s fan believes that Super bowl XXXIX was stolen from the Steelers; this isn’t an assumption but a widely accepted belief learned from living in the Steel City among the Steeler’s faithful. Behind the Baltimore Ravens, I don’t think there is a team that the Steelers hate more than the Patriots.

So there I sat, stuck in rush hour traffic, listening to a Pittsburgh radio DJ defend the Patriots from my criticism of cheating.

I never thought I would see the day.

Has the world turned upside down? Are pigs going to fly? Will Carlos Mencia will start writing his own jokes? What has gotten into everyone? Am I the only one left with a memory of the 2000s?

Then again, this is not a new occurrence. Anyone that follows the NFL has seen how the media has underplayed the scandal in recent years. In fact, I cannot think of a single media member that has spoken negatively of the Patriots at all, let alone give credence to the idea that their former championships may have been tainted by cheating, over the past couple years. If you can, please let me know.

Perhaps I’m just a Patriots hater. They did beat my former favorite team, the Denver Broncos, twice this past year. In fact, they crushed them and it upset me, but before I yield to the thought that I am simply another over emotional fan loudmouth I wanted to review some of the facts from Spygate.


For new football fans (from Wikipedia):

The 2007 New England Patriots videotaping controversy, widely dubbed "Spygate," refers to an incident in the 2007 National Football League season when the New England Patriots were disciplined by the National Football League (NFL) for videotaping New York Jets' defensive coaches' signals during a September 9, 2007 game from a sideline location, an act deemed by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell to be in violation of league rules. After an investigation, the NFL fined Patriots head coach Bill Belichick $500,000 (the maximum allowed by the league and the largest fine ever imposed on a coach in the league's 87-year history) for his role in the incident, fined the Patriots $250,000, and docked the team their original first-round selection in the 2008 NFL Draft.

It was on Wikipedia’s Spygate page that I found a link to this:




Feel free to read the whole report for yourself, but here are the bits that I find notable.

Sept. 11, 2007: Reports surface that the Patriots had been caught videotaping once before. In November 2006 during a game in Green Bay, the Packers caught Estrella shooting unauthorized video and told him to stop.

So Estrella isn’t exactly Mcgyver, but the fact that he had been caught before and no one bothered to bring it up to their bosses, not to mention the public, seems odd to me. Maybe it just wasn’t a big deal to the Packers.

Sept. 13, 2007: Belichick said, "As the commissioner acknowledged, our use of sideline video had no impact on the outcome of last week's game. We have never used sideline video to obtain a competitive advantage while the game was in progress. Part of my job as head coach is to ensure that our football operations are conducted in compliance of the league rules and all accepted interpretations of them. My interpretation of a rule in the Constitution and Bylaws was incorrect."

Well, at least they were honest enough to wait until the next time they played the team that they secretly filmed to use the legally obtained “competitive advantage.”

Sept. 14, 2007: On ESPN Radio's Mike & Mike show, (ESPN’s) Chris Mortensen suggests that the videotaping of the Sept. 9 game against the Jets could be the tip of the iceberg, and that the Patriots' practices could include jamming the radio frequency in opponents' head-sets, and miking the Pats' defensive linemen to hear the offense's audibles and the cadence between the center and the quarterback. … Mortensen also reports that Belichick has privately told Goodell he has been taping opponents' signals since he became the Pats' head coach in 2000.

Since the year 2000! It’s his entire tenure! He only had one winning season as a head coach before 2000! Mortensen is no quack. He has worked at ESPN for over 20 years and is a trusted voice among the football media, so if he is saying that these types of cheating method are possible then they are possible.

Sept. 22, 2007: The AP reports that the NFL has received and destroyed all materials it requested from the New England Patriots concerning videotaping of opponents' sidelines, but discloses nothing about the contents. Asked if there is evidence of the Patriots using the tactics in their Super Bowl wins, spokesman Greg Aiello declines to comment.

Well…this is pretty damning. Why destroy the materials?

Nov. 15, 2007: Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., writes to Goodell, expressing concern about the league's destruction of tapes.

Dec. 19, 2007: After more than a month without a response, Specter writes to Goodell again.

Jan. 31, 2008: In a letter to Specter, Goodell responds that the tapes and notes were destroyed to ensure that the Patriots "would not secure any possible competitive advantage as a result of the misconduct that had been identified. The Patriots have separately certified to me in writing that we received all tapes, all notes, and that no other material exists relating to the taping of defensive signals.''

What? Does Goodell think that the Patriots are going to break into the NFL offices and steal the tapes back? How much of a cheater is Bill Belichick? It would help explain why he is always wearing a hoodie; so that he can hide his identity while performing his various misdeeds.



Feb. 1, 2008: A New York Times story makes public Specter's interest in wanting an explanation from Goodell about the league's destruction of evidence related to the Patriots' spying. In public comments, Specter, a lifelong Philadelphia Eagles fan, says Goodell's explanation "absolutely makes no sense at all.''

Feb. 1, 2008: At his annual Super Bowl news conference, Goodell says the evidence from the Patriots destroyed by the league consisted of six tapes from the 2006 season and 2007 preseason.

Six tapes? You docked them a first round pick and fined them $750,000 for 6 tapes? That’s 125k per tape! That musta been some good stuff!

Asked twice how far back the Patriots began to tape their opponents' signals, Goodell doesn't give a specific answer. Goodell reveals the reason the league destroyed the tapes turned over by the Patriots: "They were totally consistent with what the team told me. There was no purpose for them."

Goodell doesn’t say at this point when the Patriots started taping, but he knows it was back in 2000. Goodell seems to have his own prerogatives here. He isn’t protecting the Patriots per se, but he is definitely being as quiet as he possibly can be about the situation. The concept that there was “no purpose” for the tapes to continue to exist is an interesting statement. Perhaps if they were DVDs…THEN they would have been worth keeping. Who the hell has a VHS these days anyway.

Goodell also says he believes the Patriots gained no advantage from taping: "I think it probably had a limited effect, if any effect, on the outcome on any game. … There was no indication that it benefited them in any of the Super Bowl victories."

Is it me, or did Goodell just say that the tapes, and this whole scandal, is immaterial to the Patriots and their record? Goodell didn’t hesitate for a moment in handing out a $750k fine before even seeing the tapes, and now says they didn’t really matter anyway. Shouldn’t he give at least SOME of the money back?

Feb. 6, 2008: Asked why the Patriots turned over six tapes, Goodell says, "That's what they had. My guess is they taped over some of those from time to time. … Their notes were reflective of that."

Oh, ok. They provided six tapes. Therefore, logically, they would have never considered withholding evidence from Goodell, probably because he is known as an in-depth, nothing-gets-by-me investigator.

By the way, if that statement is factual, the Patriots are a unique combination of being remarkably bright but unrealistically frugal. The Patriots pay a guy to film the coordinator on the opposing sideline that’s waving his arms like a madman at his team’s middle linebacker. The Patriots film those signals, study them, and then use the same tape to record “Ghost Dad”, leaving them with the task of remembering 31 team’s different defensive signals off the top of their head for the next time they played! Either their entire team is made up of players with Rain Man-esque levels of intelligence or this makes absolutely no sense.

Feb. 13, 2008: During a 1-hour, 40-minute meeting with Goodell, Specter says the commissioner told him Belichick had been taping the sidelines since 2000. "There was confirmation that there has been taping since 2000, when Coach Belichick took over," Specter says.

As legendary Steeler’s sportscaster Myron Cope used to say: “Yoi and Double Yoi!”

Feb. 15, 2008: Specter says he learned that the tapes, as well as the notes, turned over by the Patriots in September were destroyed in Foxborough, Mass., rather than in the league's New York offices, and that NFL executives Jeffrey Pash and Ray Anderson reviewed the materials and received an OK from Goodell to destroy the evidence.

So really, Goodell never even saw the tapes. His cronies supposedly did, and then whacked them with a hammer and threw them in the dumpster behind the Patriots practice field. So much for my “Heist” idea.

Specter says he is particularly concerned about how the taping might have affected New England's games involving teams from his home state in the 2004 postseason, including Pittsburgh, which lost the AFC title game to New England after the Steelers had won a regular-season game in late October of that season.

Yeah…Pittsburgh was really upset…

Feb. 17, 2007: As for the taping of opposing coaches' signals, Belichick said, "I misinterpreted the rule . . . I take responsibility for it. Even though I felt there was a gray area in the rule and I misinterpreted the rule, that was my mistake and we've been penalized for it.''

Hmmmm…gray area. An interesting concept. Let’s review:

“Videotaping of any type,

Ok…I know what videotaping is…

including but not limited to taping of an opponent's offensive or defensive signals,

Ok... taping signals…

is prohibited on the sidelines, in the coaches' booth, in the locker room or at any other locations accessible to club staff members during the game.''

…no taping signals on the sidelines, coaches’ booth, locker room or other locations. Seems pretty black and white to me. Maybe it was the fancy “including but not limited to” part that threw off the defensive mastermind.

May 8, 2008: Eight videotapes containing footage of six games between 2000 and 2002 involving five teams arrive from Walsh at NFL offices in New York.

Walsh is an idiot. The tapes don’t go to the NFL HQ. They go to the dumpster behind the Patriots practice field with the other ones.

So in summation, Bill Belichick unceremoniously joined the Patriots as a head coach in 2000 and started filming opponent’s signals. His team finished 5-11 that year. Since then his Patriots team is 134-42, they have notched 9 first place AFC East finishes, gone 3/5 in Super bowls, and set an unprecedented record for excellence in every statistical category over the past decade.

I cannot understand how this isn’t an obvious talking point in every single discussion of the Patriots.

I have heard a lot of arguments in favor of the Patriots, but none of them ever made much sense.


Argument 1: The tapes weren’t material in nature.



Why It’s Wrong: I find it difficult to believe that Belichick and the Patriots had been taping opponents for 7+ years because, according to Detective Goodell the tapes: “had a limited effect, if any effect, on the outcome on any game.” I find it fascinating that Bill Belichick, a defensive mastermind who routinely uses coaches challenges to completely change the outcome of a game, someone considered one of the brightest minds to ever grace a football field, the winningest coach in NFL over the past decade managed to get fined HALF A MILLION DOLLARS because he was engaged in an immaterial act.

Argument 2: Everyone does it, so what’s the big deal?



According to Wikipedia: “…former Dallas Cowboys head coach Jimmy Johnson claimed, ‘This is exactly how I was told to do it 18 years ago by a Kansas City Chiefs scout. I tried it, but I didn't think it helped us…Bill Belichick was wrong because he videotaped signals after a memo was sent out to all of the teams saying not to do it. But what irritates me is hearing some reactions from players and coaches. These players don't know what their coaches are doing. And some of the coaches have selective amnesia because I know for a fact there were various teams doing this. That's why the memo was sent to everybody. That doesn't make [Belichick] right, but a lot of teams are doing this.’”

Why It’s Wrong: I respect Mr. Johnson and the two championship rings, but he hasn’t coached since 1999 and I am skeptical of his understanding of the nuances of coaching in the modern NFL. Just because he couldn’t figure out how to utilize videotaped signals doesn’t mean that Bill Belichick couldn’t, and just because perhaps his teams were talented enough to win championships without cheating doesn’t mean that the Patriots are. Last year both Drew Brees and Tom Brady broke Dan Marino’s single season passing record, while Matt Stafford and Eli Manning both came within shouting distance of surpassing it themselves. The difference between the offensive intricacies between the 1999 Dolphins are the 2009 Dolphins are vast, and even a slight competitive edge can be the deciding factor in a close game. It is obvious that other teams have used this illegal strategy in the past, but to what extent and to what level of success is unclear. The Patriots have the best (75%) winning percentage since 2000 (aka “the start of filming”) and have finished 7th, 7th, 12th, 1st, 5th, 3rd, 8th, and 2nd offensively since 2003. There is no confusion about how successful they have been.

Argument 3: You can’t really prove anything.



Why It’s Wrong: I can’t prove anything. I am not snooping around Patriots headquarters or hacking into their computer system. But I do understand the concept of inference. It’s what scientists use to research things they can’t necessarily prove themselves. For example, a black hole is a region of “spacetime” (space) from which nothing, not even light, can escape. Scientists cannot see them of course, since they gobble up light, but they are able to infer it’s presence through its interaction with matter, light and radiation.

I cannot prove for a second that the Patriots are cheating to this very day, but I can infer the presence of cheating through their interaction with the league, other teams and the media.

For example:

Former and currently Patriots OC Josh McDaniels was fined $50,000 in November of 2010 after his (and the Patriot’s former) video director was caught filming a 49ers practice. McDaniel’s got this idea from someone and I can make a strong case that it is his mentor and boss Bill Belichick.

The Patriots former GM Scott Pioli came on board at the same time that Belichick did. He went on to win three Super bowls and kick butt with Bill until the Chiefs hired him away in 2008. Why mention Scott Pioli?



Please read the article for yourself. The Chiefs tried to get out of paying the remainder of Haley’s contract after firing him for “breach of contract.” One can argue that this is a story that merits no consideration, but if you don’t think that familiarity and use of recording devices on separate occasions in separate places by the current and former Patriots front office doesn’t help establish a worrisome fact pattern then you just aren’t paying attention. Just look at the end of the article:

“Among the other highlights, an undisputed story about Pioli leaving a candy wrapper (no word on the variety) in a back stairwell and seeing how long until someone picked it up. After a week, Pioli had the wrapper placed in a bag and shown at a meeting to demonstrate the lack of detail that pervaded the building. “A great teaching moment” according to team president Mark Donovan.”



Apparently they have morning OTAs followed by subterfuge classes.

Argument 4: The Patriots win so much because they win the right way.


Argument 4: The Patriots win so much because they win the right way.

Why It’s Wrong: The Patriots are the most successful franchise in the modern era that doesn’t build through the draft. They are the only franchise to employ an unpredictable method of large leaps up and down in the draft paired with random levels of free agency aggression. Other championship teams like the Steelers, Colts and Giants are all known to pickup their future starters and save their money to keep the players that excelled. The Patriots, on the other hand, experience roster turnover more than any recent superbowl champ. Everything from cutting their two-time pro bowl safety Brandon Meriweather only days before the 2011 season started, to what seems to have become an annual wide receiver corps rebuild. They clearly value certain players and certain roles with certain mindset, and it makes them unlike any team in the league. They played against the Giants in the most recent Super bowl with a roster mostly comprised of late round picks and undrafted free agents. Simply put, the Patriots build their roster in a way that no one else in the league does. Either they are really just that good or something is amiss.


Argument 5: They don’t win because they cheat. They are just that good!



The Patriots are not only the most successful franchise in the NFL, but are the most consistently successful franchise in the NFL. They are unlike any team anyone has ever seen ever in the history of anything.

When the Colt’s lost Peyton Manning they lost 14 straight games, BUT when the Patriots lost Tom Brady the Pats went 10-5 and just missed the playoffs.

When the Steelers won Super bowl XL they followed it up with an 8-8 season, BUT the Patriots don’t really do down seasons. The last time they had a losing record was 2000. Their worst record of this decade was 9-7 in 2002. You can bet $1,000 each year that the Patriots are going to win 10 games that year and over the past decade nine times out of ten you are making money.

When professional football teams play they play football, BUT when the New England Patriots play football they play Madden. Winning is boring for them at this point. Shattering records is much more interesting. Going 16-0, setting records for touchdowns and yards at several individual offensive positions, and outright maiming their opponent as they run up the score are all typical occurrences for the Pats. I am waiting for them to try going a whole season without ever running the football.

The Patriots are (gulp)… too good. They are too good to be true.



In summation, the Patriots win constantly and are the only team that has gotten caught “cheating” in the past decade. They supposedly broke the rules, but the level of rule breaking was not material to the outcome of any events, including their three Super bowl wins. They were still fined a 1st round pick and $750,000 for breaking these rules. They never have never been stripped of any of their awards, bonuses, or had any type of marks levied against their accomplishments. To this day, they are the winningest, but most unpredictable and mystifying, franchise in the NFL. They are too good to be true. For some, it seems to be enough. For one Italian that keeps a blog, he understands things aren’t always as they seem. Even more, he knows that it’s nothing personal…it’s just business.