Belicheat confirmed...Deflate-gate

[SomersetHawk]

Brad Johnson now admits to paying someone off to tamper with the balls in 2003..

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/20 ... uper-bowl/

Between this and the new DeflateGate, who wants to tell me there is ZERO CHANCE that the Colts ever could have contemplated intentionally losing to get the #1 draft pick, again? :lol:

Yeah, organizations and players would never cheat in any way, under any circumstances!

Man, it kills me how obtuse some people are.

I'm somebody who's accommodated the idea of them tanking on here and was pretty amazed by those who were unwilling comprehend any possibility that it could ever happen.

Maybe they didn't set out to tank the season, but somewhere along the line (perhaps the 62-7 hammering in New Orleans) they must have thought 'what is there to gain?' before winning their last two home games knowing they could afford to. I mean, is it really that inconceivable?

I'm not sure deflate-gate makes that any more relevant though.

On topic, New England turned the ball over the least in the NFL this season. Losing only four fumbles (second to the Vikings who somehow only lost two?). They only fumbled the ball 13 times as a team (also second to the Vikings who had 11).

They also were the sixth best team in drop percentage. Dropping 3.7% of targets. Pretty remarkable turn around when you consider they were the second worst in the NFL last year at 6.6%.

 

[Rob12]

Seahawk fans should chill on this.

Because you know the NFL is coming after us next... They want parody, and the Patriots have messed up their parody scheme and now the Seahawks are threatening it.

It's like Sherman says -- every time a Seahawk has a good game, they test for PED's...

I bet tons of teams mess with the game balls to give them an advantage, but the Patriots are under way more scrutiny, just as Seattle has been.

Life Lesson:

Don't get involved in witch hunts because sooner or later they'll be at YOUR door with the pitchforks and the bonfire.

I will take you serious when you learn how to spell. Don't use a $5 word like PARITY unless you can at least spell it properly. 'Parody' is a form of comedy, although it does fit what you are telling Seahawk fans to do. :roll:

I'll take you seriously when you learn how to behave like an adult instead of a deranged spoiled child.

I've not slept one wink in over 48 hours - I can barely even see the effing computer screen at this point and I could give a rats ass if you want to correct a misplaced word. Why don't you call 911 over it?

I'm sick of the incessant mass hysteria that's plagued damn near the entire NFL season and now the playoffs as well. It's Rice, it's Peterson, then it's a bad call with the Lions, then it's Dez Bryant, now the Packers "shouldn't have lost" which is quickly overshadowed by the Patriots are not putting enough air in footballs.

This crap has been going on in the NFL for damn near a hundred years - but suddenly it's something to freak out about?

If Vince Lombardi were alive today - you all would hate his guts, and demand that he be "banned for life" for effing up the field prior to the Ice Bowl.

The issue here is social media and the inability of the population to handle it. The technology has outclassed the intellect.

You're fully of hypurbuly, oh wait, I'm sorry, hyperbole. Gotta be careful on those words, lest I be BANNED from posting.

Sorry man... But it's "couldn't give a rat's ass."

Thought the rest was solid.

 

[gulliver]

If you are a QB with small Keebler Elf hands then obviously an underinflated ball helps with the grip, but both Luck & Brady are big guys with large hands. Don't really se how this would benefit strictly the Pats.

Besides, aren't the ball boys employed by the NFL and not by the team?

Just because your hands are well-sized doesn't mean an underinflated ball--which only your team gets to handle--provides you an extra edge. It also ignores the fact that people have to catch the ball. And also the fact that it makes it easier for an RB to hang onto.

A lot of people are saying "Pats still would have won" and "Pats are still a good team no matter what they've done in the past." No denying the Pats are a great team and Belichick is a great coach. But couches are littered with great players and great coaches every offseason. Getting that extra edge you're not supposed to get can and DOES help push great teams to greater heights than their law-abiding competitors ever reach.

 

[DTexHawk]

If true...Whoa. Belichick may not coach a single game in the 2015 regular season.

Rule breakers need to be dealt with.

 

[12thManNorth]

I don't care much about deflated footballs either, as I'm pretty confident the 2 best teams in the NFL are in the Super Bowl.

Saying that, you gotta think this helps the Hawks. This HAS to be a major distraction for New England, right during the time that they're supposed to be putting their game plan together (assuming they have the same plan as Pete). Not to mention the number of times next week their players are going to get asked about it. This also has to help sway any 50/50 fan toward Seattle's direction, which could help us for noise at the SB along with all the real 12's at the game. Finally, for all the fans that already despised New England in part for this kind of stuff, this just adds more fuel to the fire for everybody. Can't complain about that

Also for anybody that think Belichick maybe did not have knowledge of this, take your head out of the sand. There is NO WAY they would be doing this without his authorization. Absolutely no way

 

[Foghawk]

Note:

Out of every player on the field, the one player who MUST have known that the balls weren't inflated to regulation is Tom Brady. There is absolutely no possible way that he grips one of those balls and can't tell that it has been deflated.

Truly!

And, as I was mentioning earlier, 2 pounds PSI would be a very noticeable difference- not like they squeaked out half a pound- they went for almost 20%.

Probably not noticeable if they've been playing with deflated balls all season.

 

[SomersetHawk]

I don't care much about deflated footballs either, as I'm pretty confident the 2 best teams in the NFL are in the Super Bowl.

Saying that, you gotta think this helps the Hawks. This HAS to be a major distraction for New England, right during the time that they're supposed to be putting their game plan together (assuming they have the same plan as Pete). Not to mention the number of times next week their players are going to get asked about it. This also has to help sway any 50/50 fan toward Seattle's direction, which could help us for noise at the SB along with all the real 12's at the game. Finally, for all the fans that already despised New England in part for this kind of stuff, this just adds more fuel to the fire for everybody. Can't complain about that

Also for anybody that think Belichick maybe did not have knowledge of this, take your head out of the sand. There is NO WAY they would be doing this without his authorization. Absolutely no way

You have to think the players didn't know about it. I'm not sure you'd have seen Brady give the interview he did prior to the news breaking if he was aware (though you'd also have thought he'd be able to tell the difference).

I think a little bit of self doubt could come into play when we hit gametime. 'Didn't coach trust us?' 'Has it been like that all season?' 'Man, this ball feels different'. Difficult to know how their players will react to this, a few of whom (including Brady) have been made to look stupid after initially brushing it off. I'd have thought Belichick's got a task on his hands to make this all disappear, whilst simultaneously preparing for their toughest test of the season.

 

[Rainger]

Winning the Super Bowl and picking #31 sure sounds good.

Picking 32 please

 

[SomersetHawk]

Winning the Super Bowl and picking #31 sure sounds good.

Picking 32 please

 

[12thManNorth]

I also think the argument about "well we beat Indy 45-7 so clearly it wouldn't have mattered anyways" is ridiculous. You think that this is the first time they've ever done it ? No, it's the first time they've got CAUGHT. Brady said back in 2011 he likes the deflated footballs, so clearly has felt that way for years. NE has played cold weather games for eons obviously and to me there's about a 0.0001% that all of the sudden this is the first time that they thought of or implemented the idea of deflating the balls. Guaranteed the week before in a 4 point win over Baltimore it was the exact same thing, nevermind several other times over the years

 

[purpleworld]

Until this happened, I did not know that each offense uses a different set of balls....crazy! Simple solution, everyone plays with the same....why make it complicated?

 

[rastahawk]

Unbelievable. When controversy comes out I usually like to brush of the conspiracy theorists. But it seems to me I have been naive on a lot of occasions. It is crazy how insidious people people really are. This is not just in football.

You know what screw it. There are such things as aliens, George Bush conspired to 9/11, and the FBI shot Tupac and Biggie.

 

[MizzouHawkGal]

Until this happened, I did not know that each offense uses a different set of balls....crazy! Simple solution, everyone plays with the same....why make it complicated?

Because that would make sense silly.

 

[Anonymous]

The regulation NFL football I have in my hand indicates an inflation pressure range of 9-13 PSI, as printed on the ball directly adjacent to the inflation button.

As an experiment, I just used my high-dollar digital tire pressure gauge (which reads in .25-psi increments) to inflate the ball to 13.5 psi using a clean fresh inflation needle coated with fresh human saliva as a lubricant. With the current ambient temperature here of 64 deg F, this sucker is tighter and bouncier than an inflatable children's bouncy-house hooked to a small jet engine. I seriously doubt any team would pass the 12.5-psi mark.

As I systematically reduced the pressure, in half-pound increments, and I arrived at what I felt to be a good "feel" at exactly 11.5 psi. This is 1 pound less than the NFL-mandated 12.5 minimum inflation spec. Unlike a car tire that gains pressure as the tire rolls, only direct sunlight would cause the ball to "grow" in pressure. The ball would need to be inflated to the bare minimum pressure for legality, then kept sheltered from sunlight to keep internal air pressure from rising with heat and growing the ball.

After reducing the pressure in the ball by a full 2 psi to 10.5, it makes the ball significantly more easily "squeezable", it actually makes is a little easier to throw and grasp in general, but holding it perfectly horizontally and dropping it on a concrete floor from 10 feet up, the difference in the way the ball bounces seemed to be about the same. In fact, in order to get the ball to be noticeably less bouncy, it had to be deflated to about 8 psi. Further, with the ball deflated to 8 it actually makes it more difficult to throw a good spiral as the deflection of the ball by the finger grip effects the release similar to that experienced when throwing a Nerf. And we all know how a Nerf must be thrown differently.

In terms of receiving the ball. I found that when my assistant fired the 13.5 unit at me, it seemed to lodge in to my body more effectively and was easier to control. As pressure was reduced, the ball was actually more difficult to catch bare handed as it deflected a bit more making it harder to grab. At 8 psi, it was like catching a raw pizza dough. So, there is a happy medium in the catching aspect, and the rubbery-coated gloves is going to make that a non-issue.

In conclusion, the 2-psi reduction does make it easier to throw and to hold onto, but not less bouncy. Unless of course it is dropped on the nose of the ball. My experiments concluded that at a full 13.5 psi, dropping the ball on the floor nose down caused it to bounce significantly higher and with much more unpredictability in direction of the bounce. The more the ball was deflated, the easier it is to predict the height of the bounce and the speed of the bounce. On grass or turf, I seriously doubt a pound or two will make much difference. Therefore, with cold conditions and a slippery covering surface, it would definitely be the QB who would benefit from a ball-pressure reduction than anyone charged with catching or receiving it.

 

[Chukarhawk]

If you inflate a ball at 70 degrees and take it outside in 40 degree weather the pressure will decrease. Ever leave a properly inflated basketball outside in the cold overnight? How does it bounce in the morning. Like its flat. Ever check the tire pressure on your car before and after driving on them? big difference.

This sounds like much ado about nothing.

 

[Our Man in Chicago]

^ That doesn't explain the (K) ball being properly inflated, or the fact that the officials have to measure the PSI for consistency prior to the game. These footballs aren't going to lose 2 PSI over a few hours.

EDIT: According to the official Gamebook, the game-time temperature was 57°F. It's not like it was below freezing.

 

[minormillikin]

The regulation NFL football I have in my hand indicates an inflation pressure range of 9-13 PSI, as printed on the ball directly adjacent to the inflation button.

As an experiment, I just used my high-dollar digital tire pressure gauge (which reads in .25-psi increments) to inflate the ball to 13.5 psi using a clean fresh inflation needle coated with fresh human saliva as a lubricant. With the current ambient temperature here of 64 deg F, this sucker is tighter and bouncier than an inflatable children's bouncy-house hooked to a small jet engine. I seriously doubt any team would pass the 12.5-psi mark.

As I systematically reduced the pressure, in half-pound increments, and I arrived at what I felt to be a good "feel" at exactly 11.5 psi. This is 1 pound less than the NFL-mandated 12.5 minimum inflation spec. Unlike a car tire that gains pressure as the tire rolls, only direct sunlight would cause the ball to "grow" in pressure. The ball would need to be inflated to the bare minimum pressure for legality, then kept sheltered from sunlight to keep internal air pressure from rising with heat and growing the ball.

After reducing the pressure in the ball by a full 2 psi to 10.5, it makes the ball significantly more easily "squeezable", it actually makes is a little easier to throw and grasp in general, but holding it perfectly horizontally and dropping it on a concrete floor from 10 feet up, the difference in the way the ball bounces seemed to be about the same. In fact, in order to get the ball to be noticeably less bouncy, it had to be deflated to about 8 psi. Further, with the ball deflated to 8 it actually makes it more difficult to throw a good spiral as the deflection of the ball by the finger grip effects the release similar to that experienced when throwing a Nerf. And we all know how a Nerf must be thrown differently.

In terms of receiving the ball. I found that when my assistant fired the 13.5 unit at me, it seemed to lodge in to my body more effectively and was easier to control. As pressure was reduced, the ball was actually more difficult to catch bare handed as it deflected a bit more making it harder to grab. At 8 psi, it was like catching a raw pizza dough. So, there is a happy medium in the catching aspect, and the rubbery-coated gloves is going to make that a non-issue.

In conclusion, the 2-psi reduction does make it easier to throw and to hold onto, but not less bouncy. Unless of course it is dropped on the nose of the ball. My experiments concluded that at a full 13.5 psi, dropping the ball on the floor nose down caused it to bounce significantly higher and with much more unpredictability in direction of the bounce. The more the ball was deflated, the easier it is to predict the height of the bounce and the speed of the bounce. On grass or turf, I seriously doubt a pound or two will make much difference. Therefore, with cold conditions and a slippery covering surface, it would definitely be the QB who would benefit from a ball-pressure reduction than anyone charged with catching or receiving it.

Wow, good work!

I'm starting to wonder how common this all is, and also wondering whether the league will just change the rules if lower psi means more points.

 

[Pats fan1]

I'll repeat what everyone is thinking...why is it always the Patriots that get caught up in this stuff. Spy-gate, Deflate-gate, Deception-gate, Snowplow-gate, and of course Tuck-gate.

Here's a history on all the "gates" from Beli-Cheat regime:

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/new-england-patriots-scandals-from-spies-to-snowplows/

Teams get caught cheating often but either their local media won't report it or it's put on the back pages. For example I bet you at least 95% of americans have no idea the Cleveland Browns coaches or players or both were using cellphones and texting during the game...

NFL Investigating Alleged Gameday Texting To Coaches By Browns Front Office Personnel...
http://cleveland.cbslocal.com/2015/01/0 ... wns-staff/

NFL looks into texts sent to Browns' sideline...
http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/12142 ... line-games

When something happens with the Pats your city's media and all the city's local media jumps on the bandwagon and runs to Boston to be the world's best detectives to obsess over the Patriots and act like they're searching for the Holy Grail with such indignance.

I give the Seahawks organization and their ban base credit though, they're don't obsess over the Patriots and don't suffer Patriot paranoia like Steelers, Colts, Ravens, Jets fans do.

There's a national obsession over the Patriots.

 

[minormillikin]

I think a lot of you guys aren't privy to all the new stuff. The refs checked the balls, thought they were fine and it's believed they deflated the balls after the check. The most suspicious element to me is that of the 11 of 12 that were deflated, they were all deflated the same amount.

 

[Pats fan1]

I think a lot of you guys aren't privy to all the new stuff. The refs checked the balls, thought they were fine and it's believed they deflated the balls after the check. The most suspicious element to me is that of the 11 of 12 that were deflated, they were all deflated the same amount.

If the refs thought the footballs were fine they are either incompetent and it's a league issue where refs are ill trained and many teams do this or the refs allow this for all teams or they're in cahoots with the Pats.