ESPN: Belichick's Cheating --> Dark Days for NFL ? - The Orange Mane

55CrushEm · 09-19-2007, 09:50 AM

If this has been posted, I apologize.....I did a quick search and didn't see it. Please move or delete if it has.

I read this, and thought it had some interesting points.....a bit long, but worth the read. Many will probably say, "unlikely"....but you can't deny that's its plausible.

Belichick's cheating could lead to dark days for NFL
By Gregg Easterbrook
Special to Page 2

Updated: September 18, 2007, 3:23 PM ET

The situation with the National Football League is a lot worse than people realize, and the only one who seems to grasp this fully is commissioner Roger Goodell. You don't issue emergency orders backed by threats on Sunday morning of a game day, as Goodell just did regarding the New England Patriots' files of cheating information, unless the situation is a lot worse than people realize.

Why is the situation worse than people think? Because the NFL is on the precipice of blowing its status as the country's favorite sport. The whole NFL enterprise is in jeopardy from that single word: cheating. It's the most distasteful word in sports. And now the Patriots have brought the word into the NFL.

Think the NFL can't decline? Fifteen years ago, the National Basketball Association was going up, up, up by every measure and was widely considered the gold-plated can't-miss "sport of the next century." Since then, NBA popularity and ratings have plummeted while NBA-based teams have floundered in international competition. At the moment of its maximum success, the NBA became overconfident and arrogant in ways that need not be recounted here. Key point: There was no law of nature that said the NBA had to stay popular, and it did not.

Today the NFL is king of the hill in sports status, ratings, merchandising and association with the American psyche. There is no law of nature that says the NFL has to stay popular. Overconfidence and arrogance could be the downfall of the NFL, too – and we might be on that precipice. People will always watch and play football, of course. But nothing guarantees that the NFL's version of football must remain the super-successful money machine that it is today. There could be autumn Sunday afternoons in the near future in which the overwhelming majority of Americans couldn't care less what NFL games are being shown. Fifteen years ago, sports-marketing types would have said "impossible!" to the notion that only 11 percent of American households would watch the NBA Finals, which is what happened this June. Plummeting popularity for NFL broadcasts seems "impossible!" right now, but might happen fast enough to make your head swim.

Criminal behavior by NFL players, haughty owners who demand public subsidies, negative press for the union, coaches who snarl at the public instead of acting grateful for their privileged positions, insufferable egotism from multimillionaire athletes: All these things can be overlooked as long as the games themselves are good. If the games themselves are tainted, the NFL could tumble with amazing speed. And now there is a cheating scandal – cheating by the team that presented itself as the epitome of the sport – which calls the games themselves into question.

First we learn that the Patriots were cheating by using video equipment to steal signs, in blatant violation of league rules. Then we learn that even after the scandal broke and Bill Belichick issued his Nixonian stonewalling statement, the Patriots were still keeping sign-stealing videotapes and notes from past games. Surrender of the tapes and notes was the subject of Goodell's emergency order, first reported by ESPN's Chris Mortensen. Sunday night on NBC's "Football Night in America," Goodell threatened more punishment of the Patriots if all cheating materials aren't surrendered, and repeatedly declared it was imperative that NFL games be fair and equal competition. That's exactly the crux of the threat Belichick has created to the league's golden goose.

Consider the Sunday night contest. New England had played San Diego just four games back, in the January 2007 postseason. Perhaps Belichick's cameraman was illegally taping the Chargers that day, and perhaps Belichick illegally used the information against the Chargers on Sunday night. The San Diego coaching staff has changed since the playoff game, so presumably its defensive calls are different. But San Diego's new defensive coordinator, Ted Cottrell, was defensive coordinator for the Bills and Jets, both AFC East teams, in the Belichick period. Perhaps Belichick has spied on Cottrell's calls before and took out the tapes of the spying rather than handing them over as Goodell demanded. Was New England cheating again Sunday night, when the Patriots advanced the ball with such ease it seemed they knew what defense San Diego would be in?

And the Patriots' cheating might have been more extensive than so far confirmed. Fox Sports reported that former NFL players believe Belichick had microphones installed in the shoulder pads of defensive linemen so the Patriots could tape other teams' offensive audibles and line calls. Needless to say, putting microphones on players violates NFL rules. Andrea Kremer of NBC reported that several teams might charge the Patriots this week with having stolen playbooks from the visitors' dressing room. The convenient "malfunction" of visiting teams' headphones at the Patriots' two fields under Belichick seems to have happened far too often to be an IT department error. The rumor mill says Belichick, Richard Nixon-style, has file cabinets of info on opposing coaches and assistant coaches – some gleaned honestly, some obtained by cheating.

It seems more than just an eerie coincidence that Belichick's unethical behavior involves illicit taping, the same offense that made Nixon's actions so sordid. The parallels to Nixon don't stop there. Caught, Belichick – like Nixon – tried to hide the true extent of the prohibited acts; Belichick – like Nixon – tried to claim his prohibited action hadn't been prohibited; Belichick – like Nixon – immediately stonewalled. It would be tempting to break the unhappy tone of this column with a Nixon joke – when the league plays Belichick's tape of the Jets' sideline, will there be an 18-and-a-half minute gap? But for all lovers of the NFL, there's just nothing to laugh about now.

What else is there about New England cheating that the team or league isn't telling us? Are the Patriots one bad apple, or is cheating common in the league? Worst, did the Patriots cheat in their Super Bowl wins? If New England was cheating in the Super Bowl, this will become the darkest sports scandal since Shoeless Joe and the Black Sox. If you don't think Goodell and all owners, including Robert Kraft of New England, are in abject terror of any possible disclosure that the Patriots were cheating in the Super Bowl, perhaps you just don't understand the situation.

The weasel wording of Belichick's Nixonian statement shows the New England coach full of contempt for the NFL fans, and the NFL enterprise, that made him a wealthy celebrity. Belichick declared that his super-elaborate cheating system was only a "mistake" caused by his "interpretation" of the league's rule. Wait, "interpretation"? The NFL rule bans teams from filming each other's sidelines. There's no room for interpretation, it's a ban! Here's the NFL policy, from a memo sent to all head coaches and general managers Sept. 6, 2006: "Videotaping of any type, including but not limited to taping of an opponent's offensive or defensive 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." Prohibited. There's nothing there to "interpret." Videotaping opponent's signals even after getting this warning isn't a "mistake," it's cheating. Belichick's cheating was not some casual spur-of-the-moment blunder but rather an elaborate staffed system that took a lot of work to put into place and that Belichick worked hard to hide. And you don't hide something unless you are ashamed of it.

Michael Vick tried to deny and stonewall, but at the last owned up and admitted what he did. That's dignity. Belichick is now using weasel words to deny responsibility for his own choices. What kind of example does that set for the young? "Make good choices," football coaches constantly preach to the young. Now, caught, Belichick wants a special exemption to responsibility for his own choices. Belichick also is trying to close the matter by saying he won't talk about it anymore. So he cheated and now unilaterally declares the matter closed because he doesn't want to face the consequences of his own choices. But this is not over and not going away. Before the cheating scandal, Belichick had a reputation for being heartless but a really good coach. Now, he seems little more than a creepy con artist, and it's the refusal to act like a man and take full responsibility that's really offensive. Goodell's draft-choice penalty against the Patriots – either a first or a second and a third – is the highest draft penalty ever imposed in the NFL. The severity of this sanction shows how seriously Goodell takes the violation. If more disclosures are coming, there might be a lot more punishment of the Patriots. And unless Belichick comes clean and stops lying about his cheating, this event should disqualify him from consideration for the Pro Football Hall of Fame – it is, after all, not the Hall of Cheaters.

Will Belichick even be in coaching by season's end? When the Vick dogfighting scandal first broke, most football pundits, and most in the Atlanta and league offices, thought there would be few repercussions. Then they thought Vick would have to make some kind of apology. Then they thought he'd need some leave of absence. Then they thought he'd be suspended for a year. Now they wonder whether he'll ever be allowed to play again. By acting Nixonian, Belichick is accelerating his fall from grace. Today, Belichick and New England are trying to pretend the scandal is over. It would not surprise me in the slightest if, before the season ends, Belichick resigns, or is suspended, or is fired by Kraft, or even is permanently barred from the league. Belichick's head might be necessary to preserve the integrity of the game. Surprisingly soon, sacrificing Belichick to save professional football might seem an attractive option, even to Kraft. Remember, there is no law of nature that says the NFL must remain popular.

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2...8&sportCat=nfl

Garcia Bronco · 09-19-2007, 10:34 AM

Gregg Easterbroke is a moron...but look who he works for....

obediah · 09-19-2007, 10:55 AM

Save the Drama For your Mama,, Jeesh,, There are a lot of reasons why the NBA is not as popular anymore, I cant go into them cause i would just be too honest and some cant handle that. But i will say im scared to go support my team and they win, and then i get shot in the parking lot, if i make it out that far.
As long as we keep the thugs out of football we will be ok.

People like Michael Vick will kill the NFL not Bill "Beta"check.. I forgot all about it when the games came on, just remembered when the Pats came on, their name will be a little tarnished, but im sure if they looked a lot of teams do stuff like this.

Obediahh

Popps · 09-19-2007, 11:05 AM

A little over the top, but it's based in reality. Goodell knows it, and that's why he's acting as swiftly as he is on these things.

It's true... the NFL is teetering on MLB/NBA territory. Swift action needs to be taken on this kind of stuff.

OrangeShadow · 09-19-2007, 11:05 AM

what a piece of crap article

Steve Sewell · 09-19-2007, 11:12 AM

Yeah, that was crap. I stopped reading after the second paragraph. The only reason people are outraged about the Belechick thing is because they are the king of the hill and most people don't like them. But I'm not going to stop watching NFL football over this, and neither is the casual fan. The sports bar in Omaha that I go to (and most people in NE are college fans first) will continue to be packed with 100's of people in different NFL jerseys on Sundays.

The reason the NBA failed is because fans can't identify with the players and their prevailing attitudes, can't reconcile with the ridiculous amount of money they make, and most importantly because the league was Michael Jordan, period. The NFL has a lot more going for it then the NBA ever did.

Merlin · 09-19-2007, 11:38 AM

Of course is over the top, the point of media is to entertain...however, the gist of his argument has some validity. That is, if more cheating surfaces, Belicheats manner of handling crisis, the NFL will have to act hard and fast. The question is not whether NFL fans will disappear, but whether the casual fan will (and they are the ones that DRIVE the money machine). The NFL cannot risk further tainting its product and Goodell knows this (as do the rest of the owners). If there is any truth to the other allegations, Belicheat will be out for a number of games

PS The above NWSD, he does make idiotic comments now and then, and especially regarding SD's loss last week.

PatsWin2002 · 09-19-2007, 11:57 AM

This is where all this is headed. How long until an AFC West team accuses a rival of something now that the floodgates are open?

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/fo...reen_prac.html

Jets' fan: Dolphins spy on Gang Green practices

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

BY RICH CIMINI
DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER
Wednesday, September 19th 2007, 4:00 AM

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Is there a spy story involving Sunday's Jets-Dolphins game? Possibly.

A longtime Jets fan, who regularly attends training-camp practices, is absolutely convinced the Dolphins have been sending a scout/spy to Jets practices for years. That, of course, is against league rules. It's the same guy every year, according to the fan. The suspected spy dresses in a Jets golf shirt and Jets cap, blending into the crowd at the open practice. He sits atop the bleachers with a legal pad, taking detailed notes.

One day, our fan friend sat near the spy and noticed he was wearing a Dolphins watch. Hmm. Afterward, the fan followed him out to the parking lot. What he saw next stunned him: When the spy got to his car, he pulled off his Jets shirt and threw it in a trash can, along with the cap.

True story.

LDB · 09-19-2007, 12:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PatsWin2002

This is where all this is headed. How long until an AFC West team accuses a rival of something now that the floodgates are open?

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/fo...reen_prac.html

Jets' fan: Dolphins spy on Gang Green practices

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

BY RICH CIMINI
DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER
Wednesday, September 19th 2007, 4:00 AM

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Is there a spy story involving Sunday's Jets-Dolphins game? Possibly.

A longtime Jets fan, who regularly attends training-camp practices, is absolutely convinced the Dolphins have been sending a scout/spy to Jets practices for years. That, of course, is against league rules. It's the same guy every year, according to the fan. The suspected spy dresses in a Jets golf shirt and Jets cap, blending into the crowd at the open practice. He sits atop the bleachers with a legal pad, taking detailed notes.

One day, our fan friend sat near the spy and noticed he was wearing a Dolphins watch. Hmm. Afterward, the fan followed him out to the parking lot. What he saw next stunned him: When the spy got to his car, he pulled off his Jets shirt and threw it in a trash can, along with the cap.

True story.

You sure this isn't printed in the National Enquirer? And this one time at band camp...

lazarus4444 · 09-19-2007, 12:49 PM

I LOVE the band camps stories

This article was ok but the NFL is very strong right now and i don't see it falling from grace unless players keep being arseholes and teams keep cheating.

OrangeShadow · 09-19-2007, 01:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PatsWin2002

This is where all this is headed. How long until an AFC West team accuses a rival of something now that the floodgates are open?

I read somewhere(not saying its true) that denver was one of the first teams to report this type of stuf by the pats

Garcia Bronco · 09-19-2007, 01:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PatsWin2002

This is where all this is headed. How long until an AFC West team accuses a rival of something now that the floodgates are open?

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/fo...reen_prac.html

Jets' fan: Dolphins spy on Gang Green practices

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

BY RICH CIMINI
DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER
Wednesday, September 19th 2007, 4:00 AM

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Is there a spy story involving Sunday's Jets-Dolphins game? Possibly.

A longtime Jets fan, who regularly attends training-camp practices, is absolutely convinced the Dolphins have been sending a scout/spy to Jets practices for years. That, of course, is against league rules. It's the same guy every year, according to the fan. The suspected spy dresses in a Jets golf shirt and Jets cap, blending into the crowd at the open practice. He sits atop the bleachers with a legal pad, taking detailed notes.

One day, our fan friend sat near the spy and noticed he was wearing a Dolphins watch. Hmm. Afterward, the fan followed him out to the parking lot. What he saw next stunned him: When the spy got to his car, he pulled off his Jets shirt and threw it in a trash can, along with the cap.

True story.

...look out Kaylore.....someone might think your are a spy.

BroncoFiend · 09-19-2007, 01:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PatsWin2002

This is where all this is headed. How long until an AFC West team accuses a rival of something now that the floodgates are open?

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/fo...reen_prac.html

Jets' fan: Dolphins spy on Gang Green practices

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

BY RICH CIMINI
DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER
Wednesday, September 19th 2007, 4:00 AM

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Is there a spy story involving Sunday's Jets-Dolphins game? Possibly.

A longtime Jets fan, who regularly attends training-camp practices, is absolutely convinced the Dolphins have been sending a scout/spy to Jets practices for years. That, of course, is against league rules. It's the same guy every year, according to the fan. The suspected spy dresses in a Jets golf shirt and Jets cap, blending into the crowd at the open practice. He sits atop the bleachers with a legal pad, taking detailed notes.

One day, our fan friend sat near the spy and noticed he was wearing a Dolphins watch. Hmm. Afterward, the fan followed him out to the parking lot. What he saw next stunned him: When the spy got to his car, he pulled off his Jets shirt and threw it in a trash can, along with the cap.

True story.

So the guy buys a new Jets hat and shirt everyday just to throw it out when he leaves? As spies go this one isn't so bright.

PatsWin2002 · 09-19-2007, 01:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Garcia Bronco

...look out Kaylore.....someone might think your are a spy.

Just pictured Kaylore having his cover getting blown because of a $2 Raiders watch.

BroncoFiend · 09-19-2007, 01:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PatsWin2002

This is where all this is headed. How long until an AFC West team accuses a rival of something now that the floodgates are open?

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/fo...reen_prac.html

Jets' fan: Dolphins spy on Gang Green practices

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

BY RICH CIMINI
DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER
Wednesday, September 19th 2007, 4:00 AM

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Is there a spy story involving Sunday's Jets-Dolphins game? Possibly.

A longtime Jets fan, who regularly attends training-camp practices, is absolutely convinced the Dolphins have been sending a scout/spy to Jets practices for years. That, of course, is against league rules. It's the same guy every year, according to the fan. The suspected spy dresses in a Jets golf shirt and Jets cap, blending into the crowd at the open practice. He sits atop the bleachers with a legal pad, taking detailed notes.

One day, our fan friend sat near the spy and noticed he was wearing a Dolphins watch. Hmm. Afterward, the fan followed him out to the parking lot. What he saw next stunned him: When the spy got to his car, he pulled off his Jets shirt and threw it in a trash can, along with the cap.

True story.

So the guy buys a new Jets hat and shirt everyday just to throw it out when he leaves? As spies go, this one isn't so bright.

TexanBob · 09-19-2007, 01:56 PM

I think the spying, counterspying and dirty tricks are widespread and the coaching fraternity is hesistant to make any of it public because they'll just be exposed as hypocrites.

Remember that playoff game (I think it was the 1997 playoff in Kansas City) where the Bronco offensive linemen had to be taken off the field and toweled down because they'd had a lubricant sprayed on their jersies to make it harder for defenders to grab them? Stunts like this probably happen a lot more than we know.

No, I don't think the NFL will lose market share or popularity because of this. The fans already know half the league is roided up and they don't care. They already know the players live out-of-control lifestyles and they don't care.

I'm sure Goodell would rather be dealing with this than dealing with refs in debt to the Mob or their record-breakers being the target of federal investigations.

I can't imagine this story will get to the bottom of the problems nor will the fans care particularly.

bronco militia · 09-19-2007, 01:58 PM

Garcia Bronco · 09-19-2007, 02:55 PM

As a Bronco fan I don't care. Obviously we consistently win. So all things being equal we still win most the time.

bronco militia · 09-19-2007, 02:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Garcia Bronco

As a Bronco fan I don't care. Obviously we consistently win. So all things being equal we still win most the time.

I don't care either.....**** you new york fans

Paladin · 09-19-2007, 03:14 PM

There are certainly valid questions to be raised by Cameragate. And it is true that it seems many people are gleefully cheering the Commish on because it is the Pats. The percieved arrogance of Bellycheck drives even the local Boston media nuts (more nuts, BTW).

And the continual jock licking by certain National media "personalities" feeds into a sense of lack of respect for other teams and players. Maybe if Madden and the ESPN boys and Girls would stop slathering over individual players, that would help. I, for one, am fed up with Tom Brady and Pats' stories, and I think Favre should just go away; I am fed up with him, too. In fact, I pay no attention to what Madden says because he is licking someone's nuts almost all the time..... There are a lot of other players and stories in the NFL. So why aren't they being told?

Now I know that Bellycheck was cheating. Mr reaction? **** the Pats and I hope they drown in the Harbor, the one that gol-damm city polluted. For all I care, the entire stadium should dissappear in the nearest sinkhole.

Couldn't be buried deep enough.....

Northman · 09-19-2007, 03:17 PM

Im not worried about the fall of the NFL. Unlike the NBA the Commisioner of the NFL is trying to improve the league.

OrangeShadow · 09-19-2007, 03:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bronco militia

Bronco Bob · 09-19-2007, 03:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steve Sewell

Yeah, that was crap. I stopped reading after the second paragraph.

I stopped reading Easterbrook's article after this:
Next Week: Ideal person for Bill Belichick to confess to: Chuck Colson.

09-19-2007, 09:50 AM	#1
55CrushEm Wolverine or Superman? Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: North of Boston, MA Posts: 5,590 Adopt-a-Bronco: "Squid"Quan	ESPN: Belichick's Cheating --> Dark Days for NFL ? If this has been posted, I apologize.....I did a quick search and didn't see it. Please move or delete if it has. I read this, and thought it had some interesting points.....a bit long, but worth the read. Many will probably say, "unlikely"....but you can't deny that's its plausible. Belichick's cheating could lead to dark days for NFL By Gregg Easterbrook Special to Page 2 Updated: September 18, 2007, 3:23 PM ET The situation with the National Football League is a lot worse than people realize, and the only one who seems to grasp this fully is commissioner Roger Goodell. You don't issue emergency orders backed by threats on Sunday morning of a game day, as Goodell just did regarding the New England Patriots' files of cheating information, unless the situation is a lot worse than people realize. Why is the situation worse than people think? Because the NFL is on the precipice of blowing its status as the country's favorite sport. The whole NFL enterprise is in jeopardy from that single word: cheating. It's the most distasteful word in sports. And now the Patriots have brought the word into the NFL. Think the NFL can't decline? Fifteen years ago, the National Basketball Association was going up, up, up by every measure and was widely considered the gold-plated can't-miss "sport of the next century." Since then, NBA popularity and ratings have plummeted while NBA-based teams have floundered in international competition. At the moment of its maximum success, the NBA became overconfident and arrogant in ways that need not be recounted here. Key point: There was no law of nature that said the NBA had to stay popular, and it did not. Today the NFL is king of the hill in sports status, ratings, merchandising and association with the American psyche. There is no law of nature that says the NFL has to stay popular. Overconfidence and arrogance could be the downfall of the NFL, too – and we might be on that precipice. People will always watch and play football, of course. But nothing guarantees that the NFL's version of football must remain the super-successful money machine that it is today. There could be autumn Sunday afternoons in the near future in which the overwhelming majority of Americans couldn't care less what NFL games are being shown. Fifteen years ago, sports-marketing types would have said "impossible!" to the notion that only 11 percent of American households would watch the NBA Finals, which is what happened this June. Plummeting popularity for NFL broadcasts seems "impossible!" right now, but might happen fast enough to make your head swim. Criminal behavior by NFL players, haughty owners who demand public subsidies, negative press for the union, coaches who snarl at the public instead of acting grateful for their privileged positions, insufferable egotism from multimillionaire athletes: All these things can be overlooked as long as the games themselves are good. If the games themselves are tainted, the NFL could tumble with amazing speed. And now there is a cheating scandal – cheating by the team that presented itself as the epitome of the sport – which calls the games themselves into question. First we learn that the Patriots were cheating by using video equipment to steal signs, in blatant violation of league rules. Then we learn that even after the scandal broke and Bill Belichick issued his Nixonian stonewalling statement, the Patriots were still keeping sign-stealing videotapes and notes from past games. Surrender of the tapes and notes was the subject of Goodell's emergency order, first reported by ESPN's Chris Mortensen. Sunday night on NBC's "Football Night in America," Goodell threatened more punishment of the Patriots if all cheating materials aren't surrendered, and repeatedly declared it was imperative that NFL games be fair and equal competition. That's exactly the crux of the threat Belichick has created to the league's golden goose. Consider the Sunday night contest. New England had played San Diego just four games back, in the January 2007 postseason. Perhaps Belichick's cameraman was illegally taping the Chargers that day, and perhaps Belichick illegally used the information against the Chargers on Sunday night. The San Diego coaching staff has changed since the playoff game, so presumably its defensive calls are different. But San Diego's new defensive coordinator, Ted Cottrell, was defensive coordinator for the Bills and Jets, both AFC East teams, in the Belichick period. Perhaps Belichick has spied on Cottrell's calls before and took out the tapes of the spying rather than handing them over as Goodell demanded. Was New England cheating again Sunday night, when the Patriots advanced the ball with such ease it seemed they knew what defense San Diego would be in? And the Patriots' cheating might have been more extensive than so far confirmed. Fox Sports reported that former NFL players believe Belichick had microphones installed in the shoulder pads of defensive linemen so the Patriots could tape other teams' offensive audibles and line calls. Needless to say, putting microphones on players violates NFL rules. Andrea Kremer of NBC reported that several teams might charge the Patriots this week with having stolen playbooks from the visitors' dressing room. The convenient "malfunction" of visiting teams' headphones at the Patriots' two fields under Belichick seems to have happened far too often to be an IT department error. The rumor mill says Belichick, Richard Nixon-style, has file cabinets of info on opposing coaches and assistant coaches – some gleaned honestly, some obtained by cheating. It seems more than just an eerie coincidence that Belichick's unethical behavior involves illicit taping, the same offense that made Nixon's actions so sordid. The parallels to Nixon don't stop there. Caught, Belichick – like Nixon – tried to hide the true extent of the prohibited acts; Belichick – like Nixon – tried to claim his prohibited action hadn't been prohibited; Belichick – like Nixon – immediately stonewalled. It would be tempting to break the unhappy tone of this column with a Nixon joke – when the league plays Belichick's tape of the Jets' sideline, will there be an 18-and-a-half minute gap? But for all lovers of the NFL, there's just nothing to laugh about now. What else is there about New England cheating that the team or league isn't telling us? Are the Patriots one bad apple, or is cheating common in the league? Worst, did the Patriots cheat in their Super Bowl wins? If New England was cheating in the Super Bowl, this will become the darkest sports scandal since Shoeless Joe and the Black Sox. If you don't think Goodell and all owners, including Robert Kraft of New England, are in abject terror of any possible disclosure that the Patriots were cheating in the Super Bowl, perhaps you just don't understand the situation. The weasel wording of Belichick's Nixonian statement shows the New England coach full of contempt for the NFL fans, and the NFL enterprise, that made him a wealthy celebrity. Belichick declared that his super-elaborate cheating system was only a "mistake" caused by his "interpretation" of the league's rule. Wait, "interpretation"? The NFL rule bans teams from filming each other's sidelines. There's no room for interpretation, it's a ban! Here's the NFL policy, from a memo sent to all head coaches and general managers Sept. 6, 2006: "Videotaping of any type, including but not limited to taping of an opponent's offensive or defensive 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." Prohibited. There's nothing there to "interpret." Videotaping opponent's signals even after getting this warning isn't a "mistake," it's cheating. Belichick's cheating was not some casual spur-of-the-moment blunder but rather an elaborate staffed system that took a lot of work to put into place and that Belichick worked hard to hide. And you don't hide something unless you are ashamed of it. Michael Vick tried to deny and stonewall, but at the last owned up and admitted what he did. That's dignity. Belichick is now using weasel words to deny responsibility for his own choices. What kind of example does that set for the young? "Make good choices," football coaches constantly preach to the young. Now, caught, Belichick wants a special exemption to responsibility for his own choices. Belichick also is trying to close the matter by saying he won't talk about it anymore. So he cheated and now unilaterally declares the matter closed because he doesn't want to face the consequences of his own choices. But this is not over and not going away. Before the cheating scandal, Belichick had a reputation for being heartless but a really good coach. Now, he seems little more than a creepy con artist, and it's the refusal to act like a man and take full responsibility that's really offensive. Goodell's draft-choice penalty against the Patriots – either a first or a second and a third – is the highest draft penalty ever imposed in the NFL. The severity of this sanction shows how seriously Goodell takes the violation. If more disclosures are coming, there might be a lot more punishment of the Patriots. And unless Belichick comes clean and stops lying about his cheating, this event should disqualify him from consideration for the Pro Football Hall of Fame – it is, after all, not the Hall of Cheaters. Will Belichick even be in coaching by season's end? When the Vick dogfighting scandal first broke, most football pundits, and most in the Atlanta and league offices, thought there would be few repercussions. Then they thought Vick would have to make some kind of apology. Then they thought he'd need some leave of absence. Then they thought he'd be suspended for a year. Now they wonder whether he'll ever be allowed to play again. By acting Nixonian, Belichick is accelerating his fall from grace. Today, Belichick and New England are trying to pretend the scandal is over. It would not surprise me in the slightest if, before the season ends, Belichick resigns, or is suspended, or is fired by Kraft, or even is permanently barred from the league. Belichick's head might be necessary to preserve the integrity of the game. Surprisingly soon, sacrificing Belichick to save professional football might seem an attractive option, even to Kraft. Remember, there is no law of nature that says the NFL must remain popular. http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2...8&sportCat=nfl

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09-19-2007, 10:34 AM	#2
Garcia Bronco Hokie since 1993 Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: Denver, CO Posts: 45,987 Adopt-a-Bronco: Tom Jackson	Gregg Easterbroke is a moron...but look who he works for....

09-19-2007, 10:55 AM	#3
obediah Solid Starter Bronco Fanatic Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Colorado Springs Posts: 193 Adopt-a-Bronco: John Lynch	Save the Drama For your Mama,, Jeesh,, There are a lot of reasons why the NBA is not as popular anymore, I cant go into them cause i would just be too honest and some cant handle that. But i will say im scared to go support my team and they win, and then i get shot in the parking lot, if i make it out that far. As long as we keep the thugs out of football we will be ok. People like Michael Vick will kill the NFL not Bill "Beta"check.. I forgot all about it when the games came on, just remembered when the Pats came on, their name will be a little tarnished, but im sure if they looked a lot of teams do stuff like this. Obediahh

09-19-2007, 11:05 AM	#4
Popps TEAM FIRST. Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 29,785	A little over the top, but it's based in reality. Goodell knows it, and that's why he's acting as swiftly as he is on these things. It's true... the NFL is teetering on MLB/NBA territory. Swift action needs to be taken on this kind of stuff.

09-19-2007, 11:05 AM	#5
OrangeShadow armed and dangerous Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 6,771	what a piece of crap article

09-19-2007, 11:12 AM	#6
Steve Sewell Oh Tyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!!!! Patrick and Ty's pimp Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 4,666 Adopt-a-Bronco: Reggie Rivers	Yeah, that was crap. I stopped reading after the second paragraph. The only reason people are outraged about the Belechick thing is because they are the king of the hill and most people don't like them. But I'm not going to stop watching NFL football over this, and neither is the casual fan. The sports bar in Omaha that I go to (and most people in NE are college fans first) will continue to be packed with 100's of people in different NFL jerseys on Sundays. The reason the NBA failed is because fans can't identify with the players and their prevailing attitudes, can't reconcile with the ridiculous amount of money they make, and most importantly because the league was Michael Jordan, period. The NFL has a lot more going for it then the NBA ever did.

09-19-2007, 11:38 AM	#7
Merlin Ring of Famer Join Date: Apr 2005 Posts: 2,798	Of course is over the top, the point of media is to entertain...however, the gist of his argument has some validity. That is, if more cheating surfaces, Belicheats manner of handling crisis, the NFL will have to act hard and fast. The question is not whether NFL fans will disappear, but whether the casual fan will (and they are the ones that DRIVE the money machine). The NFL cannot risk further tainting its product and Goodell knows this (as do the rest of the owners). If there is any truth to the other allegations, Belicheat will be out for a number of games PS The above NWSD, he does make idiotic comments now and then, and especially regarding SD's loss last week.

09-19-2007, 11:57 AM	#8
PatsWin2002 Giggity Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: South of Boston Posts: 6,270	This is where all this is headed. How long until an AFC West team accuses a rival of something now that the floodgates are open? http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/fo...reen_prac.html Jets' fan: Dolphins spy on Gang Green practices -------------------------------------------------------------------------- BY RICH CIMINI DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER Wednesday, September 19th 2007, 4:00 AM -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Is there a spy story involving Sunday's Jets-Dolphins game? Possibly. A longtime Jets fan, who regularly attends training-camp practices, is absolutely convinced the Dolphins have been sending a scout/spy to Jets practices for years. That, of course, is against league rules. It's the same guy every year, according to the fan. The suspected spy dresses in a Jets golf shirt and Jets cap, blending into the crowd at the open practice. He sits atop the bleachers with a legal pad, taking detailed notes. One day, our fan friend sat near the spy and noticed he was wearing a Dolphins watch. Hmm. Afterward, the fan followed him out to the parking lot. What he saw next stunned him: When the spy got to his car, he pulled off his Jets shirt and threw it in a trash can, along with the cap. True story.

09-19-2007, 12:49 PM	#10
lazarus4444 Ring of Famer Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Colorado Springs Posts: 1,240 Adopt-a-Bronco: Coach McDaniels	I LOVE the band camps stories This article was ok but the NFL is very strong right now and i don't see it falling from grace unless players keep being arseholes and teams keep cheating.

09-19-2007, 01:56 PM	#16
TexanBob Don't Argue With Me You Know I'm Right Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Austin, TX Posts: 5,023 Adopt-a-Bronco: Darris Nash	I think the spying, counterspying and dirty tricks are widespread and the coaching fraternity is hesistant to make any of it public because they'll just be exposed as hypocrites. Remember that playoff game (I think it was the 1997 playoff in Kansas City) where the Bronco offensive linemen had to be taken off the field and toweled down because they'd had a lubricant sprayed on their jersies to make it harder for defenders to grab them? Stunts like this probably happen a lot more than we know. No, I don't think the NFL will lose market share or popularity because of this. The fans already know half the league is roided up and they don't care. They already know the players live out-of-control lifestyles and they don't care. I'm sure Goodell would rather be dealing with this than dealing with refs in debt to the Mob or their record-breakers being the target of federal investigations. I can't imagine this story will get to the bottom of the problems nor will the fans care particularly.

09-19-2007, 01:58 PM	#17
bronco militia Ring of Famer THE GREATEST Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: colorado springs, co Posts: 22,567

09-19-2007, 02:55 PM	#18
Garcia Bronco Hokie since 1993 Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: Denver, CO Posts: 45,987 Adopt-a-Bronco: Tom Jackson	As a Bronco fan I don't care. Obviously we consistently win. So all things being equal we still win most the time.

09-19-2007, 03:14 PM	#20
Paladin Ring of Famer Join Date: Sep 2004 Posts: 9,149	There are certainly valid questions to be raised by Cameragate. And it is true that it seems many people are gleefully cheering the Commish on because it is the Pats. The percieved arrogance of Bellycheck drives even the local Boston media nuts (more nuts, BTW). And the continual jock licking by certain National media "personalities" feeds into a sense of lack of respect for other teams and players. Maybe if Madden and the ESPN boys and Girls would stop slathering over individual players, that would help. I, for one, am fed up with Tom Brady and Pats' stories, and I think Favre should just go away; I am fed up with him, too. In fact, I pay no attention to what Madden says because he is licking someone's nuts almost all the time..... There are a lot of other players and stories in the NFL. So why aren't they being told? Now I know that Bellycheck was cheating. Mr reaction? **** the Pats and I hope they drown in the Harbor, the one that gol-damm city polluted. For all I care, the entire stadium should dissappear in the nearest sinkhole. Couldn't be buried deep enough.....

09-19-2007, 03:17 PM	#21
Northman The Enigma Prognosis Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Maryland Posts: 17,925 Adopt-a-Bronco: Bryci	Im not worried about the fall of the NFL. Unlike the NBA the Commisioner of the NFL is trying to improve the league.