From the "No Duh?" Dept in Missoula, MT..........

[the Brain]

Pats fumble rate decreased dramatically after teams were allowed to provide their own balls.

Which gets me to ask: If "every team is doing it", then why has NE been the only team to see such a drastic change?

Among non-dome teams the distance between #1NE & #2 Balt is 25 plays per fumble. The distance between #2Balt & #23 Wash (last place) is 21 plays. Yes, the gap between 1 & 2 is larger than the gap between 2nd & the worst of the NFL.

Still think this was an insignificant rules violation?

[Cole]

Sick and tired of this story, it isn't like Brady lit them up and if he didn't they would have lost...

No, Blount dominated that game and the game was out of reach for Brady to even have a chance to get much of an advantage.

[Guest]

I still stand by my idea that if it's a rule and you get caught breaking it, you should be punished. The volume of people that got away with it shouldn't matter. The outcry doesn't exist for those guys because they came out years after the fact and admitted it, so they can't be punished.

I don't want to keep repeating the same concept, so I'm backing out now.

No, I actually agree with you in that it is a broken rule, and there should be punishment. However, with the way this rule has been treated and how people have come out saying it's a common practice, can you really justify suspending Brady for half of the season, the entire season, or more?

The NFL has to put an official in charge of the game balls now to eliminate this problem, but it's their fault for not doing something about it sooner.

[buckeye]

There is a reason why no offensive player or coach in the nfl is crying foul... because it is most likely very common place. NE gets caught doing things because they are on top. If they were the Raiders no one would bat an eye.

Yes they broke a rule. Punish them. 4 games? 8 games? 16 games?!?? GTFOH. ... dumbest thing I have heard in a long time.

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[the Brain]

There is a reason why no offensive player or coach in the nfl is crying foul... because it is most likely very common place. NE gets caught doing things because they are on top. If they were the Raiders no one would bat an eye.

Yes they broke a rule. Punish them. 4 games? 8 games? 16 games?!?? GTFOH. ... dumbest thing I have heard in a long time.

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Then why did Cleveland's in game texting get punished? Or the Falcons pumping crowd noise get disciplined? Has nothing to do with record. It has to do with the integrity of the game.

[KINGOFOOTBALL]

Some of you are missing the point. This is why Goodell can get away with his massive hypocrisy. No commissioner has used the words "integrity of the game" more than this doofus. Now you have arguably the biggest name on the most successful team caught cheating during a SB run. SECOND time they get caught cheating with SB victories culminating. Who outside of Pat fan boys isn't going to now wonder how legit those wins were ? That's precisely what "integrity of the game" implies.
Magnitude means something.

If Billy the Spitball was caught cheating in a spring training game yaaaawwwn. Who cares. If he's caught in game 7 of the ALCS and Bad News Bears win a WS after its a major problem.
If the last time the Bad News Bears had won they also got caught cheating and the team was stealing catcher signs or corking bats now what ? You want me to treat it the same as some isolated incident in a spring training game ?

Amazing that some of the same people want guys tossed for seasons and career ended over smoking some off season pot or getting into a fight.

[buckeye]

Then why did Cleveland's in game texting get punished? Or the Falcons pumping crowd noise get disciplined? Has nothing to do with record. It has to do with the integrity of the game.

Texting is now part of the integrity of the game? You done lost your mind. Stupid rule, same as players not being able to tweet during the game.

Neither has anything to do with this. I'm not a Pats fan, but for the love of pete if you don't recognize Brady as one of the greatest of all time then you are clearly not paying attention. Ball pressure is a rule but has zero to do with his decision making on the field. It certainly has zero to do with the Pats defense shutting down opponents in critical times.

To even suggest that it should put an question mark beside Brady or the Pats legacy is just ignorant.

Haters gonna hate basically. Lots of tears up in this thread. "We couldn't beat them... they must have some crazy advantage".

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[the Brain]

Texting is now part of the integrity of the game? You done lost your mind. Stupid rule, same as players not being able to tweet during the game.

Neither has anything to do with this. I'm not a Pats fan, but for the love of pete if you don't recognize Brady as one of the greatest of all time then you are clearly not paying attention. Ball pressure is a rule but has zero to do with his decision making on the field. It certainly has zero to do with the Pats defense shutting down opponents in critical times.

To even suggest that it should put an question mark beside Brady or the Pats legacy is just ignorant.

Haters gonna hate basically. Lots of tears up in this thread. "We couldn't beat them... they must have some crazy advantage".

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As stated before, whether the rule is stupid or not, it is in the books. The business of sport, which is fair competition, is obligated to assure its buying public that its product is just that; fair. If rules, no matter how miniscule, can be broken w/o penalty, that product is no longer being provided.

And I have no idea how my opinion is somehow denying Brady's place among NFL QB's. Judging by the way you debate other topics, this is just another attempt by you to distract from the topic, hurl false assumptions because you have nothing concrete to support your position.

[Guest]

Goodel said during the NO Bountygate scandal that "Ignorance is no excuse." If Goodell doesn't come down hard on Brady, we'll know that his friendship with Kraft is more important than the integrity of the NFL shield, which he seems to always be talking about.

[ThunderHorse]

As stated before, whether the rule is stupid or not, it is in the books. The business of sport, which is fair competition, is obligated to assure its buying public that its product is just that; fair. If rules, no matter how miniscule, can be broken w/o penalty, that product is no longer being provided.

And I have no idea how my opinion is somehow denying Brady's place among NFL QB's. Judging by the way you debate other topics, this is just another attempt by you to distract from the topic, hurl false assumptions because you have nothing concrete to support your position.

What a terrible post, Thank God you got to it first.

[buckeye]

Like I said... season long suspension is ludicrous.

PED's aren't even a season long for 1st offense and that is clearly and intentionally (in most cases) breaking the rules for a competitive advantage.

Punishments should all follow the same guidelines. One isn't worse than the other. You cant scream for a harsher penalty because it's the Patriots and they won the Super Bowl.

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