Sign up or login to track your favorite teams

Sign Up for Bleacher Report

As a registered user you can subscribe to your favorite teams, post comments, write your own articles, and much more.

You must register in order for that functionality to work!







Validating sign up form ...

Bleacher Report articles are written by fans like you

Do you want to cover your favorite sports, teams, and leagues?

Processing writing preferences ...

Great, , you're signed up!

i.e. Big 10, LeBron James, USC Football

Selected Tags:

Logging in ...

If one wants to lose all credibility, use the word "cheating," or even "spygate." It was illegal placement of a camera. The crime was not stealing signals. That is legal. I have links to people like Shanahan bragging about using binoculars...

The Patriots Were "Cheaters": End Of Story

by William Berry (Columnist)

18

311 reads

Opinion

August 10, 2008


If one wants to lose all credibility, use the word "cheating," or even "spygate."  It was illegal placement of a camera.

The crime was not stealing signals.  That is legal.  I have links to people like Shanahan bragging about using binoculars. 

No crime if he used binoculars.

And they are not secret signals.  They are in plain sight of 30,000 or so people.

Having a camera is legal.  How do you think "game film" comes into being?  Ron Jaworski super powers?

Oh, you think the crime was using them at half time.  With digital you can.  Everything anyone ever wrote referred to "tapes" not hard drives or discs.  Ask a video guy how long it takes to sync up film of signals and clock with what happens on the field.

The crime was creating a permanent record from a better than legal angle.  Yes, for the very stupid, that is cheating more than holding or getting around the salary cap.

Of course idiots regurgitating crap from ESPN will continue because stupid people will always exist.

To see the Patriots really cheating

http://www.nfl.com/videos?videoId=09000d5d80498bb

Copy and paste to see example of what cheating really looks like

(Mark Henderson's moment.)

Oh, there was no rule against it.  (There is no rule against using a donkey to kick field goals either, but Walt Disney might find that to be in the same category as "no rule says I can't wear brass knuckles.")

One thing not shown in this NFL film is Shula trying to get the ref to put the snow back.

Author Poll

Are you an idiot who uses "cheating" and "spygate?"

  • Yes
  • No
vote to see results
Author Poll Results

Are you an idiot who uses "cheating" and "spygate?"

  • Yes

    0.0%

  • No

    100.0%
  • Total votes: 1
Track this Article on My B/R
Flag This Article
Share This Article

18 comments Last one added 10 months ago — Leave a Comment

  1. pdx paul 11 months ago

    By your logic:

    A false start is against the rules, therefore all teams that commit false starts are cheaters. I just checked and all teams committed false starts last year, ipso facto, all teams cheated last year.

    This post is tired. zzzzz.

    Edit Comment Cancel

    Reply
    Great Comment (
    0
    )

  2. David-S Serdinak 11 months ago

    I'm a "hater" when it comes to the Patriots. Not because of Spygate, but because how they tried to run-up scores last year. They were crushing Washington late in the game and Brady tries to throw a pump-fake bomb to Moss! Then an offensive lineman jumps and Brady has a little fit about it. Joe Gibbs deserved more respect and the whole organization is not likeable. That's why Brady's never in a commercial and Peyton Manning's in every third one you see. Maybe the porcelain on Brady's teeth will get him a Pepsi commercial!

    Edit Comment Cancel

    Reply
    Great Comment (
    0
    )

    • William Berry 11 months ago

      Excuse me I did not know Washington fielded volunteers. I assume players get paid, right? Do you want me to cry for the millionaires who allowed Matt Cassel - who's last start was in high school- and Kyle Eckel slice them up. (BTW, both may not make the team this year.)

      Edit Comment Cancel

      Reply
      Great Comment (
      0
      )

    • Steve Frith 11 months ago

      FWIW-->The largest points gap belongs to none other than the Washington Redskins. It's awfully hard to cry "the Pats ran up the score on the skins" when the skins hold that record.

      Aside from that...please tell me how the Pats are supposed to "not score" when they were on offense? Should they just take 4 knees in a row turning the ball over to the skins? That wouldn't be insulting, would it. When the Skins had the ball, should the Pats D-line get out of the way allowing them unrescricted access to their endzone? Hmmm.....could it be that the Pats should've score touch backs for the Skins helping them to increase their score?

      You should've watched after the game when Gibbs said (something to the effect of) he's not mad that the Pats scored so much. It's the defense's job to stop them and they couldn't.

      Brady's not in a commercial because he's not a sell out. When he was in commercials, he woulnd't do it without his offensive line and they he'd split his pay and give it to his offense line. Peyton is in a ton of commercials because of the money...that's why he's been nicknamed "Pay-a-ton Manning".

      It's ok to hate....really, I don't mind. Just hate for the right reasons, not because you're jumping on a bandwagon with, what some would consider, excuses as reasons.

      Edit Comment Cancel

      Reply
      Great Comment (
      0
      )

    • Bruce Dickenson 11 months ago

      Oh my God, I can't believe the whining. I hate the PATS but c'mon with this running up the score crap. If you don't like it, play harder. If I had a choice between losing every game to the PATS for the next ten years by a 50 point margin or turning into a wimp, I'll take the losses.

      Edit Comment Cancel

      Reply
      Great Comment (
      0
      )

  3. EndZoner 11 months ago

    Bottom line. The Pats got caught TWICE filming the other team's signals. First time is one thing, but to get caught twice! That is cheating and it reflects poorly on every player and coach with that team. Guilty as charged!

    Edit Comment Cancel

    Reply
    Great Comment (
    0
    )

    • William Berry 10 months ago

      Yes, robbing a bank the first time is understandable.:rolleyes:

      Maybe when GB said, "Don't do that," is better than what the Jets did.

      Edit Comment Cancel

      Reply
      Great Comment (
      0
      )

  4. David-S Serdinak 11 months ago

    Yep, it's a team's job to stop the other. We know, however, that a disparity in talent makes this impossible at times. Gibbs would never complain about it because he's a class act. I'm NOT a Washington fan; I'm a Browns fan. Late in a lopsided game, the team who's up runs off-tackle and doesn't blitz. That's how a team that respects the league does it. In baseball, you don't steal a base up 4 runs in the 9th and you don't throw bombs in the 4th when the game's already decided. I'd feel the same way if the Browns ever did it......(not that they've ever been able to!)

    Edit Comment Cancel

    Reply
    Great Comment (
    0
    )

    • William Berry 10 months ago

      go to nfl.com and find the instance of any team throwing with their starting QB when up 3 scores in the fourth. (Not counting drives the starting QB started in the third.)

      Edit Comment Cancel

      Reply
      Great Comment (
      0
      )

  5. Jersey 10 months ago

    I don't get it. How is "illegal placement of a camera" any different than cheating? I'll go stab someone, and then say it wasn't a stabbing, it was "illegal placement of a knife."

    The Patriots were fined and penalized by the NFL. It's a big deal. You may not like the word "cheating," but that's what they did by illegally placing a camera.

    Edit Comment Cancel

    Reply
    Great Comment (
    0
    )

  6. William Berry 10 months ago

    Jersey,

    Do you call holding on a kickoff cheating? If not you lose any and all credibility as a writer.

    Edit Comment Cancel

    Reply
    Great Comment (
    0
    )

    • Jersey 10 months ago

      I won't respond to that, because this is nothing more than baseless name-calling.

      Edit Comment Cancel

      Reply
      Great Comment (
      0
      )

    • William Berry 10 months ago

      Funny, you claim a moral high road, but lack any good comeback IN ENGLISH.

      Is holding against the rules? If it is, why is it not "cheating" but illegal camera placement is?

      Edit Comment Cancel

      Reply
      Great Comment (
      0
      )

    • Jersey 10 months ago

      I am so confused. I said I would not respond. What does this have to do with English?

      Holding is incorporated into the rulebook as a penalty. It's like a foul in basketball, or a tripping penalty in hockey. It's not cheating. It's a common part of the game, and that is why it was specifically included in the rulebook. Using a camera illegally is outside the rules. They're not comparable. That's why the Pats got fined and lost draft picks, and didn't lose 15 yards.

      Edit Comment Cancel

      Reply
      Great Comment (
      0
      )

  7. William Berry 10 months ago

    Let me get this straight. You say you won't reply, then reply. OK...:) I guess respond means something different in your language.

    I guess the word "synonym" has no meaning in your language.

    OK, so We'll assume that "penalty" and "cheat" are vastly different. Do you call the Broncos, 49ers, and Steelers "cheaters" for ignoring the salary cap? How about the Cowboys when Jerry Jones admitted that was how he learned it. How about the Jets for claiming they had permission until the Patriots said, "No you didn't."

    What did you think you could post a story on the Patriots board and NO ONE would call you on that?

    Boy you are as full of yourself as the Riddler.

    Edit Comment Cancel

    Reply
    Great Comment (
    0
    )

    • Jersey 10 months ago

      I didn't respond to the pointless comment about credibility. When you brought up a second issue, I responded to that. If I say I'm not responding, I am not condemning myself to never responding in the future.

      I don't get what the salary cap issue has to do with anything. I never brought that up, and I never said they didn't "cheat."

      Are you paranoid? I posted about how good Tom Brady and the Pats are. I wrote about how crucial he is to them as a player, and how they have a great team regardless. But you took offense to the fact that I wrote that the nation perceives them to be cheaters. I don't mind intelligent criticism of my writing, but you harp on one insignificant detail that has no impact on the rest of the article, and use it to bash my credibility, without a legitimate stance.

      Edit Comment Cancel

      Reply
      Great Comment (
      0
      )

Leave a Comment

  • You must register to post a comment.

    • Want to write for Bleacher Report

    We are a community of fans who write about sports. And we're growing.

    Learn More and Sign Up »

    Certain photos copyright © 2009 by Getty Images.
    Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of Getty Images is strictly prohibited.