Bill Belichick Deflategate Press Conference: Top Comments, Reaction

Matt Fitzgerald @@MattFitz_geraldCorrespondent IIIJanuary 24, 2015

USA Today

New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick has always marched to the beat of his own drum in handling media relations. That's part of Belichick's "Patriot Way" mystique.

Saturday's press conference to address the Deflategate controversy transcended the mundane, monotone and uninteresting deliveries of Belichick's past, though it still demonstrated his brilliance as a tactician. He also proved to be a scientific expert on deflated footballs, too.

Plenty of questions loom ahead of the Patriots' attempt to knock off the defending champion Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl XLIX. It remains to be seen whether Belichick's explanation of Deflategate will yield more questions or answers on the issue that's overshadowed the big game.

SportsNation wrote that Belichick was reminiscent of another Bill during the presser:

SportsNation @SportsNation
Bill Nye The Science Guy Belichick. http://t.co/s4XzqByifs

On Sunday morning, ESPN's Kevin Negandhi provided a statement from Bill Nye discussing Belichick's press conference on Good Morning America:

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Kevin Negandhi @KNegandhiESPN
"What he said didn't make any sense." - Bill Nye the Science Guy on GMA today weighing in on Bill Belichick's air pressure presser.

Link to Media

Michael Hurley of CBS Boston Sports has more from Belichick, who insists the organization has abided by the rules:

Michael Hurley @michaelFhurley
"I believe now 100% that I have personally, and we as an organization, have absolutely followed every rule to the letter." - Bill Belichick

Rotoworld's Patrick Daugherty noticed a difference in Belichick's tone with reporters once he finished explaining the ball-pressure fiasco:

Patrick Daugherty @RotoPat
Bill is always droll. He's rarely outright combative like this.

Bleacher Report documented the bottom-line message Belichick attempted to communicate:

Bleacher Report @BleacherReport
“At no time was there any intent whatsoever to try to compromise the integrity of the game or to gain an advantage" http://t.co/Bj6qEn4doH

ESPN's Field Yates poked a bit of fun at the repeated tagline that has driven New England's success in 2014 and summarizes Belichick's usual press attitude well:

Field Yates @FieldYates
The takeaway message from Bill Belichick is strong and clear: this matter is behind them and "We're on to Seattle."

Ian Rapoport of NFL Network analyzed the gist of what Belichick said about an internal study the Patriots conducted:

Ian Rapoport @RapSheet
The #Patriots simulated a game day process for what they do with the footballs. The process elevates the PSI one pound. Going thru it now.

Ian Rapoport @RapSheet
Belichick: “I can’t tell the difference if there is one pound difference or half pound difference in the footballs.”

Around The NFL logged some of the fancy language the Patriots boss used to illustrate his points:

Around The NFL @AroundTheNFL
“The atmospheric conditions as well as the true equilibrium of the ball is critical to the measurement.” — Belichick

Around The NFL @AroundTheNFL
Belichick: “This is the end of this subject from me for a long time. … I've spent more than enough time on this.”

Sports Illustrated's Andrew Brandt offered his take:

Andrew Brandt @AndrewBrandt
The Patriots have gone through process in wet/cold games hundreds of times. Does that mean they've always had the equilibrium issue?

For those who doubted the Hoodie's pop-culture savvy, Belichick proved at least some doubters wrong, even if he didn't win over any of those dubious of the team's Spygate past in light of this purported bending of the rules:

Aaron Wilson @AaronWilson_NFL
Bill Belichick just said he's no Mona Lisa Vito referencing Marisa Tomei from My Cousin Vinny great movie reference as BB drops knowledge

Darren Rovell of ESPN shared an illustration to describe what he'd witnessed:

Darren Rovell @darrenrovell
Translation of today's Belichick press conference in simple terms http://t.co/US7fliHymk

CBS Sports' Jason La Canfora was among those convinced of Belichick's seemingly spot-on testimony:

Jason La Canfora @JasonLaCanfora
Belichick meeting media saying Pats study revealed balls cal lose 1.5psi when moved outside. I failed AP physics. Who am I to second guess?

Jeff Darlington of NFL Network analyzed what Saturday's press conference means moving forward, as the NFL will presumably look into the matter through its own investigation:

Jeff Darlington @JeffDarlington
In all seriousness, Belichick forced NFL’s investigation into interesting direction. How much will final report include scientific studies?

One way to silence critics is to simply beat the Seahawks, which would mark Belichick's fourth Super Bowl triumph as New England's coach. Come Super Bowl Sunday, all the talk of cheating will be cheap if the Patriots emerge with the Lombardi Trophy in their collective grasp.

But for a team that has had so much success without winning the Super Bowl in a decade, the pressure is on New England to win in Glendale, fair and square.

Whatever explanation Belichick provides won't mitigate the indelible mark on his legacy that Spygate and Deflategate have left if he can't win another championship ring. Opportunities like these are running out, as it likely depends on how much longer 37-year-old quarterback Tom Brady can play at a high level.

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