UPDATE: (1/21/2015)
REPORTS CLAIM PATRIOTS ALTERED FOOTBALLS TO WIN PLAYOFF GAME... NFL RESPONDS!
ORIGINAL STORY:
Do you think they actually cheated?
Find out what the town is talking about below:
MSN—
The New England Patriots are bound for the franchise's eighth Super Bowl appearance. Amid that comes another question about whether they used a tactic against NFL rules — and whether their accomplishments merit a new asterisk.
Latest issue: Did the Patriots use
footballs deflated below league requirements to get better grip in the rain
during their 45-7 romp Sunday night over the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC
Championship Game?
The NFL is investigating the matter.
"We'll cooperate fully with
whatever questions they ask us and whatever they want us to do," Patriots
coach Bill Belichick said in a conference call Monday.
"I didn't know anything about it
until this morning."
His players seemed equally mystified.
"I never heard nothing like that.
... I don't touch footballs. I tackle," defensive tackle Vince Wilfork
said in the locker room Monday.
Wide receiver Julian Edelman does touch
the footballs. He caught nine passes Sunday from quarterback Tom Brady, who was
not available in the locker room Monday.
"I don't know anything about it.
It's funny they come up with stuff like that, but it is what it is," said
Edelman.
After the Baltimore Ravens beat the
Patriots in the AFC title game following the 2012 season, Ravens linebacker
Terrell Suggs said, "That's funny, ever since Spygate they haven't been
able to win (the Super Bowl)."
The Patriots have won three titles
under coach Bill Belichick, but none since 2004.
Spygate erupted in 2007 after the
league found the Patriots had illegally videotaped the New York Jets' sideline
defensive signals. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell fined Belichick $500,000 and
fined the Patriots organization $250,000. Godell also stripped the Patriots of
their first-round draft pick in 2008.
Belichick said he considered the taping
legal, unless he used the information gained during the game in which the
taping occurred. He said he never did that.
In 2008, a former Patriots video
assistant sent the league tapes he'd made of opponents' signals. The games
included the 2002 AFC Championship Game in which New England beat the
Pittsburgh Steelers.
Goodell said the tapes didn't shed new
light on the case and that the information was "consistent with what we
disciplined the Patriots for."
At that time, former Steelers
linebacker Joey Porter told ESPN: "They cheated. There should be an
asterisk. They cheated, and they got caught."
Do suggestions that the Patriots
exploit or subvert the rules irk the players?
"All I can say is we try to do
things the right way," said special teams ace Matthew Slater.
"By no means are any of us
perfect. We're all humans. But we try to do things the right way. We work hard
at our jobs, in our profession, to be successful. And it's unfortunate that
things like this come up.
"But, hey, that's life. That's the
world we live in. It is what it is."
Are the Patriots targets because of
their past success and transgressions?
"It's tough to say," said
Slater. "But no matter what you do in this life ... not everybody is going
to like you.
"That's just the reality. So we
just have to deal with it and focus on preparing for Seattle."
1 Comments
ninest123 07.15
ReplyDeleteburberry factory outlet, replica watches, ray ban sunglasses, louboutin shoes, kate spade outlet, nike air max, burberry outlet, ralph lauren outlet, oakley sunglasses, tory burch outlet, longchamp outlet, cheap jordans, prada outlet, longchamp bags, nike outlet, ralph lauren polo, michael kors outlet store, coach outlet, chanel handbags, nike free, longchamp outlet, kate spade, michael kors, michael kors outlet online, tiffany jewelry, christian louboutin, coach outlet, coach outlet store online, ray ban sunglasses, prada handbags, michael kors handbags, louboutin uk, oakley sunglasses, oakley sunglasses, gucci handbags, nike air max, christian louboutin, michael kors outlet online, tiffany jewelry, michael kors outlet