Buffaloaf

Out of curiosity I looked up his pre-draft scouting report and arrogance and lack of leadership skills were mentioned. I hate to criticize someone's personality without knowing them, but just watching them on the sidelines he comes across very pouty. Here's the link to the report: https://walterfootball.com/scoutingreport2019kmurray.php

I just want there to be fewer penalties overall. Nobody tunes in to watch referees throw flags. Penalties have become such a big part of the game that I can't even get excited in real time because I'm waiting to see if there was a flag. Big QB sack (I hope they didn't touch his helmet or hit him low). Punt return (probably a holding flag somewhere). Big pass breakup (probably defensive PI). It's frustrating.

If they were to adopt the college format starting position would probably need to be moved back to like the 40 yard line. Field goals in college are much more of a crap shoot than in the NFL. I think the NFL is mostly concerned about game length and that's why they reduced overtime to 10 minutes.

This is already being spun by NFL reporters like Rappaport as a small issue. I don't think there is a high likelihood of anything significant coming from this. It sucks, but I think that's where it's heading.

Maybe someone like say, Matt Cassel

Peyton Manning believed the visitor's locker room was bugged and would not have conversations about the gameplan in the locker room. I think it was in the Spygate book. I wouldn't doubt that they've come up with all sorts of ways to cheat over the years. If they cheated their way to their initial success and all they lost was a draft pick and some money, why would they stop? They would just come up with better ways to accomplish their goal.

Maybe. The NFL may be threatening them with some sort of penalty if they do release it. Maybe they could release it unofficially through an anonymous leak.

This is my experience with contractors as well. The only way it would be different is if they were part of an NFL Films work crew or some other 3rd party. It's a good story, but it doesn't absolve them of any responsibility.

I made a similar point earlier in the thread. The NFL just can't afford to let the details get out. It would be the worst scandal in sports history and potentially ruin the NFL. I could see a superficial punishment of fines, draft picks, etc, but not likely to see anything beyond that publicly. Maybe Belichick will surprisingly retire after the season with a wink and a nod.

I like to think you're right, but the owners have to think about value of their teams and the league overall. If the Patriots are found to have been cheating for the duration of their dynasty, the public may lose faith in the sport overall and stop watching in significant numbers. This would cost every owner a lot of money. Is it better for the survival of the league to just sweep it under the rug? That's what happened with the original spygate. Personally, I want to see them punished to the fullest extent. As a fan of the Bills I'm probably a bit biased, but I would lose more faith if they just ignore this.

This is how I see it as well. I just don't think it's likely the NFL will ever let us know the details of the Patriots cheating ways. They may claim this was a one time error, worthy of punishment, and try to handle it behind the scenes. If it came to light that the Patriots had been cheating consistently for 15-20 years, while winning 6 superbowls and becoming essentially the face of the NFL, it would do too much damage. It would be the biggest scandal in sports history.

I don't disagree with you. I was just trying to make the point that players don't necessarily have to be aware of the pats cheating. I think it's likely Brady knows at least something is going on. Could be the reason he is willing to take less money than he could probably get on the open market. What the Patriots have done is just not statistically possible. Teams with little top talent, like many of the Pats teams over the years, don't win 12 or 13 games a year and go to the superbowl.

I've thought this myself. Hope it comes out sooner than that. The Patriots probably make every player/employee sign a ridiculous NDA along with their contract. Really, the players wouldn't even need to know cheating was happening. Even Brady. To him, it may seem like the coaches are geniuses because of how quickly they can diagnose defenses and get him in the right play. I think it was Bruschi who said they would receive the other teams audibles prior to the game. The players don't know where they come from or the details of how they are obtained, they just do what they're told. To me, this is all on Belichick, Kraft, and probably some other coaches like Adams and McDaniels. If all these accusations can be proven true they should be banned from the NFL and Kraft should either have to sell the team or become minority owner or something.

The Bengals should post the video online. I’m sure the league has told them not to but that would be great

Valid point. This behavior aligns perfectly with the 2015 article describing how they would develop cover stories for their videotaping though. I have no evidence but they could have created other cover stories for other teams. Maybe they only do this for teams with new coaching staffs? I have no reason to give them the benefit of the doubt.