Pneumonic

The number of ball(s) in question, or even if any ball(s) are/is in question, has never been corroborated by the league!

You are presuming guilt however. What if the ball were never below spec? Or, if it was, what if was simply a case of the refs allowing an under inflated ball? Or, maybe the weather caused a pressure drop? Heck, what if someone who dislikes the Pats got a hold of the ball and stuck a needle in it? Or, maybe Vince Wilfork landed on it and squished it to near death? You think any of the above should be the responsibility of Kraft and/or the ballboy, Brady or Belichick?

Is everyone still passing judgement off those early media reports culled from "sources" which, to the best of my knowledge, have never been substantiated by the NFL?

That's not a report issued by the league. It's a speculative piece of journalism (I use that term very loosely) of the type that is largely responsible for crapfest we just witnessed these last several days. Heck, in the piece itself I quote "If the report is accurate, how were 11 balls under-inflated, each by a significant amount?"

Got a link?

Amazing how much silly and senseless debate ensues on a NFL matter which is nothing but an accusation of cheating based on nothing but a made-up rumour unsubstantiated by the NFL. Yet, we have people suggesting fines and suspensions as punishment. What a world

I would imagine Eddie DeBartolo is getting a kick out of all this also. Probably can't believe a couple #'s of PSI deficiency in a football is really causing such a stir.

Without proof I agree but, this is the NFL, with it's own judge who seemingly operates with his own set of rules.

Then I would say ..... good luck proving that some ballboy was capable enough to pull this off in front of the world and not get caught.

That would mean having someone let air out, in what would have had to have been a very precise, controlled and measured way (in order for 11 of the balls to have been under-inflated similarly) in front of a plethora of cameras, reporters, fans, security personnel, players, league officials, etc and not getting caught. Does this not defy logic?

You think this happened AFTER the officials (supposedly) tested them?

I too doubt that they didn't test the balls before playing. Much more likely is they tested both sets of balls and allowed them entry into the game. If so, then the Pats aren't at fault here. If not, and the Pats doctored the balls after the officials tested them, then guilty as charged and heads should roll.

I suspect the Pats submitted lower (then 12.5) PSI balls to the officials and they a) allowed them to pass (as per Aaron Rodgers' note that he purposely over-inflates the balls in hope that the officials allow them) or b) failed to check them in the first place because of the apparently common nature to submit non spec balls. This would logically explain why the league is apparently upset, disappointed and distraught. In either case this is hardly worthy of a cheating claim. If the league finds out that the Pats doctored the balls, after they were measured by the officials, then the Pats should be severely punished and, rightfully, labeled as cheaters.

Good thing the Pats merely misunderstood a vague rule that the league has of what constitutes the legal stealing of opponents signals, a process like you say, that has been going on since the dawn of football. Could you imagine the hatred if they really did cheat, like say the Niners and Broncos, when they "accounted" their way to some really nice salary benefits in order to retain the services of key players that helped them to their respective super bowl titles.

Why the presumption of cheating? What started out as an INT by the Colts LB has given way to suspicion which then turned into perception which has ultimately manifested into reality in the eyes of some here. Why do you suppose that is? The league has said that they are responding to a complaint about the air pressure of balls used in the AFCCG game and are investigating the matter, which they are required to do. Correct me if I am wrong but, the league has not stated that they are suspicious of the Pats taking the air out of the ball(s). In reality, it is people who are jumping to conclusions that this is an investigation into whether or not the Pats cheated (by deflating the balls to under spec). I do wonder, if these same people are also claiming the Packers are also cheaters for adding air to Aaron Rodgers’ footballs. My guess is …. not. Why do you suppose that is?

On the topic of the supposed Pats deflated footballs. My opinion ..... it's a bizarre case of fans looking for any chance to taint a team that has so dominated the team that they cheer for that they align themselves with any excuse to slight the offending team, no matter if it is real or imagined. If not then it's simply a case of being naive and not realizing that it's not uncommon for teams to alter the pressure of footballs. http://vid809.photobucket.com/albums/zz11/mascho030916/Football%20Central/ScreenCaptureProject295.mp4

Geez, some of you guys make a scorned woman look passive. Does the Pats success really impact your lives this much?

If yesterday's 1st/2nd half performance #'s are any indication, Brady's near flawless 2nd half - with properly inflated footballs - blew away his much more pedestrian 1st half passing numbers - with deflated footballs. If Brady had played the entire game with properly inflated football's, the Pats might have pasted a 60 burger on the Colts.

If so, then one would wonder why the league even bothers inspecting the balls in the first place! So, short of the ball being defective, or the ball boy purposely messing with things, or the weather altering the PSI, or a fattie player falling on said ball and compromising its air pressure integrity, this is a league official issue? Does anyone know what the inspection protocol is for the league when it comes to balls removed by officials. Do they inspect all such balls? Further, when done is the team that supplied the ball(s), automatically deemed as cheaters because they doctored the ball(s)?

NFL VP of officiating, Dean Blandino, explained that, prior to each game, both teams hand over to the league, 12 balls. League officials then inspect the balls for proper sizing and PSI prior to introduction into the game. At this point in time the balls are literally out of the Pats hands. So, how exactly is this a case of the Pats cheating?

What's next ...... the Pats were also guilty of deflating the Colts DL which allowed Blount to run roughshod over them.

Bad batch then? Maybe I don't get the uproar involved in this. Apparently, the league measures the balls prior to gametime to ensure they meet pressure spec and then entrusts a NFL attendant to preside over them during the game. Are people suggesting that the Pats found a way to deflate the balls (for whatever value they felt that might have provided) without anyone noticing?

Has anyone thought that maybe the ball in question, that sparked this issue, was ........... simply defective and wasn't "out of spec" due to anything the Pats might have maliciously done? Probably a fan of Muldar and Scully as well.

Was Eric Mangini spotted anywhere in the vicinity of the footballs with one of these ?

Yeah, Wilson did his best Peyton Manning imitation and sucked in the first half. But, he pulled it out as only the great ones do. Have you checked Wilson's W/L record against the top QB's in the league? Luck, however, sucked all game long and ended up with just 126 passing yards, no touchdowns and a career-low passer rating of 23.0.