Only way it would matter would be if they inflated to the bottom end of the range with really hot air (over 100 degrees), in which case yeah it would drop that much, but I really doubt that happened, and there is a question as to whether intentionally making a ball that would pass the initial test but quickly drop out of legal range when brought outdoors would violate the rule. If the ball is inflated with room temp. air there is a small drop in that weather, but not a full PSI. Though we won't know until an official report comes out if the Indy provided balls had the same PSI as at the start (unlikely cold weather should see some drop) or if they just were still in range. (For example the Rodgers stories about how he has them inflate above the 13.5 PSI max in hopes the refs miss it, even a drop in PSI on a ball brought down to 13.5 would still be well within legal range.)
We'll see, wouldn't surprise me if they're still taping sideline signals either which would explain why they struggled against us under Rex, muddy fronts/coverages.
Refs aren't squeezing a ball like a player does when he catches it, they pick it up or get a soft toss lobbed to them, not as easy at all to feel the difference. This is not on the refs at all, all on the Pats.
I believe I read the Colts actually noticed it during the regular season they played against the Cheatriots
Deflate gate hardens back to Pats Colts game in November in the Indy dome. Following a Brady pick the DB noticed the ball was deflated and got confirmation of such from Colts equipment manager. So Colts had this on their hit list and checked with the NFL as to how to handle the foul play if they again suspected it in championship game. Thus, all wheels went in motion when Colts first got ahold of a Pats ball was picked before halftime.
So who paid them off? Al Qaeda? Hollywood? A Thai Restaurant in NJ? Ohhhh, I get it, the Mafia. Why do you guys always have to pick on us Italians. _
Yeah I'm not sure why more folks aren't getting this. These officials are not gripping it and ripping it to the ref spotting the ball. I would imagine that the feel to a referee is imperceptible but to a world class athlete and 15 year NFL QB it would make quite a difference. _
You'll never know that unless you got a full confession out of someone. That evidence (like the tapes) is long gone. This will be the only instance the league will have to discipline them on. _
Actually it was the Colts equipment guy who supposedly noticed it, Jackson gave the ball to a staff member to save and that guy thought it felt soft and kicked it up the line. My guess would be that it's a pretty small difference, and variation in how teams like the ball means most people have a tough time telling if a ball is a bit soft, where the equipment guys are the ones who usually get the ball as close to where their QB likes it as possible and are more sensitive to it than an official.
Actually, I think it is a big deal and he should be suspended for the Super Bowl. I'm saying if the NFL decides otherwise and doesn't think it a big deal than I am not going to give a shit either.
Wow. Very well laid out. His point about the refs not being able to tell the difference is instructive. Can you imagine is Mike Carey had to tape a segment like that? Mass confusion. _
yep, that's my point. does anyone believe this playoff game was an isolated incident? i certainly don't. not sure if the NFL can prove it was an ongoing theme, but based on past dealings with the Patriots, i hope they don't treat it as some one time deal.. Harbaugh had a point regarding the receiver eligibility, combined with substitution rules and the hurry up approach. it's not against the rules, but it certainly rides that grey line of exploiting the nature of different rules. Wonder what his reaction is to the ball deflation. It's probable that his secondary wasn't the only disadvantage he had in the passing game. lol, maybe he had the team correctly pegged, but complained about the wrong thing..
Fatso is correct is assuming that you don't deflate the balls if Brady did not want them. Clearly Brady is in the know on this too.
Holy shit, the Patriots... Just two comments to the people who are saying it doesn't matter because the Colts game was a blow-out: 1) The previous week, the Patriots won a very close game against the Ravens. I am guessing that if they did this against a team (Colts) that they traditionally own, they also must've done it against the team that gives them a lot of trouble in the playoffs (Ravens). In fact, the reason the Colts brought it to league attention was because they noticed the same thing in their regular season game against the Pats, so I am guessing the Pats don't do this exclusively against one team, and probably do it every single game. So now their success starts looking a little different, doesnt it? 2) Ok, we know the Patriots cheated in the past until they got caught, by filming opposing teams' practices in Spygate. Now, it's becoming pretty evident that they cheated with under-inflating footballs. At this point, does it not seem probable that they are cheating in some other ways that the public is not aware of at this point? I mean cheaters are going to cheat in every way possible, so would anyone be surprised if a bunch of other things are going on with their shady organization? And who knows what kind of impact all those things combined have on their success. Because of these points, and not just because I am a Jets fan who hates the Patriots, I think the NFL has to take some very serious steps if this thing is confirmed. I think most of the punishments I am hearing being discussed right now are not strong enough to maintain the integrity of the game. This isn't just some fans talking, even NFL greats like Don Shula are calling him Beli-cheat (and that was before the deflate gate) and Jerry Rice. Fining Patriots is a joke, Kraft and everybody else involved are very rich people, so it's a slap on the wrist. Even confiscating draft picks is not strong enough in my opinion, because as long as Brady is still playing at a high level and Belichick is coaching, they can still be a competitive team, and giving up some draft picks is not going to stop them from enjoying whatever Superbowls they have won and will win. I am thinking they need to go full out and impose the kind of punishment that demonstrates without a shadow of doubt that cheating will hurt you more than help you and stop this kind of BS in its tracks, which clearly their draft pick punishment after Spygate failed to do. Something like a compound punishment that targets everyone involved (Ownership, FO, CS, and players). For example, disqualify the Patriots from these playoffs now, and have Ravens and Colts play one game to see who goes to the Superbowl as a replacement, then take away high or even all draft picks from the Pats from this upcoming draft, and then ban their CS/FO (whoever the investigation finds responsible) for a year or so. Something like that would actually have teeth and make Kraft/Belichick rethink their BS.
