NFL probing Patriots' possible use of deflated balls during AFC Championship

No one knows specifically what the Deflategate punishment will be for Tom Brady, but within Gillette Stadium they are bracing for the worst.

Sources with the Patriots I have spoken with tell me they are fearful of a lengthy suspension, perhaps in the six- to eight-game range, for Brady in the aftermath of the Wells Report.

http://www.csnne.com/new-england-patriots/new-england-patriots-fear-lengthy-suspension-for-tom-brady

 

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">BREAKING: Tom Brady will be suspended by Roger Goodell for role*in DeflateGate, announcement expected next week <a href="http://t.co/iX49lIY0xR">http://t.co/iX49lIY0xR</a></p>&mdash; NY Daily News Sports (@NYDNSports) <a href="https://twitter.com/NYDNSports/status/596793606897295360">May 8, 2015</a></blockquote>
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Wasn't Jimmy G the last pick of the 2nd round?

When exactly did you want the Texans to pick him?

 

Could they suspend someone for PED use if were more likely than not they had taken drugs?

 

When you go to the front bbs page, it says "NFL Probing Pat"

I don't know this "Pat" guy, but yall have fun.

 

Sure - isn't that what the whole Mitchell report was in baseball? They suspended all sorts of people from that despite no positive tests. It was all inference from other sources.

 

This is neither here nor there, but the whole basis of the Mitchell Report was the paper trail from lab to trainer to athlete.

 

Also vacate the AFC and NFL Championships.

 

Well, it's kinda true. No where in the report does Tom ever instruct people to deflate the ball. I've skimmed the report. It is pretty evident that Tom likes the balls exactly at 12.5 pounds and he was pissed off that the refs pumped the balls up to 16 pounds in one game and took it out on the equipment guys.

 

I definitely think Brady knew more than he let on and he handled that initial press conference horribly. But the evidence, while definitely showing something, doesn't really give conclusive evidence on balls being deflated below 12.5. Is there a chance Brady instructed them to deflate the balls a little after the refs checked them? Yeah sure. But I just don't know if you should already bury him and call for his head if you don't know for a fact.

I still think he should be suspended, not really much for the issue ofdeflated football because that means nothing in terms of advantages, but just for trying to cover it up earlier and being sketchy. But I wouldn't go more than 2 games. This whole thing has gotten ridiculous. There's a lot of teams who have been caught doing stuff like this and no one cares. This wouldn't even be a story if it wasn't the Patriots.

 

Wrong! It's evident from the report that Brady talked with McNally about deflating the balls. Your only valid argument would be that he wanted the balls deflated to the lowest legal limit since he claimed they were screwed in the Jets game.

Regardless, why would they joke with each other about deflation and Tom Brady's passing rate if it were just an innocent activity? Why would he call himself the deflator?

How do you explain the threat to call ESPN, the autographs provided to the two orchestrating it after the Ravens game, or the shoe bribe(s)? "Can't wait to give you your needle this week "

Patriots fans are delusional.

 

His suspension could be lengthy, but it would fair, most likely. Cheating effects the integrity of the game and system. That's why gamblers, PED users, boosters, or anyone who knowingly cheat the game are taken seriously.

A unionized-tax free sports league (with competitive) that sustained by endorsement, aligned with the sports betting world, and a pseudo crusader for all that is moral and right, at least with Goodell.

I've been on the side that PED-steroids or HGH doesn't morpha mere player into an all-time great, but I'm not naive to the punishment of PED user. Even though, there's no study to prove the effects on their performance, but to attempt cheating and cover-up the act makes matters worse for the attempt competitive advantage and a fair product.

 

JVG

<blockquote class="twitter-video" lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Jeff Van Gundy snapped
<a href="http://t.co/D35fpiq0y0">pic.twitter.com/D35fpiq0y0</a></p>&mdash; RTNBANFL (@RTNBANFL) <a href="https://twitter.com/RTNBANFL/status/597060164294942723">May 9, 2015</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

 

The thing that most people just don't get is that this is not some criminal case at the court house where the burden is on the prosecutor to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Brady is guilty.

The NFL is only looking for some sort of evidence that links the Patriots and or Tom Brady to the defeated footballs. Is it more likely than not that Brady wanted the footballs deflated and directed the equipment guys to do it? The texts alone indicate more likely than not Tom Brady is responsible for the deflated footballs. As a result the NFL is bound by precedence that they already set in previous situations to punish Brady and the Patriots.

The argument in this case is not whether of not the deflated footballs had an actual effect on the outcome of any games. The real issue here is that the Patriots and Tom Brady intentionally broke the rules in an attempt to gain an advantage on the field. Once you figure that out, the actual rule broken becomes irrelevant.

Clearly both Brady and the Patriots should be punished.

 

tom brady is the barry bonds of football

 

More like Gaylord Perry.

 

why not just ban the patriots from the playoffs for the upcoming season. It sends a message and no players get suspended for the regular season. fair for all.

 

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">&quot;I think right now, it's a foregone conclusion that the NFL is going to suspend Tom Brady for some length of time&quot; - Adam Schefter on SC</p>&mdash; NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) <a href="https://twitter.com/ESPNNFL/status/597758020832100352">May 11, 2015</a></blockquote>
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At the very least

Rocket River

 

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Filed to ESPN: Tom Brady suspended four games, Pats lose 1st round pick in 2016 and a 4th in 2017, and team fined $1 million, per source:</p>&mdash; Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) <a href="https://twitter.com/AdamSchefter/status/597877080894918658">May 11, 2015</a></blockquote>
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