Patriots being investigated after Colts game (8 Viewers)

[sho nuff]

My guess is Brady's approach will be to illustrate that even though he pressures the ball guys to have his balls at minimum, that he did not instruct them to execute deflation after the inspection.

Then they will try to illustrate defamation with that as their base.

He has zero chance at defamation.

 

[Dezbelief]

My guess is that Brady's appeal offers absolutely nothing in terms of a rebuttal of the evidence, and sticks 100% to challenging the procedure itself.

ETA: nothing except lawyer and/or agent speak that is.

I don't really know how the appeal works but thought it was pretty much standard for the union to appeal on behalf of the player. Totally agree that nothing new will come out of the process and Brady will offer up nothing new other than a couple of carefully prepared paragraphs.

We'll see.

Brady now has the same lawyer that defended Ray Rice and Hardy last year during their appeals. Brady should be completely exonerated shortly

 

[Baloney Sandwich]

NFL obviously not following Kraft on the high road path as they come out with an article about attributes of elite QBs and tweet out of pic of Luck with the following:

Precision

Strength

Intelligence

 

[General Tso]

NFL obviously not following Kraft on the high road path as they come out with an article about attributes of elite QBs and tweet out of pic of Luck with the following:

Precision

Strength

Intelligence

and for those a little slow on the uptake that = P S I

 

[Old Smiley]

NFL obviously not following Kraft on the high road path as they come out with an article about attributes of elite QBs and tweet out of pic of Luck with the following:

Precision

Strength

Intelligence

and for those a little slow on the uptake that = P S I

That actually really bothers me. If that's an actual 'gotcha', that's disgusting.

eta: ####### Goodell ####### delenda ####### est

 

[RUSF18]

NFL obviously not following Kraft on the high road path as they come out with an article about attributes of elite QBs and tweet out of pic of Luck with the following:

Precision

Strength

Intelligence

and for those a little slow on the uptake that = P S I

That actually really bothers me. If that's an actual 'gotcha', that's disgusting.eta: ####### Goodell ####### delenda ####### est

Jets fan runs that Twitter account.

 

[Dinsy Ejotuz]

That actually really bothers me.

Welcome to the next 40 years.

 

[Run It Up]

I don't think its ridiculous to expect the commissioner to want to make sure who and why the people in his office are actively leaking information.

 

[Old Smiley]

NFL obviously not following Kraft on the high road path as they come out with an article about attributes of elite QBs and tweet out of pic of Luck with the following:

Precision

Strength

Intelligence

and for those a little slow on the uptake that = P S I

That actually really bothers me. If that's an actual 'gotcha', that's disgusting.eta: ####### Goodell ####### delenda ####### est

Jets fan runs that Twitter account.

Well, if we're responsible for our ball peons, he's #######g responsible for his web peons.

 

[Old Smiley]

What's next a puff piece about Irsay's brave journey to sobriety?

(heh, puff)

 

[CoolHandLukeB]

During Wednesday’s press conference that ended the quarterly ownership meeting in San Francisco, Tom Curran of CSN New England asked Commissioner Roger Goodell a pointed question regarding media leaks by the league during the #DeflateGate investigation.

In response, Goodell referred generally to the report generated by Ted Wells. When Curran followed with a specific question about the league’s leak of the false information that 11 of the 12 Patriots footballs were two pounds under the 12.5 PSI minimum, Goodell said that Ted Wells “had the opportunity to evaluate that.”

While Wells may have had the opportunity to evaluate whether the NFL deliberately leaked false PSI data, possibly to create an opening narrative of presumed tampering that would trigger a scorched-earth investigation of the Patriots, Wells didn’t address the topic at all in his report.

As noted by Mike Reiss of ESPN.com, Wells devoted only one paragraph to the notion that the investigation arose in whole or in part from an agenda against the Patriots. The 243-page document says nothing about whether Wells explored the leak of false information — a leak that likely led directly to the decision to bring in Wells for another multi-million-dollar probe.

Frankly, it’s a bit ironic that anyone from ESPN would demand transparency regarding the false information disseminated by the league, given that ESPN was the media company that accepted the false information as true and published it. In the 15 days since it became clear that the information given to Chris Mortensen was false, ESPN has said nothing about its role in fueling the early days of the #DeflateGate frenzy.

Either Mortensen was flat wrong or he was lied to. If it was the former, the NFL should have corrected the information quickly and aggressively. Instead, the true PSI numbers remained hidden from view until the Wells report was released.

On one hand, it’s important for a reporter to protect his sources. On the other hand, the rules should change when the reporter has been flat-out lied to. And if the NFL isn’t going to shed light on what actually happened back in January regarding the false PSI data, ESPN shouldn’t simply point out the NFL’s silence; ESPN should end its own.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/category/rumor-mill/

The notion that the NFL has an obligation to correct misinformation that's made public by anyone that doesn't work for the NFL is just beyond ridiculous.

How many thousands of articles have been written about Deflategate since January? The NFL has an obligation to proof them all?

What about Twitter? Does the league need to moderate that too? Who are they required to follow, and who are they not required to follow?

And message boards like this one? Lots of misinformation in this thread alone.

Ya that is ridiculous to think they would have to search out and correct every wrong piece of information out there. Some people just can't accept that although not perfect, Goodell shoulders way too much blame for anything negative in the NFL.

Which is why no thinks that. Correcting one drastically incorrect piece of information on a story that became national news =/= correcting every wrong piece of information out there.

 

[Old Smiley]

That actually really bothers me.

Welcome to the next 40 years.

You're right. It'll just be part of the lexicon now.

 

[The General]

Ouch

 

[Green and Gold]

My guess is that Brady's appeal offers absolutely nothing in terms of a rebuttal of the evidence, and sticks 100% to challenging the procedure itself.

ETA: nothing except lawyer and/or agent speak that is.

Pretty much the Sherman defense.

 

[Bayhawks]

Ouch

While this story may actually be true, I don't know if this article has a lot of substance to it. It seems to be two guys speculating on a piece of information given to (one of) them by an un-named source.

I could see this being what happened (or part of it), but I don't know if this article CONVINCES me that this is what happened.

 

[Tool]

Ouch

That doesn't appear to be based on anything factual. The writer is "of the opinion"? Why is that a news item?

 

[Baloney Sandwich]

Ouch

Borges hasn't had a source inside the Pats organization since Bledsoe was traded

 

[Statler & Waldorf]

Ouch

Borges hasn't had a source inside the Pars organization since Bledsoe was traded

And Felger is a moron.

 

[GoBirds]

Wow. What a big F-U to the League, the media, and the haters. He couldn't have been more emphatic. Wish he would have done this during Spygate.

Now watch all the mediots who blow with the wind change their tune. This thing blows over and is DEAD.

 

[Dr. Octopus]

Wow. What a big F-U to the League, the media, and the haters. He couldn't have been more emphatic. Wish he would have done this during Spygate.

Now watch all the mediots who blow with the wind change their tune. This thing blows over and is DEAD.

It's pretty clear that General Tso has admitted that he was wrong. He even went so far as to denounce his Patriot fandom. What more do you want from him?

 

[General Tso]

Wow. What a big F-U to the League, the media, and the haters. He couldn't have been more emphatic. Wish he would have done this during Spygate.

Now watch all the mediots who blow with the wind change their tune. This thing blows over and is DEAD.

It's pretty clear that General Tso has admitted that he was wrong. He even went so far as to denounce his Patriot fandom. What more do you want from him?

Poking the body to make sure it's really dead? Lol.Don't worry Bird, I ain't going back. I basically got booted off of the Patriots message board that I'd been a member of for 12 years.

 

[Todd Andrews]

Did (Brady) do what he was accused of doing?

Jim Kelly: "No doubt."

And he would know. I once met a young, naive Hungarian dancer in Niagara who told me a heartbreaking story of a love affair she was just getting out of. The guy swore he was single, until one day she saw him on TV announcing his retirement from football, with his loving wife right by his side. One of the funniest stories I ever heard, only she wasn't laughing.

He tried to molest my sister in law at a charity event once....

 

[General Tso]

Did (Brady) do what he was accused of doing?

Jim Kelly: "No doubt."

And he would know. I once met a young, naive Hungarian dancer in Niagara who told me a heartbreaking story of a love affair she was just getting out of. The guy swore he was single, until one day she saw him on TV announcing his retirement from football, with his loving wife right by his side. One of the funniest stories I ever heard, only she wasn't laughing.

He tried to molest my sister in law at a charity event once....

See if you find my old posts about Wes Welker and my girlfriend... It started at a charity event as well.To bring this back to the topic (as much as possible) NFL football players are the last guys in the world who should be criticizing or levying judgment against anyone when it comes to matters of morality, lying or cheating. Just shut up and play.

 

[Chicago Hooligan]

Am I too late to contribute my story of unwarranted FBG banning?

'Cos mine was for posting Biggie lyrics in support of Bobby Wade's scoring potential.

 

[pats3in4]

Ouch

Borges hasn't had a source inside the Pars organization since Bledsoe was traded

And Felger is a moron.

Yeah. I'm not saying the story is false, but having Borges and Felger reporting on this really gives me pause. I'm surprised CHB didn't chime in with them.

It would have been more interesting to have almost *anyone* else report on this.

 

[skinsrule05]

I have been involved with youth football since 5 years pre-Spygate, so I would have to say that there is no correlation.

Maybe where I live is just a bigger collection of hoodlums, gangbangers, and thieves. Maybe the rest of the country is filled with do gooders, former choir boys, and people that drive the speed limit and don't cheat on their taxes. Maybe no other team in the NFL other than New England has ever broken the rules. But somehow I doubt it.

But I do hope there are less people in my area accepting cheating and saying it is just minor so let it go with a slap on the wrist.

 

[skinsrule05]

I said it before and I will say it again, the initial infraction for Deflategate was an equipment violation for tampering with the footballs. The baseline penalty, as cited by many, is a fine of $25,000 (plus the option of more). Financially, the Pats got hit with that dollar amount times 40. No other equipment violation ever sparked an independent investigation and 243-page report. No other team was ever docked any draft picks. And no NFL player had ever been suspended for an equipment violation.

Yes, I understand, part of the penalty is for not fully cooperating with the investigation, being a multiple time offender, and let's be honest, for being a bunch of pompous, self-righteous, arrogant A--holes. And I am not saying the Pats should have skated on this. They should have been punished. But IMO the penalty was way worse than the crime. I would have guessed 2 games for Brady, a $250,000 fine, and a loss of a 4th or 5th round pick.

What was the penalty handed down for Spygate? $500k and a first round pick?

Was that sufficient to deter the Pats from continuing to cheat? Apparently not.

Maybe a penalty 2 or 3 times stiffer will be a more effective deterrent. I guess we'll see.

Good point, and if they continue in these ways the next should be much more severe. It is similar to being on the drug/alcohol list. We could argue that Josh Gordon's punishment is too severe in relation to other first time offenders. But he was just stupid enough to tet caught and then continue with the same transgressions.

 

[GreekFreak]

During Wednesday’s press conference that ended the quarterly ownership meeting in San Francisco, Tom Curran of CSN New England asked Commissioner Roger Goodell a pointed question regarding media leaks by the league during the #DeflateGate investigation.

In response, Goodell referred generally to the report generated by Ted Wells. When Curran followed with a specific question about the league’s leak of the false information that 11 of the 12 Patriots footballs were two pounds under the 12.5 PSI minimum, Goodell said that Ted Wells “had the opportunity to evaluate that.”

While Wells may have had the opportunity to evaluate whether the NFL deliberately leaked false PSI data, possibly to create an opening narrative of presumed tampering that would trigger a scorched-earth investigation of the Patriots, Wells didn’t address the topic at all in his report.

As noted by Mike Reiss of ESPN.com, Wells devoted only one paragraph to the notion that the investigation arose in whole or in part from an agenda against the Patriots. The 243-page document says nothing about whether Wells explored the leak of false information — a leak that likely led directly to the decision to bring in Wells for another multi-million-dollar probe.

Frankly, it’s a bit ironic that anyone from ESPN would demand transparency regarding the false information disseminated by the league, given that ESPN was the media company that accepted the false information as true and published it. In the 15 days since it became clear that the information given to Chris Mortensen was false, ESPN has said nothing about its role in fueling the early days of the #DeflateGate frenzy.

Either Mortensen was flat wrong or he was lied to. If it was the former, the NFL should have corrected the information quickly and aggressively. Instead, the true PSI numbers remained hidden from view until the Wells report was released.

On one hand, it’s important for a reporter to protect his sources. On the other hand, the rules should change when the reporter has been flat-out lied to. And if the NFL isn’t going to shed light on what actually happened back in January regarding the false PSI data, ESPN shouldn’t simply point out the NFL’s silence; ESPN should end its own.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/category/rumor-mill/

Keep up the good fight Tom E Curran.

http://www.csnne.com/new-england-patriots/ted-wells-roger-goodell-covering-up-nfls-deflategate-misconduct

The NFL has become an emmbarrasement.

I feel for Saints fans for having to go thru this a few years ago.

 

[Old Smiley]

From the Curran piece:

"the shadiest dealings in this mess didn’t happen in Foxboro. They happened on Park Avenue."

 

[BoltNlava]

During Wednesday’s press conference that ended the quarterly ownership meeting in San Francisco, Tom Curran of CSN New England asked Commissioner Roger Goodell a pointed question regarding media leaks by the league during the #DeflateGate investigation.

In response, Goodell referred generally to the report generated by Ted Wells. When Curran followed with a specific question about the league’s leak of the false information that 11 of the 12 Patriots footballs were two pounds under the 12.5 PSI minimum, Goodell said that Ted Wells “had the opportunity to evaluate that.”

While Wells may have had the opportunity to evaluate whether the NFL deliberately leaked false PSI data, possibly to create an opening narrative of presumed tampering that would trigger a scorched-earth investigation of the Patriots, Wells didn’t address the topic at all in his report.

As noted by Mike Reiss of ESPN.com, Wells devoted only one paragraph to the notion that the investigation arose in whole or in part from an agenda against the Patriots. The 243-page document says nothing about whether Wells explored the leak of false information — a leak that likely led directly to the decision to bring in Wells for another multi-million-dollar probe.

Frankly, it’s a bit ironic that anyone from ESPN would demand transparency regarding the false information disseminated by the league, given that ESPN was the media company that accepted the false information as true and published it. In the 15 days since it became clear that the information given to Chris Mortensen was false, ESPN has said nothing about its role in fueling the early days of the #DeflateGate frenzy.

Either Mortensen was flat wrong or he was lied to. If it was the former, the NFL should have corrected the information quickly and aggressively. Instead, the true PSI numbers remained hidden from view until the Wells report was released.

On one hand, it’s important for a reporter to protect his sources. On the other hand, the rules should change when the reporter has been flat-out lied to. And if the NFL isn’t going to shed light on what actually happened back in January regarding the false PSI data, ESPN shouldn’t simply point out the NFL’s silence; ESPN should end its own.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/category/rumor-mill/

Keep up the good fight Tom E Curran.

http://www.csnne.com/new-england-patriots/ted-wells-roger-goodell-covering-up-nfls-deflategate-misconduct

The NFL has become an emmbarrasement.

I feel for Saints fans for having to go thru this a few years ago.

So at this point a man who makes billions decided to fold his hand. Huh...Makes it look real easy. No leadership at all. Who knew?

 

[moleculo]

How dare people leak a story that makes someone look more guilty than they actually are. I can only imagine the outrage.

 

[Run It Up]

How dare people leak a story that makes someone look more guilty than they actually are. I can only imagine the outrage.

We call that lying, don't even put a name on it.

From what I've read in this thread, lying is worse than murder - unless its anonymously to make the Patriots look worse.

 

[moleculo]

How dare people leak a story that makes someone look more guilty than they actually are. I can only imagine the outrage.

We call that lying, don't even put a name on it.From what I've read in this thread, lying is worse than murder - unless its anonymously to make the Patriots look worse.

How dare someone LIE about the severity of the Patriots cheating!

 

[Flying Elvis]

Ouch

While this story may actually be true, I don't know if this article has a lot of substance to it. It seems to be two guys speculating on a piece of information given to (one of) them by an un-named source.

I could see this being what happened (or part of it), but I don't know if this article CONVINCES me that this is what happened.

Felger corroborated by Borges. Oh my what a team of anti-BB/Brady clowns that makes. Disregard anything either writes/says that remotely mentions team sources.

 

[Road Warriors]

Ouch

While this story may actually be true, I don't know if this article has a lot of substance to it. It seems to be two guys speculating on a piece of information given to (one of) them by an un-named source.

I could see this being what happened (or part of it), but I don't know if this article CONVINCES me that this is what happened.

From 2 sports "personalities" in the Boston area that get their clicks by riling up the locals with whatever contrarian stance they can take.

Felger may be the biggest doosh in Boston Sports, and the only reason for a "may" is Borges.

 

[Jercules]

I have been involved with youth football since 5 years pre-Spygate, so I would have to say that there is no correlation.

Maybe where I live is just a bigger collection of hoodlums, gangbangers, and thieves. Maybe the rest of the country is filled with do gooders, former choir boys, and people that drive the speed limit and don't cheat on their taxes. Maybe no other team in the NFL other than New England has ever broken the rules. But somehow I doubt it.

But I do hope there are less people in my area accepting cheating and saying it is just minor so let it go with a slap on the wrist.

If it is minor then you do let it go with a slap on the wrist. Such a basic, simple concept...

 

[GoBirds]

Wow. What a big F-U to the League, the media, and the haters. He couldn't have been more emphatic. Wish he would have done this during Spygate.

Now watch all the mediots who blow with the wind change their tune. This thing blows over and is DEAD.

It's pretty clear that General Tso has admitted that he was wrong. He even went so far as to denounce his Patriot fandom. What more do you want from him?

Poking the body to make sure it's really dead? Lol.Don't worry Bird, I ain't going back. I basically got booted off of the Patriots message board that I'd been a member of for 12 years.

Oooops, did I do that.

 

[skinsrule05]

I have been involved with youth football since 5 years pre-Spygate, so I would have to say that there is no correlation.

Maybe where I live is just a bigger collection of hoodlums, gangbangers, and thieves. Maybe the rest of the country is filled with do gooders, former choir boys, and people that drive the speed limit and don't cheat on their taxes. Maybe no other team in the NFL other than New England has ever broken the rules. But somehow I doubt it.

But I do hope there are less people in my area accepting cheating and saying it is just minor so let it go with a slap on the wrist.

If it is minor then you do let it go with a slap on the wrist. Such a basic, simple concept...

And maybe punishing cheating with a slap on the wrist is what got us to this point, where "everyone is doing it". I am not naive enough to think only the patriots have been cheating. I do think that if Brady knew how big this punishment would be there is no way he would have risked it. But as some posters have argued on here the patriots should have only gotten a $25k fine. At that level I can understand why Brady did it.

 

[Jercules]

I have been involved with youth football since 5 years pre-Spygate, so I would have to say that there is no correlation.

Maybe where I live is just a bigger collection of hoodlums, gangbangers, and thieves. Maybe the rest of the country is filled with do gooders, former choir boys, and people that drive the speed limit and don't cheat on their taxes. Maybe no other team in the NFL other than New England has ever broken the rules. But somehow I doubt it.

But I do hope there are less people in my area accepting cheating and saying it is just minor so let it go with a slap on the wrist.

If it is minor then you do let it go with a slap on the wrist. Such a basic, simple concept...

And maybe punishing cheating with a slap on the wrist is what got us to this point, where "everyone is doing it". I am not naive enough to think only the patriots have been cheating. I do think that if Brady knew how big this punishment would be there is no way he would have risked it. But as some posters have argued on here the patriots should have only gotten a $25k fine. At that level I can understand why Brady did it.

So punish everything to the hilt? I guess you can do that. It isn't the real world, where throwing someone in solitary for jaywalking would be an obscene violation of their rights. If the owners and the NFLPA agreed, I guess you could decide to dock first round draft picks and millions of dollars for all sorts of minor things. Treat the other 31 teams like you treat the Patriots; as a Pats fan I'd call that an improvement!

I guess the problem is when things are so minor, and can barely be proved, that you end up 50/50 as to whether to punish. One team gets a free pass whereas another team has to eat the enormous minimum penalty.

 

[amnesiac]

I have been involved with youth football since 5 years pre-Spygate, so I would have to say that there is no correlation.

Maybe where I live is just a bigger collection of hoodlums, gangbangers, and thieves. Maybe the rest of the country is filled with do gooders, former choir boys, and people that drive the speed limit and don't cheat on their taxes. Maybe no other team in the NFL other than New England has ever broken the rules. But somehow I doubt it.

But I do hope there are less people in my area accepting cheating and saying it is just minor so let it go with a slap on the wrist.

If it is minor then you do let it go with a slap on the wrist. Such a basic, simple concept...

And maybe punishing cheating with a slap on the wrist is what got us to this point, where "everyone is doing it". I am not naive enough to think only the patriots have been cheating. I do think that if Brady knew how big this punishment would be there is no way he would have risked it. But as some posters have argued on here the patriots should have only gotten a $25k fine. At that level I can understand why Brady did it.

good point. at the same time, they just got another ring.

so maybe it was still worth it?

 

[Dr. Octopus]

How dare people leak a story that makes someone look more guilty than they actually are. I can only imagine the outrage.

We call that lying, don't even put a name on it.From what I've read in this thread, lying is worse than murder - unless its anonymously to make the Patriots look worse.

Murder is worse than lying. Not even the Pats would get involved with that. Oh wait...

 

[Pots]

I have been involved with youth football since 5 years pre-Spygate, so I would have to say that there is no correlation.

Maybe where I live is just a bigger collection of hoodlums, gangbangers, and thieves. Maybe the rest of the country is filled with do gooders, former choir boys, and people that drive the speed limit and don't cheat on their taxes. Maybe no other team in the NFL other than New England has ever broken the rules. But somehow I doubt it.

But I do hope there are less people in my area accepting cheating and saying it is just minor so let it go with a slap on the wrist.

If it is minor then you do let it go with a slap on the wrist. Such a basic, simple concept...

And maybe punishing cheating with a slap on the wrist is what got us to this point, where "everyone is doing it". I am not naive enough to think only the patriots have been cheating. I do think that if Brady knew how big this punishment would be there is no way he would have risked it. But as some posters have argued on here the patriots should have only gotten a $25k fine. At that level I can understand why Brady did it.

good point.at the same time, they just got another ring.

so maybe it was still worth it?

Of course it was worth it. Cheating in sports is allmost always worth it in this era. A lot of people think this is a harsh punishment. Think about it, cheating that helped result in a World Championship... how many picks would the Jags, Bengals, or any other team in the NFL be willing to give up to pull that off? The reward is SO MUCH greater than the risk.

 

[Old Smiley]

How dare people leak a story that makes someone look more guilty than they actually are. I can only imagine the outrage.

We call that lying, don't even put a name on it.From what I've read in this thread, lying is worse than murder - unless its anonymously to make the Patriots look worse.

Murder is worse than lying. Not even the Pats would get involved with that. Oh wait...

too soon...

 

[BigSteelThrill]

NFL rejects NFLPA Roger Goodell recusal motion in Tom Brady appealMore fun posts and pages for this thread.

 

[Bayhawks]

I have been involved with youth football since 5 years pre-Spygate, so I would have to say that there is no correlation.

Maybe where I live is just a bigger collection of hoodlums, gangbangers, and thieves. Maybe the rest of the country is filled with do gooders, former choir boys, and people that drive the speed limit and don't cheat on their taxes. Maybe no other team in the NFL other than New England has ever broken the rules. But somehow I doubt it.

But I do hope there are less people in my area accepting cheating and saying it is just minor so let it go with a slap on the wrist.

If it is minor then you do let it go with a slap on the wrist. Such a basic, simple concept...

Another simple concept is that if that "slap on the wrist" doesn't prevent repeat offenses (or other minor offenses), the next time the consequence is more severe.

 

[MaxThreshold]

Looks like Bill Belichick didn't believe Brady either.

 

[Baloney Sandwich]

Looks like Bill Belichick didn't believe Brady either.

Thanks Scoop

 

[MaxThreshold]

Looks like Bill Belichick didn't believe Brady either.

Thanks Scoop

Some say I'm a natural.

 

[Jercules]

I have been involved with youth football since 5 years pre-Spygate, so I would have to say that there is no correlation.

Maybe where I live is just a bigger collection of hoodlums, gangbangers, and thieves. Maybe the rest of the country is filled with do gooders, former choir boys, and people that drive the speed limit and don't cheat on their taxes. Maybe no other team in the NFL other than New England has ever broken the rules. But somehow I doubt it.

But I do hope there are less people in my area accepting cheating and saying it is just minor so let it go with a slap on the wrist.

If it is minor then you do let it go with a slap on the wrist. Such a basic, simple concept...

Another simple concept is that if that "slap on the wrist" doesn't prevent repeat offenses (or other minor offenses), the next time the consequence is more severe.

Absolutely!

A $50,000 fine would have been a whopping 100% increase over the NFL's own prescription for ball tampering. Of course, some might call that a bit extreme, given their horrid 'first offense' was having a camera man in the wrong place seven years ago...

 

[Pots]

I have been involved with youth football since 5 years pre-Spygate, so I would have to say that there is no correlation.

Maybe where I live is just a bigger collection of hoodlums, gangbangers, and thieves. Maybe the rest of the country is filled with do gooders, former choir boys, and people that drive the speed limit and don't cheat on their taxes. Maybe no other team in the NFL other than New England has ever broken the rules. But somehow I doubt it.

But I do hope there are less people in my area accepting cheating and saying it is just minor so let it go with a slap on the wrist.

If it is minor then you do let it go with a slap on the wrist. Such a basic, simple concept...

Another simple concept is that if that "slap on the wrist" doesn't prevent repeat offenses (or other minor offenses), the next time the consequence is more severe.

Absolutely!

A $50,000 fine would have been a whopping 100% increase over the NFL's own prescription for ball tampering. Of course, some might call that a bit extreme, given their horrid 'first offense' was having a camera man in the wrong place seven years ago...

This is sarcasm, right? You don't actually think a $50,000 fine for an NFL team constitutes as a punishment that's not a slap on the wrist.