Cheaters?
Given all the pro-Patriots posts I have on this blog, I probably should make some kind of statement here instead of on Blogman's comments section.
ESPN is reporting that the Patriots have been caught stealing the Jets' signals in last Sundays' game. This is apparently not the first incident involving the Patriots. The commissioner is expected to treat this infraction fairly severely.
If there is indeed evidence that the Patriots violated the rules by using a camera to steal signals, then there's not much to defend, even for a Patriots apologist like me. But I forsee a lot of media columnists overreacting to this incident with some moralizing over how the team could stoop so low. Certainly the Patriots reputation is now soiled. But let's not lose too much perspective here. Cheating is cheating, but in the grand scheme of things, how bad is this infraction?
NFL rules prohibit the use of video equipment for the purpose of stealing signals...but it doesn't actually prohibit the actual act of stealing signals (probably because such a rule is unenforceable). So...stealing signals is OK...you just can't facilitate it with video technology.
As I detailed in Blogmans' comments section, there are whispers of teams resorting to dishonorable/unsportsmanlike actions to gain a competitive edge. Teams temporarily sign waived players from opponents in the hopes of gaining some sort of inside information (like say...hand signals). Players buy 3rd party video to determine audible calls. And of course, signal stealing probably occurs even without video equipment. These kinds of things certainly violate the spirit of the rule the Patriots broke, if not the actual rule itself. And since it's a different issue, I won't discuss the theft of team documents (like playbooks, scouting reports, etc.) that allegedly occurs in the NFL.
Again, this isn't to excuse the Patriots actions (or their apparent ineptitude in avoiding detection), but when we look at the big picture, I'd characterize this transgression as a team taking the practice of sign-stealing one step too far, and not a team egregiously undermining the integrity of a squeaky clean professional sports league. Certainly I'm disappointed with my favorite team...but I actually find Rodney Harrison's admission of taking HGH to be a worse incident.
I thought John Clayton of ESPN had an even-handed analysis of the situation. This is why I usually limit my sports reading to journalists and try to avoid columnists, as the latter often overreacts to the latest breaking news.
ESPN is reporting that the Patriots have been caught stealing the Jets' signals in last Sundays' game. This is apparently not the first incident involving the Patriots. The commissioner is expected to treat this infraction fairly severely.
If there is indeed evidence that the Patriots violated the rules by using a camera to steal signals, then there's not much to defend, even for a Patriots apologist like me. But I forsee a lot of media columnists overreacting to this incident with some moralizing over how the team could stoop so low. Certainly the Patriots reputation is now soiled. But let's not lose too much perspective here. Cheating is cheating, but in the grand scheme of things, how bad is this infraction?
NFL rules prohibit the use of video equipment for the purpose of stealing signals...but it doesn't actually prohibit the actual act of stealing signals (probably because such a rule is unenforceable). So...stealing signals is OK...you just can't facilitate it with video technology.
As I detailed in Blogmans' comments section, there are whispers of teams resorting to dishonorable/unsportsmanlike actions to gain a competitive edge. Teams temporarily sign waived players from opponents in the hopes of gaining some sort of inside information (like say...hand signals). Players buy 3rd party video to determine audible calls. And of course, signal stealing probably occurs even without video equipment. These kinds of things certainly violate the spirit of the rule the Patriots broke, if not the actual rule itself. And since it's a different issue, I won't discuss the theft of team documents (like playbooks, scouting reports, etc.) that allegedly occurs in the NFL.
Again, this isn't to excuse the Patriots actions (or their apparent ineptitude in avoiding detection), but when we look at the big picture, I'd characterize this transgression as a team taking the practice of sign-stealing one step too far, and not a team egregiously undermining the integrity of a squeaky clean professional sports league. Certainly I'm disappointed with my favorite team...but I actually find Rodney Harrison's admission of taking HGH to be a worse incident.
I thought John Clayton of ESPN had an even-handed analysis of the situation. This is why I usually limit my sports reading to journalists and try to avoid columnists, as the latter often overreacts to the latest breaking news.
