Give it up already.

5/14/2008 2:19:46 PM

Guy who "broke" the story for the Herald will explain story on Friday. Then this will finally be over.

Quote :

" Readers of this space have probably been asking themselves, “Where the hell is Tomase?” over the last couple of days and it’s a fair query. Right now I’m just landing from Washington and working on a story about Arlen Specter’s press conference regarding his interview with Matt Walsh. While that is going to have me tied up for the rest of the night, I just wanted to make one thing clear — I know I screwed up on the Rams taping story and I don’t intend to hide behind today’s apology or an editor’s note. In Friday’s Herald I will explain as clearly as I can where that story went wrong and begin the journey of restoring your trust in my reporting.I cannot in good conscience demand accountability of the people I cover and then not provide it myself. So it’s coming on Friday. Just be patient. John Tomase"

5/14/2008 6:17:43 PM

Quote :

"Can definitely be a factor in games, especially when 3 superbowls were won by 3 points or less..."

You know what else could be a factor: HGH and steroids.

Oh wait, you said "won".

5/15/2008 7:56:52 AM

^ ?

Either way this thing is ridiculous. They were punished, embarassed, and I think a lot of people will always remember this when they think about the Patriots "Dynasty." I think that is enough punishment. Specter needs to get off his high horse and deal with something more important than this. This is only going to cause more of a black eye for professional sports in America. Just leave it alone already.

[Edited on May 15, 2008 at 10:20 AM. Reason : .]

5/15/2008 10:18:46 AM

So is Spectre an Eagles fan or a Steelers fan. Either way I can see why he'd be such a dick about this whole thing.

5/15/2008 10:24:04 AM

Eagles.

And this wouldnt be as big of a deal if Roger Goodell hadn't been a retard and destroyed the tapes. I wonder how he destroyed them... Baseball bats? Bonfire? Thrown into the Grand Canyon?

Its like Goodell thought, how can we best make everyone forget this was ever an issue? Ah yes, lets destroy the evidence!

5/15/2008 10:32:49 AM

What should he have done? Given them to ESPN to air on SportsCenter 12 times a day and another 100 times on NFL live? I'm sure the teams affected would have loved for everyone to see their signals. I doubt these videos were particularly interested or had Bellicheck laughing maniacally and explaining his evil scheme like some kind of bad James Bond villain.

No, I think they were probably destroyed so that they wouldn't get leaked to yet more opposing teams. I'm sure everyone who plays the Jets would love to have a tape of their defensive signals. It serves no purpose to keep them, it only opens up the opportunity for more problems. Just run them through a shredder and be done with it just like any other sensitive material you no longer need. Plus, I'm sure that the NFL thought that you since it's you know, not a fucking matter that needs to be investigated by outside sources like the US Senate, that once the league office had reviewed the tapes, passed judgment on whether or not it violated league policy, and assessed a punishment that they could pretty much close the books on the incident and get rid of the tapes.

[Edited on May 15, 2008 at 11:18 AM. Reason : durka]

5/15/2008 11:14:45 AM

Quote :

"Bellicheck laughing maniacally and explaining his evil scheme like some kind of bad James Bond villain"

But that is just what he is.

5/15/2008 11:33:25 AM

Oh, I think he's a tremendous douche, but the damage is done, and pretty heavy punishment was handed down. I'd love to hear what Arlen Spectre's genius plan is to deal with this situation.

5/15/2008 11:56:34 AM

bilk bellicheat
Failriots

they need to get punished more imho...

scratch off the Lombardi's would be a good move

[Edited on May 15, 2008 at 11:59 AM. Reason : a]

5/15/2008 11:58:38 AM

Spectre is doing a great job wasting taxpayer money. Was the whole situation handled great? Not really, but they addressed the problem, passed down the largest punishment in league history(I think) and have made it clear what the rule is. Can we move on please.

This isn't like baseball and steriods, that knew there was a problem for 15 years by ALL teams and ignored it. The fact that this guy is lumping the two together is rediculous. He said that this was going to cause people to quit watching football, and keep people from going to games. Get real.

His state has some major issues right now, non of which can be fixed by going after the Patriots. But I guess if you can't actually help your people, the next best thing is to distract them.

5/15/2008 1:13:25 PM

Quote :

"His state has some major issues right now, non of which can be fixed by going after the Patriots. But I guess if you can't actually help your people, the next best thing is to distract them."

I get what your saying, and I agree that congress should stay out of sports. But, Specter isn't just some hack trying to make a name for himself. He's one of the most powerful Republican senators (ranked 6th in power rankings), and even though he comes off as an ass, I think he is raising some good points. I don't really understand why nobody is making a big deal out of the NFL destroying evidence after viewing it.

5/15/2008 2:18:59 PM

Quote :

"He's one of the most powerful Republican senators (ranked 6th in power rankings)"

lol political power rankings, i love it. too bad his strength of schedule is pretty weak

5/15/2008 2:22:00 PM

Again, so who else should be reviewing it? Would it be appropriate it to show it on ESPN so all the coaches in the league can figure out the Jets' signals? The good senator from PA does not get to vote on whether or not he or the general public gets a say so on NFL rules and regulations.

5/15/2008 2:24:52 PM

Why do people still think coaches use the same signals not only year in and year out, but game in and game out? All coaches know the other team are trying to steal their signals, the patriots just taped it.

I just don't know why he is wasting his time with this. There are even bigger problems that exist in sports other then the patriots. It is something one team did, not an NFL wide problem. I just don't know what he is trying to prove... where is it all going?

And the fact that he is "powerful" and high up in the power rankings, just makes it even worse. He should be able to get real shit done for his state then. Pennsylvania(Sp?) as a state is in some shit, people are leaving the state in droves.

5/15/2008 3:39:30 PM

What about the other shady shit the Patriots are accused of doing? Knocking out the opposition's headsets during the games seems like a big deal. Especially when you know what the hell their hand signals are probably going to be.

5/15/2008 4:11:18 PM

The NFL controls the headsets and communications during games, because they are shut on and off at certain times.

5/15/2008 5:28:28 PM

when do they shut them down, out of curiosity?

5/15/2008 5:42:29 PM

when the scores need to be closer

[Edited on May 15, 2008 at 6:03 PM. Reason : .]

5/15/2008 6:02:43 PM

I think they turn them off when the offensive team breaks the huddle. I am speaking about the coach to qb communication, not coach to coach etc.

Also, if one of the team's headsets quit working or the radio in the qb's helmet, the NFL turns off the other teams.

5/15/2008 6:23:56 PM

I know they change signals pretty regularly. Hell, it wouldn't surprise me if they did it every half.

The one good thing that has come out of this is that it's even more likely now that the NFL will allow the defense one headset helmet just like they do with the offense. There's really no good reason not to so I suspect the competition committee will put that in at the next opportunity.

5/16/2008 12:48:45 AM

I think they already approved it. Makes sense, why should the offense get it and not the defense.

They were talking about how teams have been experimenting this summer with the player that gets the ear piece on defense..

5/16/2008 11:55:59 AM