[yoopr]

Caught
My Pack caught them first but let it slide
Pretty hefty penalty

NFL Fines Pats Coach, Team Loses Pick

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Thursday, September 13, 2007
NEW YORK - Bill Belichick should be able to read this signal clearly: Spy on your opponents, and it will cost you. The New England coach was fined the NFL maximum of $500,000 Thursday and the Patriots were ordered to pay $250,000 for stealing an opponent's defensive signals.

Commissioner Roger Goodell also ordered the team to give up next year's first-round draft choice if it reaches the playoffs and second- and third-round picks if it doesn't.

The videotaping came to light after a camera was confiscated from Patriots video assistant Matt Estrella while he was on the New York Jets' sideline during New England's 38-14 win last Sunday at Giants Stadium.

The NFL said the camera was seized before the end of the first quarter and had no impact on the game.

"This episode represents a calculated and deliberate attempt to avoid longstanding rules designed to encourage fair play and promote honest competition on the playing field," Goodell said in a letter to the Patriots.

He said he considered suspending Belichick but didn't "largely because I believe that the discipline I am imposing of a maximum fine and forfeiture of a first-round draft choice, or multiple draft choices, is in fact more significant and long-lasting, and therefore more effective, than a suspension."

Goodell's hard line on discipline has been aimed so far at players - most notably Michael Vick and Adam "Pacman" Jones.

By penalizing a coach and a team he showed that no one, not even management, was immune.

"We support the commissioner and his findings," the New York Jets said in a statement.

New England, strengthened by the addition of Randy Moss, two other first-rate wide receivers and linebacker Adalius Thomas, is considered one of the favorites to win the Super Bowl for the fourth time since the 2001 season. If the Patriots lose their first-rounder next season they still will have a first-round pick, obtained from San Francisco in the deal that brought Moss from Oakland.

NFL rules state "no video recording devices of any kind are permitted to be in use in the coaches' booth, on the field, or in the locker room during the game." They also say all video for coaching purposes must be shot from locations "enclosed on all sides with a roof overhead."

That was re-emphasized in a memo sent Sept. 6 to NFL head coaches and general managers. In it, Ray Anderson, the league's executive vice president of football operations wrote: "Videotaping of any type, including but not limited to taping of an opponent's offensive or defensive signals, is prohibited on the sidelines, in the coaches' booth, in the locker room, or at any other locations accessible to club staff members during the game."

The NFL statement said Goodell believed Patriots owner Robert Kraft was unaware of Belichick's actions.

But it said the commissioner believed penalties should be imposed on the club because "Coach Belichick not only serves as the head coach but also has substantial control over all aspects of New England's football operations. His actions and decisions are properly attributed to the club."

There was no immediate comment from the Patriots.

On Wednesday, Belichick issued a one-paragraph statement 10 minutes before his regular availability, saying he had spoken with Goodell "about a videotaping procedure during last Sunday's game and my interpretation of the rules."

"Although it remains a league matter, I want to apologize to everyone who has been affected, most of all ownership, staff and players," he said.

NFL coaches long have suspected opponents of spying. In the early 1970s, the late George Allen, coach of the Washington Redskins, routinely would send a security man into the woods surrounding the team's practice facility because he suspected there were spies from other teams there.

And coaches like Seattle's Mike Holmgren and Philadelphia's Andy Reid, among others, always cover their mouths when calling plays from the sideline because they fear other teams have lip readers trying to determine their calls.

The most recent hefty fine against a coach was in 2005, when Tagliabue fined former Minnesota coach Mike Tice $100,000 for scalping Super Bowl tickets.

Last November, Goodell fined Tennessee coach Jeff Fisher, co-chairman of the competition committee, $12,500 for criticizing officials. He also fined Pittsburgh owner Dan Rooney, one of his mentors and the man who informed him he had been elected commissioner, for the same violation.

[Twilight Flyer]

I always hated the Pats. And now I have another reason to add on to the growing list. :x It also solidifies my stance that they have been the NFL's dirtiest cheating team since '02.

Interesting side story to that yesterday. There is now a lot of talk about the Patriots/Eagles Super Bowl a couple years back. In the first half of that game, the Patriots had around 80 total yards..the Eagles just shut them down. In the second half, they had nearly 300. They called more screens in that 2nd half than any other team, ever. Every time they called a screen was when the Eagles were blitzing and they ate them alive. There is apparently little doubt now as to the reason why.

The New England Cheaters. Fitting team name. They've been that since '02 and just finally got caught. I'm certain more will come out of this, too. They just ought to disband the stupid team, give a lifetime ban to the coaching staff, and send a message.

[yoopr]

yeah-I heard about that Eagles game too

[WildK9]

Originally Posted by Twilight Flyer

I always hated the Pats.

That makes 2 of us!

The New England Cheaters. Fitting team name. They've been that since '02 and just finally got caught. I'm certain more will come out of this, too. They just ought to disband the stupid team, give a lifetime ban to the coaching staff, and send a message.

Love the name AND the idea! :wink:

[Jackrabbit379]

Good for them! Yay! Buzzards! Yeah, I have been listening about it on the radio. Should have been more of a fine, but oh well. I heard that they might make the Pats forfeit their next game against the Jets. Should do that.

What makes people think that Tom Brady is such a big shot? He aint nothin! I've seen him play, and he hasnt shown me nothing! Pfffft! :P

Yoopr, I saw Brett's comments about the Pats. He said something like, "well, it's kinda obvious when the qb looks at the opposing defensive coach..." :lol:

[yoopr]

Yoopr, I saw Brett's comments about the Pats. He said something like, "well, it's kinda obvious when the qb looks at the opposing defensive coach...

I missed that-That's good

[Jackrabbit379]

It was on ESPN. He was funny, when he was saying that.

[Twilight Flyer]

This one ain't over. The whole organization and their Super Bowl wins have been seriously tainted. I can see more coming out of this and I can also see some serious payback on the field. Can you imagine being a member of the Eagle team that they cheated to win the Super Bowl? How P.O.'d would that make you. :shock:

[Mr. Ford95]

I seriously doubt the Pats cheated in order to win the SB against the Eagles. As McNabb said, "you can know the plays all you want but unless the players on the field execute, it don't help'em none if they did."

The reason for so many screens in the 2nd half?? Because Jim Johnson likes to call as many blitz' as he can during a game. Easiest way to beat them is with a screen because your O-line's job is half done, the D is he!! bent on getting to the QB, so it is easier to "ole" them and let'em fly right by. They are so worried about making their blitz work that they run right by the RB taking the screen pass. They didn't need to use a secret camera to see that. Everyone in the league knows how Johnson calls his D's.

I guess everytime a team stops an offense and it looks as if they were literally in the huddle too, we need to investigate them for cheating. This stuff happens every game without the use of camera's and it is considered ok by the league. As long as your not using a video camera on the sidelines, it's ok to spy on signals. Had the guy been in the stands doing it, it would have been ok by the rules.

[Colts Fan]

The so-called "punishment" was a joke. They are suspending players left and right for off-field behavior, but when the integrity of the game is violated like that, a fine?

There should be some major suspensions here or possibly banishment. To me, this is along the same lines as gambling on the games.