I'm interested in reading it nonetheless. I just don't want to, you know, actually buy a copy and support this kind of thing. Arlen Spector was a huge critic of Spygate. And Alan Specter was on the Warren Commission and was the chief proponent of the "Magic Bullet Theory." So that should say it all right there. I'm guessing this guy has an MO. Another Spygate book was written right after it happened, by a fan of a rival team, and I can't even find that version online anymore...
Maybe, sure sounds like his conclusions are based on circumstantial evidence, but that evidence is pretty damning. And it was news for me that the league confiscated and destroyed the tapes on the same day in Foxboro. Ask somebody in law enforcement what they think of that scenario. It had nothing to do with uncovering the truth.
Cassell has actually had a better NFL career than Leinhart. At least Cassell is considered to be a borderline starting QB. Leinhart is a journeyman backup.
Did you watch the games? He had an 11-5 record because our defense was still pretty good, and because Wes Welker and Kevin Faulk were consistently able to take screen passes and short completions, and get 10, 15, 20 yards out of them. Also, because the best team in the division was the mediocre 11-5 Miami Dolphins. Also, Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart were pretty damn good in college, so the fact that Cassel was a backup doesn't really tell you much about whether he was any good or not.
I really hope that the whole story comes out at some point. If someone could give even one scenario that could prove the Pats were somehow using that film on gamedays, I'd rethink my opinion. They were using a handheld camcorder with a tape in it that even chief Patriot witness Walsh admitted wasn't handed in until after the game. So it wasn't even an elaborate way to steal signs (Which is not illegal, BTW). Scouts inc. wrote a piece (I'll try to find it) in which they said the Pats (and other teams that did it) would match the tape of the signals, downs, and defensive alignment to study tendencies. Usually by the film group a few weeks after the game. And if the team was stupid enough not to change their defensive signals the next time they played, well that was gravy.
You're assuming you know what's on the tapes, which you don't. The story isn't coming out. Goodell is responsible for destroying evidence that was likely damaging to the league. Belicheck's response in the aftermath was a near comical stonewalling. Nobody is saying anything now.
This has come up before. I've asked the honest question and no one has ever answered it. Let's try it again so I can get an idea of where an opposing fan may be coming from in questioning what else was on the tapes. The whole scandal revolved around taping other coordinators/assistants who were signalling in plays. The league agreed with that assessment. The team did not deny it. What else could possibly have been on there? Are you suggesting there were taped walk-throughs, even though that was thoroughly debunked? I'm honestly just trying to understand here. The film of opposing signals was damning enough for the NFL to fine the team a first-round-pick and $750,000 total. What else could have possibly been on the tapes that could have made this so much worse? Speculate all you want if you respond, it's an honest question and one I've never gotten an objective answer for...
I think the answer is pretty simple People are gonna see it the way they want to see it. A Pats fan asking Jets fans to be unbiased in their analysis is an exercise in futility Most can't even admit to the most obvious fact, that Eric Mangini was a huge douchebag in all of this. Blowing the whistle on something that he personally gained from. Did he offer to give his rings back?
Umk Joe Glazer on the NFL network still has copies of all of the tapes, he has admitted to it multiple times, and says that he shows them to friends and stuff whenever they're hanging out just to laugh at them, because there is a lot of footage of cheerleaders and stuff in between going to the scoreboard, back to the coaches, to the scoreboard.. Skygate is the most overblown thing ever. Funny too, cause the Patriots were known for their defensive prowess back in their Super Bowl years, which couldnt have been aided by the spygate stuff. Now they are still making it into the playoffs, and to 2 more super bowls with their offensive prowess. I think they have proven that they are just in fact a great football team.. The haters dont want to admit it though, they must still be cheating!
I just don't understand how stupid some people can be. They were caught taping on the sidelines and Beli turned over the tapes when Goodell wanted them. Gillette Stadium wasn't surrounded by the FBI and searched. If he had anything other than sideline signals on any tapes, do you think Beli would be stupid enough to send him those too?
And honestly, I don't know. The absence of evidence once its been destroyed doesn't shift the burden of explaining it away from the NFL and onto me. It's actually the exact opposite. All anyone of us knows for certain is they saw something that they didn't want anyone else to see. Draw your own conclusions. I think that means there was something to suggest that the cheating was widespread and it affected outcomes. I have no proof at all, nor could I. If you're a Pats fan who's sense of self worth is so bound up in the success of the team of people from somewhere else that you root for, yeah, I guess there's nothing to see here.
Why would anyone think that there was additional material that was never handed over? There is absolutely nothing to even suggest, much less prove, that is the case. And just to humor your conspiracy theory, yeah I do think that Belli would have been "stupid" enough to had those over too. The penalty for hiding additional information would have been astronomical if the Pats were caught. Plus Bill Walsh, a former employee with inside information, was on a crusade to spread dirt on the Patriots. If there were additional infractions that Belichick never told the league about, you can be sure that Walsh would have been jumping up and down, screaming, begging to tell the whole world about it.
My point was simply that the destroyed tapes would have only contained what was claimed by the league. Sideline signals. I'm making no assumptions on any other unsubstantiated claims by fans whose teams have been beaten repeatedly for ten years now.
Jets fans so often talk about their preseason and offseason success, and remind everyone of the success Sanchez had making it to a pair or Championship games ...followed by missing the playoffs. Why is that success, but when NE goes 16-0, 11-5 with a backup QB, 10-6, 14-2, 13-3 and makes a pair of superbowls this doesn't count as success?
I wasn't asking you to prove anything. I'm asking, hypothetically, worst-case scenario, what else could have been filmed that would have given them a competitive edge? Walk-through practices? Team meetings for opponents using rooms at Foxboro? The real contents of Al Capone's safe? What else CAN you film, as a football team, that will give you an advantage? The league said the Patriots filmed signals. The Patriots said, "Yes, we filmed signals." What else is there to record on video? Oh and my self-worth? Just fine, thank you. I'm old enough to know better than to tether my everyday well-being to something that I have absolutely no control over. How's yours though? ;-)
