Quote:
Originally Posted by nolemmings
What is the point of a log?-- it was a pass/fail test. They noted that 11 balls failed--why note it at all if they did not believe it important? What should they have done--halted the contest, immediately toss a player or coach from the game, declare a forfeit? You can blame it on the media all you want-- seems a lot of ex-players and coaches have commented that they think it is worthy of discussion, criticism, investigation, etc. Then again, they could all be haters.
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What's the point of a log?? Do you think if the NFL was serious to enforce this rule, they would not take note of how under inflated the balls were? By not doing so, they've left open all the possibilities these balls were under inflated due to atmospheric conditions. Had they logged and recorded that the 11 balls were at say 7-8 psi, they'd have a much better case to make against the Pats. As is, they didn't care to make a case. Why should we care about a league rule if the league didn't care?? (I go back to the example of the MLB base coach's box)
Also, do you truly trust all these ex players and coaches to be objective? (and please feel free to provide specific names/examples). I know one of my favorite all time players Jerry Rice said this controversy taints the Pats legacy, and that if they win the SB they deserve an asterisk, blah, blah. I love the Niners, and loved watching him play, but I think his comments were moronic. You can trust his opinions if you want, but this is coming from a guy who played on a team who's O-line coach Bob McKittrick taught players how to leg whip, make it look accidental, and in doing so may have often times severely injured guys while avoiding a flag... from a team who's D-line lathered its jerseys in vasoline so that O-linemen couldn't grasp their shoulder pads while trying to block...from one of the first teams to sow up their jersey sleeves so tacklers had nothing to grab at... and from a team that very possibly bypassed the salary cap and paid players under the table during its 1994 SB run. Jerry Rice himself fumbled 2-3 plays ahead of Terrell Owens' "The Catch II" but so effectively sold that he had not, the ref simply gave the ball back to SF. This just scratches the surface of questionable things done to gain an advantage, and this is in no way unique to the Niners (or Pats). In most cases people either ignore this stuff or call it gamesmanship.
I find it hard to believe guys like Rice are mostly speaking out based upon their sense integrity for the game. IMO, Jerry Rice said what he did because he doesn't want the Pats to challenge the Niiners' legacy, and smelled blood in the water. I've heard other Niners interviewed going back to around 2005 talking about not wanting Brady to ever match Montana's 4 SB rings, etc. I've also watched retired '72 Dolphins pop champagne every year when the last undefeated team loses. These guys can be just as petty and jealous as the next guy. I don't hold it against them, but it makes me take a lot of what they say with a grain of salt.
Back to the point of game ball air pressure, Steve Young, one of the more intellectual QBs (QB/JD) to ever play the game admitted on radio he never even knew there was a rule for air pressure. Again, it's been a non factor, non issue. I think just about every team in the league will do just about anything within its control (not necessarily within the rules) to create an advantage. I'm not saying this is always the right thing to do, just that it doesn't make the Pats an exception, and it doesn't justify their being singled out so far above and beyond other teams (no one's talking about Brad Johnson's bribing someone to work in SB game balls). If the NFL has strong evidence the Pats cheated, great, punish them and move on. However, even if guilty, IMO this violation is way down the list of violations that occur on a regular basis.