May 15 2008
SpyGate…continues
Like I said, SpyGate isn’t over. Yet most of the media is kissing up to the NFL like lap dogs. Most writers are pronouncing the case over. The Boston Herald begged the Patriots for forgiveness for running a story insinuating that there was a tape of the Rams walkthrough.
The NFL put on a show on Tuesday, a “look we have nothing to hide” show. Commissioner Roger Goodell did as little questioning as possible. If you really want to know what Matt Walsh knew and was willing to say, read the report from Senator Arlen Specter.
Here’s is an interesting quote from his comments:
(1) The filming enabled the Patriots coaching staff to anticipate the defensive plays called by the opposing team. According to Walsh, he first filmed an opponents’ signals during the August 20, 2000 pre-season game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. After Walsh filmed a game, he would provide the tape for Ernie Adams, a coaching assistant for the Patriots, who would match the signals with the plays.
Walsh was told by a former offensive player that a few days before the September 11, 2000 regular season game against Tampa Bay, he (the offensive player) was called into a meeting with Adams, Bill Belichick and Charlie Weis, then the offensive coordinator for the Patriots, during which it was explained how the Patriots would make use of the tapes. The offensive player would memorize the signals and then watch for Tampa Bay’s defensive calls during the game. He would then pass the plays along to Weis, who would give instructions to the quarterback on the field. This process enabled the Patriots to go to a “no-huddle” offensive, which would lock in the defense the opposing team had called from the sideline, preventing the defense from making any adjustments. When Walsh asked whether the tape he had filmed was helpful, the offensive player said it had enabled the team to anticipate 75 percent of the plays being called by the opposing team.
Wait, take a minute and re-read that. Basically Walsh recorded the tapes, which were then evaluated by the coaching staff. A player memorized the signals, watched for the calls and passed the plays on to Weis, who passed the information along to the QB on the field. The Patriots would then go no-huddle and prevent the defense from making changes.
Whoa Mr. Goodell, how did you not gleam this piece of information from Walsh? And hearing this how do you not view this as significant?
The interview of Walsh by Specter also detailed how the Patriots knew the taping was contrary to NFL rules, or at least the spirit of the game in the sense that there was absolute instructions on how to respond if he was confronted, and he was told during the 2002 AFC Championship game to hide who he worked for.
Does this sound like misinterpretation of the rules as Bill Belichek has said?
Remember this, Matt Walsh was just the flunky trying to work his way up the ranks. He was only given the exact information he needed to know, just in case they were caught. Think about this, was Walsh the only one recording? Just because he didn’t know of anyone else doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. Consider this, NFL teams routinely (and legally mind you) have photographs of plays and formations sent from the coaches box to the sideline within minutes. We can see this clearly during live game action.
Walsh may have been assigned to do this specific duty and do it throughout the game, we don’t know if another assistant unknown to Walsh was assigned to record and breakdown the tape, prior to the end of halftime and coordinate immediately with the coaching staff. Superbowl halftimes are twice the length of the standard halftime.
The NFL is really between a rock and a hard place on this one. I can understand the desire to move on, however, all the questions haven’t been answered. The NFL is making the same mistakes MLB made when evidence and conjecture started in regards to steroids. MLB denied there was a big problem, and didn’t seek answers. The NFL is denying that the actions of the Patriots weren’t a significant, are trying to quickly sweep this under the rug without getting any real answers. MLB ended up having to spend millions of dollars and having it’s players investigated by a former Senator who then provided a firestorm document. The NFL is heading down this path, and I believe before the end of 2008, Goodell, Walsh and Belichek (and probably others) will be testifying on Capital Hill.
