Posted on 02/08/2015 10:43:01 AM PST by jerod
Troy Vincent is the Executive Vice President of Football Operations for the NFL... According to news reports such as this one from ESPN he claims that Ryan Grigson, the General Manager of the Colts alerted the NFL to deflated footballs during the AFC Championship, and that it was his decision to follow through with an inspection of the balls, without informing his boss Roger Goodell.
Keep in mind, the PSI of an NFL football has NEVER been inspected at the half-time of any NFL game in history... EVER!
And here is the rub... Troy Vincent has strong ties to the Philadelphia Eagles. He played with the team as a CB from 1999 to 2003, and he maintained strong ties to the organization being named in 2007 to the Philadelphia Eagles 75th Anniversary Team, and in 2011 he personally announced the Philadelphia Eagles 2nd Round Draft Pick at the 2011 NFL Draft.
Ryan Grigson (another former NFL player) and the current GM of the Indianapolis Colts also has strong ties to the Philadelphia Eagles. He was hired as a regional scout in 2004, and got promoted to director of college scouting in 2006 and director of player personnel from 2010 until he was hired by the Colts in 2012. For context, let's remember what happened to the organization these two men were associated with and where they were initially acquainted with each other.
Just after Vincent left and Ryan Grigson was hired by the Eagles in 2004... The Patriots attained their 3rd Super Bowl win against that team which had gone to the NFC Championship 4 consecutive years, winning the NFC title only once and then losing to Tom Brady, Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots.
The fact that these two former NFL football players were both associated with the Philadelphia Eagles organization in some form, and that they just happened to be the two key individuals who were responsible for the term 'deflate-gate' now being a common phrase in our lexicon is not necessarily nefarious in itself... But it is rather curious none the less.
Add to that this tidbit... Vincent was the President of the NFL players association from 2004 until 2008. He was then replaced by Kevin Mawae. In 2009 the Players Association announced they were investigating whether during his tenure as president Vincent disclosed confidential personal and financial information about a number of player agents. Vincent was alleged to have emailed this information to his longtime business partner for the benefit of a financial services firm co-owned by the two men. Apparently , AP uncovered no evidence to support the contention... But the allegations were obviously there... Making Troy Vincent somewhat unfavourable to the NFLPA.
Just saying.
I’m not sure what this has to do with anything. 2 psi of ball pressure had nothing to do with the Colts getting crushed...
It has everything to do with cheating. Plus, they squeaked by the Ravens a week earlier. A slim advantage would make all the difference.
A slim advantage (if there is an advantage) makes a difference in the Colts game? You’re joking, right?
I am neither a Pats fan nor an enemy. This whole thing smells like a setup, but the Philadelphia connection seems weak.
Only one of the balls recorded under 2 PSI, the one handled by Grigson and handed to Troy Vincent... Clue in. The Patriots were set up by a couple of haters in the ranks of the Colts organization and the NFL head offices... Vincent went lone ranger on Goodell by checking the balls at halftime because his buddy claimed they had an under inflated ball... There is no precedent for checking the PSI of footballs after the game has started... NONE. Grigson is trying to save his butt, but you will probably be hearing about his resignation before this whole thing comes out, and probably Vincent’s as well. Why they would think they could do this and get away with it is the amazing part.
“I’m not sure what this has to do with anything. 2 psi of ball pressure had nothing to do with the Colts getting crushed...”
I don’t know of anyone who is saying that it does. Red herring. Who won a particular game is irrelevant. Did they break a rule or not? Seems like a strange rule to me but rules seem to matter when it comes to games.
If they broke a rule then what is the punishment? If they didn’t break a rule then there is nothing to discuss. Some people seem to like selective enforcement of rules when it comes to their team
Cheating - you’re delusional. Put the bong down.
How is one to know that those who were to measure the balls at halftime didn’t deflate them?
Well the ideal gas law (physics going back to the 18th century) required some loss in psi. The balls were inflated to 12.5 psi and were approved by the refs pre game (through they didn’t keep a written record). According to the latest ‘leaks’ from the league office (per Adan Schefter) most of the Patriot balls were 1 psi or less below the 12.5 mark. This required no cheating merely that the balls be exposed to the game time elements.
There was 1 ball that was 2 psi under the 12.5 mark the one in the Colts possession after the interception. perhaps it was deflated by a team.... the Colts.
My guess is after being destroyed and embarrassed 28-0 in the second half they were going to let the matter drop but then their drug addict owner dropped a dime to his fav indy reporter, Bob Kravitz and things spun out of control.
My suggestion is that the Colts be docked a first round draft pick and that they and the Legue FO apologize to the Patriots.
The people in the league office who leaked stuff prior to the SB to smear and distract the Patriots should be fired.
Specifically Jim Kensil who was supervising the game for the NFL FO and was coincidentally with the Jets when Belicheck resigned.
Kill the messenger much? The “Cheatriots” won the final game. It’s in the record books. Whether or not theirs is a legacy of cheating, the season is over. Time to move on. This from a die hard Seahawks fan. Funny though, that the most noise regarding their cheating comes from other regional rivals. We here in the Pacific Northwest are ready to move on. Toughest loss in franchise history, but we know or present, and our future is solidly in place.
My guess is the Patriots will get their apology from the NFL, although the NFL will point out that the NFL was not headlining rumors like sportswriters and bloggers were.
If people like you were honest (which every single tool who pushes the “it’s about honesty” or “it’s about the integrity of the game” meme is clearly NOT) you would readily admit it isn’t what was done, but WHO did it.
Jerry Rice is the poster child of your movement. He epitomizes it.
Based on the latest info, only one ball was substantially deflated while the other had much lesser degrees of deflation. Most were barely under the minimum. Logic suggests that if Brady or Belichek saw some advantage in deflated footballs all 12 would have the same PSI. Having all the footballs deflated differently would be a hindrance rather than help.
Logic and honesty are not the currency in use here.
Spygate, spygate, spygate. New England are cheats. What do the Eagles have to do with it other than being objects of the cheating?
There...fixed that with a more honest statement.
Case in point.
“There was 1 ball that was 2 psi under the 12.5 mark the one in the Colts possession after the interception. perhaps it was deflated by a team .... the Colts.”
Or perhaps it was deflated by the Patriots’ employee who made an unscheduled stop with the 12 footballs in a room by himself before the game. And the idea that the weather took as much air out of the ball as was missing has been debunked.
“My suggestion is that the Colts be docked a first round draft pick and that they and the League FO apologize to the Patriots.”
Why should the Colts be punished for discovering the cheating? My suggestion is that Belichick and Brady be suspended the first four games of next season and the Patriots lose draft picks for yet another case of them attempting to gain an unfair advantage over an opponent.
So many NFL games come down to a play or two. How many games are decided by a last play field goal? If a flatter football allows a player to haul in a football that would otherwise go bouncing off his fingers, couldn’t this affect the game? And who knows how many dozen passes in how many games the Patriots used flatter footballs in? Did flatter footballs prevent the Ravens game from being out of reach?
So many catches are barely missed by the defense. Did SpyGate in which the Patriots were illegally filming the defensive walk-throughout of other teams give them an unfair advantage? The NFL thought so.
“I don’t believe I’m a cheater. ... I don’t believe so.” - Tom Brady
Hardly an angry, emphatic “No!” Does Brady believe he’s not a cheater because he believes other teams are also doctoring the footballs or gaining unfair advantages in other ways?
Like the Packers when they over inflate the balls... Or like Jerry Rice when he used stickum... So.... Why single out the Patriots? Why not check every ball in every game at every half time???
This whole investigation was ridiculous from the start... So I guess it’s up to Troy Vincent the VP of football operations with the NFL and Ryan Grigson the GM of the Colts, both former players with associations to teams that have grudges and beefs with the Patriots, to explain why the investigation began in the first place.
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