Florio: Source Says that Wells Report takings so long because investigation turned to the NFL

[Jim Colclough fan]

if you guys think the wells report will be favorable to NE, despite no evidence that they did anything, I have a bridge in brooklyn to sell to you - PM me.

Sorry - don't see it your way. Like it or not Wells will present it as he sees it. Convinced Kraft asked for this investigation and convinced Kraft (Jonathan most likely) will fight any adverse findings (if any) tooth and nail.

Pats got railroaded by the main-stream media. Wells will factually and substantially illustrate this.

 

[Bobsyouruncle]

You do realize that it's the owners who are paying him, right? Roger Goodell doesn't pay for anything.

Sure, in the same way it's Kraft paying the players and not BB. The owners delegate this investigation to the league office, and Goodell runs the league office.

 

[Bobsyouruncle]

Wells didn't do the Rice investigation. He did the Dolphins bullying investigation. And he did a pretty fair and thorough job too.

Ahh yes, my mistake. The one where locker room banter became a national scandal.

 

[QuantumMechanic]

I have faith that Wells will at least explain the heart of the issue, that pressure drops with temperature.

To deny that would be like arguing for a flat Earth.

No Columbia scientist will sign off on that.

No high school science teacher would sign off on that.

Why do you think any Columbia scientist needs to "sign off" on anything? Wells hires someone there to repeat the BB experiment and they do so and give Wells the results. He has no obligation to do anything with the results aside from not lying about them. They don't have to be in the report at all if Wells chooses not to put them in. Or he could simply say "We engaged a consultant from Columbia University to investigate the weather effects and the consultant concluded that under the conditions present at the AFC Championship Game it could be possible for the pressures in the balls to drop to the measured levels without human intervention."

I think that if anyone expects this report is going to say stuff like "The locker room temp was X degrees. The field temp was Y degrees. The physics of temperature and pressure state that air at 12.5 PSI at X degrees that cools to Y degrees will drop in pressure by 1.whatever PSI..." they are, respectfully, deluding themselves.

 

[Ivan]

I fully expect the report to come out and and to look like it was investigated by a kindergartner.

Wells has only one priority, to do what he is asked by the people paying him. If he craps on his employer the next will be less likely to hire him.

Then you don't know much about Ted Wells, he's a well known high powered attorney who isn't going to trash his name for the sake of an NFL Investigation.

And to your second point You said he was doing what those paying him want, and that's not Goodell, it doesn't cost him a penny.

 

[SHOWTIME15]

Then you don't know much about Ted Wells, he's a well known high powered attorney who isn't going to trash his name for the sake of an NFL Investigation.

And to your second point You said he was doing what those paying him want, and that's not Goodell, it doesn't cost him a penny.

ted wells will issue the report, but roger jet-dell will issue the punishment. i suspect the NFL (not wells) to say "we couldn't find any evidence of the pats doing anything from attorney Wells' investigation, but the footballs were deflated so they get a fine."

 

[5thRing-Hunt]

ted wells will issue the report, but roger jet-dell will issue the punishment. i suspect the NFL (not wells) to say "we couldn't find any evidence of the pats doing anything from attorney Wells' investigation, but the footballs were deflated so they get a fine."

I think that will happen too but they shouldn't fine the pats at all because even if it's a small fine public perception would be that the pats cheated. I hope if they don't find any evidence of wrongdoing then there is no fine. If for no other reason than so fans don't have to defend and explain this nonsense to every misinformed person forever.

 

[Ivan]

ted wells will issue the report, but roger jet-dell will issue the punishment. i suspect the NFL (not wells) to say "we couldn't find any evidence of the pats doing anything from attorney Wells' investigation, but the footballs were deflated so they get a fine."

The footballs were approved by the ref and there is no evidence the Patriots altered them after that, no way they are sanctioned without evidence of tampering, especially if they have investigated the Patriots going back to Rohan Davey and nothing in their history shows any effort at any time to alter game balls. You guys can be as paranoid as you want but no evidence no sanction.

 

[Bobsyouruncle]

Then you don't know much about Ted Wells, he's a well known high powered attorney who isn't going to trash his name for the sake of an NFL Investigation.

And to your second point You said he was doing what those paying him want, and that's not Goodell, it doesn't cost him a penny.

What do you think would trash his name more? If he blames the Pats 31 teams cheer his name, and he loses respect in NE. If he exonerates the Pats 31 teams lose respect for him and think he covered up the investigation, and only NE fans trust him.

No, I don't know Wells, and I doubt you do either. But I know any competent investigator could have wrapped this up in a few weeks so I'm hardly impressed, or optimistic. The chain of custody covers a two hour period with only a handful of people involved. This is not the crime of the century with no suspects. It's not a plane crash in need of recovering forensic data. Actually a plane did crash into the Alps, and the cause was solved in a fraction of the time it has taken Wells to track down what happened to a few footballs over a two hour period. Even if he somehow figures out that balls deflate in cold weather, the fact it took him 3 months already proves he's incompetent.

How far does your origin of money go back? It's not Goodell's money, the owners gave it to him to use, it's not the owners money, the fans gave it to them, it's not the fans money... Even if I were to concede to this point it hardly matters whether Wells is being paid by Goodell and the league office or the owners, unless you think the owners have a vested interest in running the NFL brand through the mud.

 

[Ivan]

First of all you brought the point up, I simply clarified it. Second If you don't understand where Wells stands as a lawyer then you really have no business telling anyone what the report will look like. Wells is in the highest tier of lawyers in this country and he not going to destroy his reputation to try and frame the Patriots for the NFL. And while I don't like how this has dragged on I have no idea what they charged him to do, but from Gödel's comments it is clear it went way beyond the AFCCG. I will wait until the report is issued to take a position on how well it was done, claiming it will be garbage before it is issued is idiotic. If the league office were conducting the investigation I would be concerned but I'm really not concerned about Wells investigating it because I believe he will produce an honest report, and Goodell won't be able to claim guilt and sanction the Patriots unless the report supports that.

 

[robbomango]

You know Goodell wanted to say to Rose "Look buddy, we're gonna find something I don't care if we have to go back 4 decades". He probably got the report 8 times already and handed it back 8 times "Keep digging Ted".

 

[Ivan]

You know Goodell wanted to say to Rose "Look buddy, we're gonna find something I don't care if we have to go back 4 decades". He probably got the report 8 times already and handed it back 8 times "Keep digging Ted".

I actually think the retroactive investigation works in the Patriots favor because it will demonstrate that not only did the Patriots not tamper with game balls on the AFCCG but that after extensive investigation they found absolutely no evidence that they have ever conspired to alter game balls in any way. Belichick laid down the gauntlet when he said that the Patriots follow league protocol regarding game balls to the t and I believe he said that with absolute confidence that it was true, and the internal investigation they did verified that. I believe the Patriots are coming from a position of strength on this and that the investigation will show not only that the Patriots have never screwed with game balls but that the weather is the clearest explanation for the changes in game balls during the game. I am completely confident that the Patriots will be exonerated completely by the report and will be fascinated to see how the league office deals with it.

 

[supafly]

First of all you brought the point up, I simply clarified it. Second If you don't understand where Wells stands as a lawyer then you really have no business telling anyone what the report will look like. Wells is in the highest tier of lawyers in this country and he not going to destroy his reputation to try and frame the Patriots for the NFL. And while I don't like how this has dragged on I have no idea what they charged him to do, but from Gödel's comments it is clear it went way beyond the AFCCG. I will wait until the report is issued to take a position on how well it was done, claiming it will be garbage before it is issued is idiotic. If the league office were conducting the investigation I would be concerned but I'm really not concerned about Wells investigating it because I believe he will produce an honest report, and Goodell won't be able to claim guilt and sanction the Patriots unless the report supports that.

Not only is Pash the co-investigator, but he's actually the first guy named by the NFL in their official statement. It's a dual effort. This fact alone warrants major concern. It's certainly not "just" Ted Wells here.

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap30...-of-balls-in-afc-title-game-led-by-pash-wells

 

[supafly]

Not only is Pash the co-investigator, but he's actually the first guy named by the NFL in their official statement. It's a dual effort. This fact alone warrants major concern. It's certainly not "just" Ted Wells here.

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap30...-of-balls-in-afc-title-game-led-by-pash-wells

Just re-visiting that original statement is enough to bring back a lot of concerns. Damn. I actually wish that I hadn't read that again.

 

[Ivan]

Not only is Pash the co-investigator, but he's actually the first guy named by the NFL in their official statement. It's a dual effort. This fact alone warrants major concern. It's certainly not "just" Ted Wells here.

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap30...-of-balls-in-afc-title-game-led-by-pash-wells

I agree that having Pash involved causes concern but I think it actually works in the Patriots favor. If they are knocking on every door and coming up empty over and over, and I believe that they are, then they are just chasing ghosts, and I think even a biased investigator like Pash would have to conclude there isn't anything there.

Belichick used to push the envelope because he came up in a series of eras where that's how you played it, through gamesmanship, no harm no foul. I think the league and society have changed in ways where the most innocuous things are judged both hardly and sanctimoniously and what was once gamesmanship is now cheating. Spygate clarified that for Belichick and IMO he had made sure since then that the Patriots follow protocols to the letter, he is too smart to get screwed again on a technicality, and in this case they never even gave them that much. When I look at the way the Patriots responded to this I come back to the same thing every time, they aren't worried because they know they didn't do anything, haven't done anything, and the investigation will demonstrate that for them. I get where the cynics are coming from and I understand why they feel the way they do, i just believe the truth will come out and the Patriots will look good when it does. We'll see?

 

[supafly]

I agree that having Pash involved causes concern but I think it actually works in the Patriots favor. If they are knocking on every door and coming up empty over and over, and I believe that they are chasing ghosts. Belichick used to push the envelope because he came up in a series of eras where that's how you player it, through gamesmanship, no harm no foul. I think the league and society have changed in ways where the most innocuous things are judged both hardly and sanctimoniously and what was once gamesmanship is now cheating. Spygate clarified that for Belichick and IMO he had made sure since then that the Patriots follow protocols to the letter, he is to smart to get screwed again on a technicality, and in this case they never even gave them that much. When I look at the way the Patriots responded to this I come back to the same thing every time, they aren't worried because they know they didn't do anything, haven't done anything, and the investigation will demonstrate that for them. I get where the cynics are coming from and I understand why they feel the way they do, i just believe the truth will come out and the Patriots will look good when it does. We'll see?

I really hope you're right, Ivan. I just have no faith whatsoever in the thought of getting a fair shake anymore, especially after the tampering ruling.

 

[Ivan]

I really hope you're right, Ivan. I just have no faith whatsoever in the thought of getting a fair shake anymore, especially after the tampering ruling.

I agree the league office is corrupt and biased both for the Jets and against the Patriots I just believe they won't be able to manufacture wrongdoing when an extensive investigation has absolutely no proof of it. When they nailed the Patriots to the cross for cameragate they were using evidence that they were doing it and were able to strip that of all context and act as though it were the crime of the century when in truth it was commonplace. In this instance they may want to find evidence of wrongdoing but the further they go without finding anything to support it only makes the Patriots look cleaner and cleaner.

 

[PatsFanInVa]

All this talk about "they must be done already" etc. could be valid, but it's just speculation.

Yes, they might be done. They could be getting told "no spin it this way, spin it that way."

The other explanation is that they're looking at it systemically. "pointing back at the league" is one way to put it. But it is fully possible that Wells will identify both a proximate cause that is damning to the Pats, and features of the league's officiating, management, etc., that are damaging to the league -- even if Wells is doing a good job.

My faith in this outcome - i.e., that they could be looking at the issues systemically, and that's what causes the lag - is damaged by the league's behavior in the interim (from day 1), where they allow employees to comment on the case... and never respond to a leak saying "Media reports of X did not come from league sources." Either they said them, or else they're not correcting misinformation -- and they run their own network (and have an interest in others succeeding) by keeping speculation alive.

I saw above that somebody said the Wells report isn't paid by Goodell. If by this we mean that Wells wasn't hired by the NFL, who is paying him? Serious question. Like other reporting on this, I have taken media reports at face value.... but I don't remember Wells being appointed by Congress or something, or anything about him doing it pro bono.

 

[Joker]

Paralysis by overanalysis...everybody is looking behind every hedge and under every rock for clues to the crime. The culprit is OBVIOUS, as in 99% of all crimes. Kensil is the cause of all this drama and has been since 2006. People just refuse to SEE the obvious.

 

[PatsFanInVa]

PS... if this hasn't been posted yet, I saw it on (ahem) another site (also linked back to this link on Scribd.) Pretty funny... a Wells Report parody.

http://www.scribd.com/doc/260830094/Wells-Report-Sort-of-1

A little taste...

Based upon allegations made by the Indianapolis Colts regarding the inflation of footballs used in the January 18, 2015 AFC championship game, you shall undertake an investigation to determine a) is there evidence that the New England Patriots used under-inflated footballs in the game, and if not, are there numerous rumors or innuendo which could serve as the basis for such a conclusion? b) in the absence of conclusive evidence, does the final score suggest that Bill Belichick and/or Tom Brady have mastered some form of witchcraft or otherworldly powers, which must be curbed by adoption of new NFL rules? c) regardless of the actual conduct uncovered during this investigation, and given the
rest of the League’s evident antipathy for the
Patriots, would the NFL be well served by imposing discipline against the Patriots, thereby serving to justify this investigation?