There It Is! NFL Informed Officials of New 2015 Game Ball Procedures This Weekend

[Tony2046]

You can still measure pregame, before you turn the balls over to the officials. In fact, it would be neglect not to, given the current circumstances.

I thought he was talking about measuring the game balls during the game but he meant having a non game ball on the side to test as a reference.

 

[nabwong]

Even Sepp Blatter is having a laugh.

 

[XLIX]

I can NOT bleeping wait until December when some team's balls get measured at random and it comes out 2 PSI below.

 

[Kdo5]

I can NOT bleeping wait until December when some team's balls get measured at random and it comes out 2 PSI below.

It'll be swept right under the rug as unimportant. Let's be real it only matters when its the Pats being accused.

 

[Patriot Missile]

So are the psi results going to be released for pregame,halftime and end of regulation?

Just wondering because if they are this could be a lot of egg on the NFLs face regarding the draft picks that were stolen.

Somehow I doubt they will be available for that reason alone.

 

[smurfalarm]

I really do wonder what the reason is for checking and recording the psi of the balls at halftime. Will it be done to prevent teams from messing with the footballs? Is it gathering data to perhaps exonerate the Patriots as some here have suggested? Is there another reason?

I don't want to get my hopes up (again) that the NYJFL will ever actually do the right thing, but could this be a good sign for the Patriots?

Presumably Goodell could, if he wanted to, rule in his arbitration decision that the lack of game day evidence of typical fluctuations in PSI renders his own prior decision invalid and that the matter needs to be re-decided next offseason. I'm not sure if the CBA would allow that, but it wouldn't be that dissimilar from what happened in the Vilma case where the appeal initially resulted in Goodell having to re-decide the penalty rather than throw out the case entirely. But frankly, if Goodell wanted to do this, he could have easily done it before deciding the initial punishment instead of undermining his own decision by claiming it was ill-informed because he did not collect enough evidence before making that decision.

The NFL investigators and Wells had the gauge data immediately after the AFCCG, and the ideal gas law explanation was proposed early on and would have explained almost all of the measured decline in air pressure, while other playing condition related explanations were also proposed within a couple weeks of the game. Had Wells or the NFL felt it necessary to wait a season to collect more data before making a final conclusion about the Patriots' and Brady's guilt in the matter so they could see if other game conditions might have contributed to the drop in PSI and the discrepancies between the measurements of Patriots' and Colts' balls, it would have been wholly appropriate to propose that during the Wells investigation or prior to Vincent making the decision on behalf of Goodell. They knew it was an option. They could have done it easily. But they didn't. They went ahead and made their decision anyway without any actual reference game data. They either didn't think it was important to have that data to inform their decision because they already had everything they needed to demonstrate the Patriots' and Brady's guilt, or they decided they would rather not have it for some other ulterior motive. What is different now that would have convinced Goodell to change his mind on the matter?

I think the new procedures are more of a dumb enforcement mechanism so Goodell can say, "Look, we caught the Patriots deflating balls by measuring them before the game and at halftime once, if we keep doing it we will catch any teams trying to do it again." It allows them to push this issue under the rug by claiming it will never happen again, but they're never actually going to do anything with those measurements. They probably won't even publish the numbers. We'll never know the empirical results. The NFL will not actively assist Brady and the Patriots in exonerating themselves at the expense of their own league office looking foolish.

 

[XLIX]

So are the psi results going to be released for pregame,halftime and end of regulation?

Just wondering because if they are this could be a lot of egg on the NFLs face regarding the draft picks that were stolen.

Somehow I doubt they will be available for that reason alone.

That's what I'm afraid of.

Although I can't imagine the obsessive media won't be asking the NFL for the information.

 

[flasox27]

Does anybody think that the referee will be instructed how the ideal gas law works. Maybe the League should hire a scientist for every game.

 

[smurfalarm]

That's what I'm afraid of.

Although I can't imagine the obsessive media won't be asking the NFL for the information.

They'll publicly say that that information is privileged and that they can't release it, then leak to some ESPN or NFL Network crony that all the gauge measurements were within expectations and they found no evidence of teams deflating balls in 2015-2016 so that the public and media have their appetites just barely fed without having to actually clarify potentially embarrassing details about the exact numbers. Within a couple years, we will be far enough removed from the initial ballghazi scandal that media interest in seeing actual numbers will die down completely. I would be incredibly surprised if any actually useful information comes to light.

 

[fgssand]

They haven't done the right thing as of today and they are not going to suddenly start now, or in September, December , Jan or ever. These procedures will not help the cause at all because nothing can be verified, it all will come from the same people that started the scam and bunch of lies to begin with.

They have their set up / sting going on and they have to continue "cooking the books" so as to prove their findings go against Tom Brady.

Unless a true smoking gun is found and exposed by a well respected, investigative reporter....we are screwed.

I truly believe without such a breakthrough, this one will not end well.

Shame on these NFL pigs, from Goodell to Biscoti, Irsay, Jones and the rest of Mr Krafts beloved other 31.

 

[Patsfanin Philly]

I can NOT bleeping wait until December when some team's balls get measured at random and it comes out 2 PSI below.

Call me cynical but I don't think the NFL will let it happen. If it even hints at Ideal gas Law showing balls deflate due to nature they will shut down the study and threaten Fox/ESPN/NBC/CBS with loss of TV rights if they run with it...
After all this, does anybody really think the NFL will let the truth and science win out over a good witch hunt????

 

[Patstopia]

Are they going to punish every team the way they punished the Pats when the ball are under pressure? Or are they going to test the Pats balls during a 95 degree day and nail them for over pressure? Your guess is as good as theirs!

 

[RobertWeathers]

I'm very confident in the NFL's ability to f*ck up this simple task.

There is no way the NFL will be consistent in its gameday procedures nor in its measurements.

Like others have implied, will officials have some kind of chart that says if the outside temp is X and the ball is outside for Y time the PSI will be Z?

They will never publish how they will accurately account for IGL because they can't with 100% certainty control the test scenarios. Will officials set up control groups? Will they be trained in scientific process?

This is window dressing. Plain and simple.

 

[RelocatedPatFan]

Is it foolishly optimistic of me to consider that maybe possibly maybe the league is considering taking Florio's and King's advice to measure footballs this season and delay any punishment until afterwards?

I have been burned so much these past 6 months thinking that people would act in good faith. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me 12 times, shame on me.

If they did, they'd allow the balls to warm up before taking measurements to make the Patriots look bad (and then post the results).

I mean we must protect the shield!!!

 

[flasox27]

It is obvious to every body in New England that this whole incident was a sham. Air pressure in footballs was never an issue in history of the league like camera placement never was before 2007. Lets face it no other team will ever be punished for this type of violation if it even existed. My concern is what the League will come up with next when I predict they will go after BB. We all know that if bend over Bob is still the owner, we are cooked.

 

[Rob0729]

I expect the half-time measurement to take place after an acclimation delay, just like the Colt's balls were. Can see the NFL trying to use this to make the Pats look bad again.

And they will only give the averages. So games in Miami in 90 degree weather will be in there with games in Foxboro where it is 40 degree weather.

One thing is for sure, they will not provide data that shows the balls in Foxboro during the AFCCG were deflated by air temperature.

 

[Kjmass1]

First cold game of the year I'm going to set up a periscope stream of a football with a gauge stuck in it and a temperature monitor. Too bad I don't have 1000s of followers.

Kraft should setup a monitor for a cold MNF game and keep cutting to it throughout the game. Fans would go nuts!

 

[RobertWeathers]

This could be a trial balloon for some news next week.

 

[goheels22002]

What?

"The backup balls will be used for the second half."

How does this help?

The referees check the balls. The teams play with the balls. The referee checks the balls. The "security representative" secures the balls. Then they play the second half with another set of balls.

1. Where have the backup balls been while the referees are officiating the game and while they are busy checking the first half balls?
2. Which balls do they play with in overtime?
3. What happens if a ball is underinflated? Does that team lose a 1st, a 4th, and their starting QB for four games?

 

[Ross12]

This could be a trial balloon for some news next week.

What are you thinkin'?