We need to do something here.....NOW!!

[fgssand]

Something needs to be done here - this is so far out of control it is insane.


I talk to people from all over the country as part of my work - the prevailing opinion is we cheated, that is why we are so good, that is why we won all those Superbowls. That is what they think and believe.

What can be done to stop this insanity - I am really pissed at the media & the NFL coaches, players & front office for letting this get so far out of hand. Where is the New England Patriot organization right now - are they unable to do anything?

What can we do??

The truth is, yes, we were caught using a video camera, fine, rule violation - we were not paying off officials, paying off other teams players, paying off the clock operator, point shaving or any such other REAL VIOLATIONS. We did not do anything that any other teams does.

SOMETHING NEEDS TO BE DONE - we need to send a message of outrage and support and it needs to be heard.

Any Ideas??

 

[skri65]

Honestly? I think favorable treatment by Goodell was help the cause, as well as the common sense from the media outlets. If media pundits started recognizing how blown out this is, it would help out a lot. Of course, that won't happen.

HOnestly, I don't know. It really is ridiculous.

 

[T-ShirtDynasty]

Learn to live with it. We're the new Raiduhs. We're the bad guys. We're the Villian. They wear the white hat, we wear the black hat. Right or wrong, perception is reality.

Short of the commish coming out and saying, "Look, the tape had footage of the crowd, some plays on the field, and cheerleaders, but we're punishing them anyway just for violating the camera placement rule..." It's gonna stick with us from a Fan perspective.

Every football buddy of yours, that roots for another team, for the rest of your life will throw this in your face.

 

[PonyExpress]

This is beyond our control. It is in the hands of the commissioner. Sad to say, I have little faith in his wisdom. If he punishes the Pats in any substantial way, he lends credence to this absurd rumor mongering. If he lets them off, he is accused by the mob of bias in favor of Kraft, his gray eminence. A Wise man would punish the true culprit in this fiasco, an irresponsible Jet organization who thought they would play a practical joke on their competitor, and send love notes to the media about it. Now their practical joke has blown up in their own face, and is tarnishing the foundation of the league. When BB told Mangini he was too immature to be a Head Coach yet, he was telling him the truth, for his own good. Mangini has made the biggest mistake of his life, and tarnished the reputation of countless innocent people- the same people who made him what he is today.

 

[dtbrks]

There might be nothing that we can do.
Outside of new england fans, most feel we cheated to win. It will be hard to convince them otherwise about past performances.
The pats need to let their play on the field speak, win games, superbowls and shut everyone up. IMHO.

 

[Bobs My Uncle]

It's far too late now but the league should have nipped this in the bud by releasing an official statement Monday night (after talking with BB and after reviewing film) something to the effect "that a section of the policy on this matter is being challenged by the Patriots organization for validity and accuracy and that until such time as this is reviewed and resolved, we consider the Patriots to not have broken any policy rules meankng it would be presumptuos for anyone to assume that they have cheated"

But they didn't and we now have this mess.

Chalk it up to an inexperienced and in over his head Commish who doesn't understand the most basic of basic damage control..

 

[MiChargers]

Something needs to be done here - this is so far out of control it is insane.


I talk to people from all over the country as part of my work - the prevailing opinion is we cheated, that is why we are so good, that is why we won all those Superbowls. That is what they think and believe.

What can be done to stop this insanity - I am really pissed at the media & the NFL coaches, players & front office for letting this get so far out of hand. Where is the New England Patriot organization right now - are they unabel to do anything?

What can we do??

The truth is, yes, we were caught using a video camera, fine, rule violation - we were not paying off officials, paying off other teams payers, paying off officials, point shaving or any such other REAL VIOLATIONS. We did not do anything that any other teams doesn't do.

SOMETHING NEEDS TO BE DONE - we need to send a message of outrage and support and it needs to be heard.

Any Ideas??

Not sure if you can do anything. It's called "perception." As a Chargers fans, I certainly do NOT believe you won championships because of cheating. Good teams win. However, the perception will probably always be there and you guys will have to deal with other fans that will always use this against you. Sort of like one player using a substance (ie. Merriman) was somehow responsible for our team having such a good record last year. I believe that's been said more than a few times. We all know it's BS, but other fans will believe what they want. You guys won SB's and I'm not going to try to take that away from you, but the fact is, you guys will probably be hearing this for many years. Some might call it karma....and now it's coming back to get you.

 

[fgssand]

Learn to live with it. We're the new Raiduhs. We're the bad guys. We're the Villian. They wear the white hat, we wear the black hat. Right or wrong, perception is reality.

Short of the commish coming out and saying, "Look, the tape had footage of the crowd, some plays on the field, and cheerleaders, but we're punishing them anyway just for violating the camera placement rule..." It's gonna stick with us from a Fan perspective.

Every football buddy of yours, that roots for another team, for the rest of your life will throw this in your face.

NO WAY T Shirt....I do not think we take this lying down.

We cannot give up and let them all get away with discrediting this whole dynasty.

Come on man, come on people - think hard - we need to act.

Remember all the letters to Bdweiser when they tried to steal our team??

We need to take action....NOW.

 

[Pats726]

Learn to live with it. We're the new Raiduhs. We're the bad guys. We're the Villian. They wear the white hat, we wear the black hat. Right or wrong, perception is reality.

Short of the commish coming out and saying, "Look, the tape had footage of the crowd, some plays on the field, and cheerleaders, but we're punishing them anyway just for violating the camera placement rule..." It's gonna stick with us from a Fan perspective.

Every football buddy of yours, that roots for another team, for the rest of your life will throw this in your face.

It won't be thrown in my face..because it makes NO sense..

 

[Vern]

Brady said it best after the Pittsburgh game:

"They HATE US HERE! YEAH!"

 

[mdhprime]

Something needs to be done here - this is so far out of control it is insane.


I talk to people from all over the country as part of my work - the prevailing opinion is we cheated, that is why we are so good, that is why we won all those Superbowls. That is what they think and believe.

What can be done to stop this insanity - I am really pissed at the media & the NFL coaches, players & front office for letting this get so far out of hand. Where is the New England Patriot organization right now - are they unable to do anything?

What can we do??

The truth is, yes, we were caught using a video camera, fine, rule violation - we were not paying off officials, paying off other teams players, paying off the clock operator, point shaving or any such other REAL VIOLATIONS. We did not do anything that any other teams does.

SOMETHING NEEDS TO BE DONE - we need to send a message of outrage and support and it needs to be heard.

Any Ideas??

In reality, the media attention, the overblown coverage, all the players and coaches from other teams expressing their outrage only really amounts to a couple of things: the Patriots have come of age. They've become the Yankees of the NFL salary cap era. Every other team's players, coaches, and executives are jealous of them, hate them and are ready to pounce on them for anything. In an era when no team is supposed to have supremacy, the Patriots do. They are the best run organization with the best coaching staff and their success has been a slap in the face to every other team trying to compete. This is not, and has never been about cheating. Every team in the NFL cheats in its own way. This is about seeing an opening and taking it for all it's worth and trying in some way to hurt the team. It won't work. The Patriots will continue to be successful, continue to win games, make the playoffs and everyone else will go back to wondering how to beat them. Polian and other members of the (lack of) competiton committee will rage and attempt to legislate their way to success. They will have their small victories but in the end, as long as the core of the organization remains intact, the team will continue to have success. I for one do not worry about what any other team's fans, players or coaches have to say. Looking forward to the SD game and rest of the season. I am sure it will be a fun one.

 

[UglyPatriots]

in order to save their image the patriots need to fire BB and distance themselves from the perception of cheating. agreed?

 

[fgssand]

Look - the obvious answer is to go out and win another three Superbowls, because we will be operating under a microscope going forward.

However, can't we mount some type of protest and letter writing campaign here?

Would the "writers" in this group draft a cool letter we can all sign - Pony X, Andy J, Patsfanken, PatsfaninVA, MG, and all of those that are so good with prose - GET BUSY!!

Where are the activists??

Come on Patriot fans - we need to do something, WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE.

 

[fgssand]

in order to save their image the patriots need to fire BB and distance themselves from the perception of cheating. agreed?

Why?? For getting caught doin what every other team does?? TROLL

 

[Patters]

This is all part of the game of football. While the most important part is played on the field, all teams have looked to take advantage of off-field mistakes. The good news is that the Pats are the most insular of teams. The players, coaches, and owners exist in their own little world and do a great job at keeping this kind of garbage at bay.

The fact is that the advantage gained by taping signals as opposed to observing them and reporting back is negligible at best, especially considering that most teams are wise to these kinds of dangers and effectively conceal or disguise their signals.

The Jets made a clever move, the Pats have to deal with it, and we have to live with it. The fact is, BB will stop using video, the Pats will continue winning, and our opponents will have lose another excuse.

 

[Hoodie]

I don't believe the Patriots "cheated". I believe they violated the rules. It's different. That doesn't mean they don't deserve some punishment. In a few weeks or months, when the fire has died down, we'll get some level-headed analysis and this will be the conclusion other will draw too.

 

[Grizzafted]

I'll tell you what "we" have to do. Relax.

And here's what "the team" has to do:

Win the Super Bowl.

Nothing less.

Win the Super Bowl.

If they win the Super Bowl this year, it makes a huge statement. Nothing less will work, unless they have a 15 win season.

The team needs to stay focused and prove itself right now.

I've never rooted harder for a team in a given season in my life. It's unhealthy.

 

[everlong]

Two things will help.

1. Crush everybody in our path.
2. Somebody else gets caught on this or some other infraction such as wire tapping the opposing teams locker room, etc.

Dec 16th Pats 73 - Jets 0

 

[Johnny Coli]

Something needs to be done here - this is so far out of control it is insane.


I talk to people from all over the country as part of my work - the prevailing opinion is we cheated, that is why we are so good, that is why we won all those Superbowls. That is what they think and believe.

What can be done to stop this insanity - I am really pissed at the media & the NFL coaches, players & front office for letting this get so far out of hand. Where is the New England Patriot organization right now - are they unable to do anything?

What can we do??

The truth is, yes, we were caught using a video camera, fine, rule violation - we were not paying off officials, paying off other teams players, paying off the clock operator, point shaving or any such other REAL VIOLATIONS. We did not do anything that any other teams does.

SOMETHING NEEDS TO BE DONE - we need to send a message of outrage and support and it needs to be heard.

Any Ideas??

Seems like you are all pissed off at everyone else, when you should be directing your ire at the guy who put your team into this position--the guy who you yourself admit blatantly broke a league-mandated rule.

In every other NFL city in America what he did is called cheating. Plain and simple. And rightly so. The league said "don't do it," and in his arrogance or hubris he went and purposely broke the rule. The league put the rule in place because the league determined that videotaping an opposing team's sideline would in some way lend a competitive edge. How negligible you think that extra edge is isn't the point, and he wouldn't have so blatantly broke the rule had he not thought that advantage was worth the risk of getting exposed. You want to trot out the juvenile "everybody does it" excuse, fine, but it still doesn't take away from the fact that what he did was against the rules and he's the one that got caught.

So continue to point the finger at all the other fans, coaches, players, etc. of every other NFL team. But know this...one man is responsible for how your team is viewed this week, and will be viewed from here on out and how this current run will be rated historically. One man is responsible for all the grief you are getting from your friends who root for other franchises. And one man is responsible for whatever the punishment will turn out to be (although we all know it will be ridiculously benign compared to the crime of attempting to influence the outcome of a game in a league-deemed illegal manner). Your anger, at least to this fan of an opposing team, seems more than a bit misplaced.


Let's Go Buffalo!

 

[T-ShirtDynasty]

NO WAY T Shirt....I do not think we take this lying down.

We cannot give up and let them all get away with discrediting this whole dynasty.

Makes me sick, but you can't fight the world. Face it, football fans around the country have been looking for a good reason to hate the Patriots. This is it. Hating a team because they're good sounds and feels shallow... here's the reason they can all point to now.

I just don't think WE can do anything but enjoy the winning, and the knowledge that we have the best damn coach in football on our sidelines.

Actually changing public perception is a VERY hard thing to do, especially when the public in question doesn't much want their perception changed.

It won't be thrown in my face..because it makes NO sense..

That won't stop it! I've heard from a dozen clients around the country, all calling to ride me about this. I expected it from my Jests fans clients, I didn't expect it from the Cardinals, Saints and Raiduh fans.

I argued with the first five that called. Then I just gave up and resorted to "yeah, yeah, yeah... and you'll be whining about it while they win another three rings" and then move along.

Will winning another three under the microscope fix it? Nah... it'll take some teeth out of the hater's arguments, but they'll hang on to this bologna tighter and longer than the tuck rule whining. It'll never go away short of the Commissioner exonerating the team.... even then, you can bet trolls will still bring it up for the rest of their empty lives.

Either way... at this point, I just want the Patriots to absolutely pound on everyone. It'll make me feel better.