Radio Gate

[ViperGTS]

And what's his take?

It's replete throughout the league

To say the Pats did something wrong isn't fair.

It's not uncommon and both headsets go down anyway if one side fails.

 

[RelocatedPatFan]

People fail to realize that if the NFL could make something up and take away draft picks, imagine what they could do with something that actually did happen (even if it was their own equipment and I assume personnel).

 

[shmessy]

BB seemed kind of annoyed with the communication quality at Foxboro as well in his presser. He said they deal with this kind of thing pretty much "every week". Is it possible that communications at Foxboro are generally spotty, and visiting teams are assuming the worst when in fact the Pats are dealing with the same issues on their sideline on a regular basis?

I did not read Tomlin's comments as "we had communications issues--we always have them at Foxboro--AND that's the reason we lost"...Tomlin is a lot of things, but I'm positive if asked directly he'd say the reason Pittsburgh lost was that they got outplayed and outcoached ("below the line" performance in Tomlin-speak).

Sorry, lilloyd, you're a great poster here, but that last paragraph is complete and utter nonsense.

It is now the afternoon of the day following and Tomlin has yet to make any clarification on what the entire nation is reporting (misreporting according to you). If thousands of media outlets around the world were misrepresenting my words I would not be waiting past noontime the next day to clarify them.

Further, Steelers.com has thrown even more gasoline on the fire with new accusations.

The entire nation outside of NE is reporting Tomlin's remarks and intent as completely the opposite of what you contend and they are using it as a bludgeon against the Patriots.

His continued silence runs counter to your point.


.

 

[Oswlek]

I did not read Tomlin's comments as "we had communications issues--we always have them at Foxboro--AND that's the reason we lost"...Tomlin is a lot of things, but I'm positive if asked directly he'd say the reason Pittsburgh lost was that they got outplayed and outcoached ("below the line" performance in Tomlin-speak).

Oh, he may not have stepped over that line, but he quite clearly backed up against it. And Pitt's further tantrum only reinforces it, as you say below.

I'm frankly surprised it's on the website. It's a large logic leap, taking an incident that could much more easily be explained by coincidence (i.e. headsets malfunctioning until NFL officials arrived, then malfunctioning again after they left), and then publicly presuming that there was some sort of intent behind it.

 

[archstanton543]

No, they were hearing the patriots broadcast on their coaches headsets, they weren't hearing the patriots coaches.

Man, I feel sorry for them. Socci and Zo are horrible.

 

[QuantumMechanic]

Oh, he may not have stepped over that line, but he quite clearly backed up against it. And Pitt's further tantrum only reinforces it, as you say below.

This is Tomlin. He's all about stepping over lines, metaphorical and real.

Also, he needs to join Rapistburger and Harbaby in the whaaaaaaaaambulance.

 

[lillloyd]

That's fine and all, but his press conference was ridiculous. He all but accused the Patriots of cheating, when the same thing's happened in Pittsburgh.

He should be ashamed of himself and his conduct. It sure as hell wasn't headset issues that called that idiotic trick play with Brown trying to throw.

The content of what Tomlin and BB said regarding the consistent communications issues at Foxboro was pretty much the same, right? (Absent Tomlin's obvious frustration.) BB did not seem particularly happy either, and said it was pretty much a "weekly" occurrence.

If Tomlin is in fact tacking on an implicit "and it was intentional" statement to what was actually said in the presser -- and I guess we'll find out soon enough, if Pittsburgh actually files some sort of complaint with the league -- then yeah I guess it was an accusation. But IMO the statement itself could also be read as something along the lines of "why can't Foxboro get their communication issues more under control?", without suggesting any malicious intent.

It will be interesting to see if the website article stays up as written, as well. Steelers.com and all its content should all be sanctioned by the higher-ups within the organization. That said, the editor who wrote the article--Bob Labriola--is basically just a beat writer, and that piece was obviously written as if it were an sports op-ed piece for the Post-Gazette or Tribune (rather than an official NFL website where IMO the reporting should be pretty much be dry, just facts and fluff pieces on the home team).

 

[gtfanboy]

I swear at this point, Belichick/Patriots are pretty much the bogeyman for all the other teams.

 

[Deus Irae]

The content of what Tomlin and BB said regarding the consistent communications issues at Foxboro was pretty much the same, right? (Absent Tomlin's obvious frustration.) BB did not seem particularly happy either, and said it was pretty much a "weekly" occurrence.

If Tomlin is in fact tacking on an implicit "and it was intentional" statement to what was actually said in the presser -- and I guess we'll find out soon enough, if Pittsburgh actually files some sort of complaint with the league -- then yeah I guess it was an accusation. But IMO the statement itself could also be read as something along the lines of "why can't Foxboro get their communication issues more under control?", without suggesting any malicious intent.

It will be interesting to see if the website article stays up as written, as well. Steelers.com and all its content should all be sanctioned by the higher-ups within the organization. That said, the editor who wrote the article--Bob Labriola--is basically just a beat writer, and that piece was obviously written as if it were an sports op-ed piece for the Post-Gazette or Tribune (rather than an official NFL website where IMO the reporting should be pretty much be dry, just facts and fluff pieces on the home team).

Tomlin claimed something to the effect of it happening every time in Gillette, and he was clearly implying that something underhanded was going on. Then, when he was asked about it happening anywhere else, he refused to keep talking about it.

Go get the tape.

 

[Oswlek]

The content of what Tomlin and BB said regarding the consistent communications issues at Foxboro was pretty much the same, right?

No. Tomlin explicitly indicated that the problems are exaggerated in Foxboro with the implicit meaning that the Patriots are behind it. The Steelers further complaints about the signal coming and going based on official proximity to NE's sideline further illustrates the point.

Bill's comments are purely about the system itself and don't imply sinister motive on behalf of either the league or any team.

EDIT: I missed your point about the piece being from a writer and not an official team rep, though you have to think it is someone more important who provided the information.

 

[karguy85]

The content of what Tomlin and BB said regarding the consistent communications issues at Foxboro was pretty much the same, right? (Absent Tomlin's obvious frustration.) BB did not seem particularly happy either, and said it was pretty much a "weekly" occurrence.

If Tomlin is in fact tacking on an implicit "and it was intentional" statement to what was actually said in the presser -- and I guess we'll find out soon enough, if Pittsburgh actually files some sort of complaint with the league -- then yeah I guess it was an accusation. But IMO the statement itself could also be read as something along the lines of "why can't Foxboro get their communication issues more under control?", without suggesting any malicious intent.

It will be interesting to see if the website article stays up as written, as well. Steelers.com and all its content should all be sanctioned by the higher-ups within the organization. That said, the editor who wrote the article--Bob Labriola--is basically just a beat writer, and that piece was obviously written as if it were an sports op-ed piece for the Post-Gazette or Tribune (rather than an official NFL website where IMO the reporting should be pretty much be dry, just facts and fluff pieces on the home team).

You are wrong. He said it only happens at Foxboro. There is an obvious insinuation being made there. To me Tomlin was extremely reckless with those comments. Even the Colts during the beginning of the deflategate fiasco didn't make reckless statements like this (they waited for the NFL to leak misinformation).

 

[Dr Pain]

Exclusive recording of what was played in Tomlin's headset

 

[pheenix11]

It's those "Microsoft Ipads" that Al Michaels keeps referencing. Just go with Apple and Beats. "It just works"

Hah, no kidding huh? What the hell did the NFL expect when they signed up with Microsoft? They do realize these are the same clowns who produce Windows right?

 

[Oswlek]

You are wrong. He said it only happens at Foxboro. There is an obvious insinuation being made there. To me Tomlin was extremely reckless with those comments. Even the Colts during the beginning of the deflategate fiasco didn't make reckless statements like this (they waited for the NFL to leak misinformation).

Interestingly, the guys on ESPN radio feel Tomlin is the most credible coach in the entire league! And they mocked Bill for being "sad" about the reports, as if that's even close to what he said. Then it was off on another tangent about how the ESPN report may have been unsourced but this is a "bomb" lobbed in that Tomlin is willing to put his name on it!

This was all in about 13 seconds that it took for me to be able to find time to look away from the road to change the channel. I suppose they may have pointed out that Tomlin's accusation is downright moronic, but I have a feeling they didn't.

 

[manxman2601]

Hah, no kidding huh? What the hell did the NFL expect when they signed up with Microsoft? They do realize these are the same clowns who produce Windows right?

Seems perfect for Goodell and the NFL

 

[shmessy]

The content of what Tomlin and BB said regarding the consistent communications issues at Foxboro was pretty much the same, right? (Absent Tomlin's obvious frustration.) BB did not seem particularly happy either, and said it was pretty much a "weekly" occurrence.

If Tomlin is in fact tacking on an implicit "and it was intentional" statement to what was actually said in the presser -- and I guess we'll find out soon enough, if Pittsburgh actually files some sort of complaint with the league -- then yeah I guess it was an accusation. But IMO the statement itself could also be read as something along the lines of "why can't Foxboro get their communication issues more under control?", without suggesting any malicious intent.

It will be interesting to see if the website article stays up as written, as well. Steelers.com and all its content should all be sanctioned by the higher-ups within the organization. That said, the editor who wrote the article--Bob Labriola--is basically just a beat writer, and that piece was obviously written as if it were an sports op-ed piece for the Post-Gazette or Tribune (rather than an official NFL website where IMO the reporting should be pretty much be dry, just facts and fluff pieces on the home team).

Lloyd, so why isn't he CLARIFYING this??????

If (according to you) this 'misrepresentation' of his words by the national and international media continues any more, then your contention is utterly wrong.

 

[MagicMarker]

This is just like the IGL stuff...It's science. Most people (media included) don't understand it, so it's easy to spin it way off of what it really is.

It sounds to me like the Patriots radio broadcast was bleeding through. For that to happen, someone would have to know what frequency the headsets were on and broadcast at that frequency. They'd have to do this all the while someone from the NFL was monitoring ALL frequencies to make sure something wasn't happening.

It also sounds like if anybody is worried about the other team doing anything like this, all they'd need to do is take a 100 foot cord and hard wire it so they don't have to worry about any wireless communications would interfere.

Sounds like NFL teams feel they're free to state any accusation against the Patriots now without any reprisal.

 

[lillloyd]

Sorry, lilloyd, you're a great poster here, but that last paragraph is complete and utter nonsense.

It is now the afternoon of the day following and Tomlin has yet to make any clarification on what the entire nation is reporting (misreporting according to you). If thousands of media outlets around the world were misrepresenting my words I would not be waiting past noontime the next day to clarify them.

Further, Steelers.com has thrown even more gasoline on the fire with new accusations.

The entire nation outside of NE is reporting Tomlin's remarks and intent as completely the opposite of what you contend and they are using it as a bludgeon against the Patriots.

His continued silence runs counter to your point.


.

I think we are having two separate conversations here - there's the issue of whether Tomlin and the Steelers think the Pats did something deliberately malicious...and then there's the issue of whether Tomlin and the Steelers blame headset issues for the loss.

I'm basically saying we'll know soon enough if the former is true (and again, the Steelers.com article is not necessarily echoing the views of the Steelers organization--even if it should be). But regarding the latter, I'm 100% sure that Tomlin if asked directly would say they were simply outplayed and outcoached, with full conviction and sincerity.

 

[karguy85]

Interestingly, the guys on ESPN radio feel Tomlin is the most credible coach in the entire league! And they mocked Bill for being "sad" about the reports, as if that's even close to what it said. Then it was off on another tangent about how the ESPN report may have been unsourced but this is a "bomb" lobbed in that Tomlin is willing to put his name on!

This was all in about 13 seconds that it took for me to be able to find time to look away from the road to change the channel. I suppose they may have pointed out that Tomlin's accusation is downright moronic, but I have a feeling they didn't.

It's become obvious that there are no repercussions for disparaging the Patriots with baseless accusations. Because of all the negativity surrounding the Patriots in the media, NFL insiders (including coaches) are willing to be more brazen about it now.

 

[pheenix11]

Next home game can we screw around with those surface tablets? Maybe they can get that pink slip virus from that old TV commercial when they turn them on? That or maybe a nonstop loop of Patriots highlights.

Sorry you've been Belichickrolled.