OT: Nothing to See Here. Move Along

[1960Pats]

I think this is real cheating but I'm not going to hold my breath waiting for something to be done about it. Maybe something will be done because it happened to the team that the commish and his merry men came from, though they may have to punish the Chiefs and Eagles so it could also get buried.

Jets reportedly believe Mecole Hardman leaked game plans vs. Eagles, Chiefs | FOX Sports

The Jets reportedly believe ex-WR Mecole Hardman may have leaked their game plans before their matchups vs. Philly and K.C.

www.foxsports.com

 

[PatsFan2]

 

[signbabybrady]

Funny the Jets always seem to be on the wrong end lol

 

[Koma]

The crazy thing is, in the two games mentioned, the Jets beat the Eagles and lost a very close game to the Chiefs. It's not like they were blown out in both games. The only explanation is that the Jets are so terrible by nature, the Eagles and Chiefs knowing their game plan actually hurt those teams - Frustrated Eagles player coming off the field after a drive: "Coach, we know what they're trying to do, but they're doing it so poorly, we're getting caught out of position."

Keyshawn Johnson's reaction was somewhat frustrating to read:

During Thursday's edition of "Undisputed," co-host Keyshawn Johnson said that accusations of leaking game plans are not uncommon, especially when the supposed recipients are former teammates or college friends of the alleged leaker, as is the case with the Chiefs and Eagles in relation to Hardman.

Johnson said while there may be some truth to the belief among Hardman's ex-teammates that the wide receiver was disgruntled, he does not believe the leaking allegations. Johnson claimed that even if Hardman did leak the Jets' game plans, it likely did not have as much of an impact as fans might think.

A. I've never heard of this sort of accusation before. There have been stories of players or coaches losing playbooks, but I don't remember ever hearing about a player who sent the game plan to opposing players just because they went to the same college.

B. We still hear how filming hand signals on the sideline, signals that 75% of the stadium could see and were also sometimes shown on TV, gave the Patriots a massive advantage and was the key to all their success. Now, Keyshawn claims that having documented proof of every play your opponent is planning to run really isn't that much of a benefit.

 

[Ross12]

B. We still hear how filming hand signals on the sideline, signals that 75% of the stadium could see and were also sometimes shown on TV, gave the Patriots a massive advantage and was the key to all their success. Now, Keyshawn claims that having documented proof of every play your opponent is planning to run really isn't that much of a benefit.

This is the key to me lol. If this story is "no big deal" then Spygate should never be mentioned again as it would be a fraction of the magnitude of this.

 

[Grogan14]

The Jets should not be punished in this case. Only Hardnan and the teams he leaked the information to (who did not report Hardman)

 

[sb1]

But warm gatorade or something.

 

[XLIX]

When I heard about it, I said to myself

1) If true, this is far, far worse than anything the Patriots were alleged to ever have done, and
2) Absolutely nothing will come of it

 

[1960Pats]

When I heard about it, I said to myself

1) If true, this is far, far worse than anything the Patriots were alleged to ever have done, and
2) Absolutely nothing will come of it

You've been correct so far. Pretty soon we won't be able to find out anything about it.

 

[1960Pats]

Funny the Jets always seem to be on the wrong end lol

The Jets' Revis tampering when he was a Patriot was about as bad as it gets.

The Parcells' tampering when he was a Patriot is right up there too.

 

[signbabybrady]

The Jets' Revis tampering when he was a Patriot was about as bad as it gets.

The Parcells' tampering when he was a Patriot is right up there too.

Jete

 

[ctpatsfan77]

The Jets' Revis tampering when he was a Patriot was about as bad as it gets.

Although, ironically, it appears by doing so, they managed to F themselves more than they did the Patriots. . . .

 

[Wozzy]

The Jets' Revis tampering when he was a Patriot was about as bad as it gets.

The Parcells' tampering when he was a Patriot is right up there too.

What about Miami’s owner meeting with Brady on his yacht when he was still under contract with the Pat’s?

 

[venecol]

What about Miami’s owner meeting with Brady on his yacht when he was still under contract with the Pat’s?

MIA got punished for that, lost a 1st rounder.

 

[Sciz]

Surely the NFL would be able to request phone records for communications between these players and suspend those that don’t comply, right?

 

[Wozzy]

MIA got punished for that, lost a 1st rounder.

Pats deserve that pick as the aggrieved party.

 

[XLIX]

Surely the NFL would be able to request phone records for communications between these players and suspend those that don’t comply, right?

Forget phone records, they should request that the player turn over his actual phone. And yes, it is 4 games (plus a 1st rounder from the team) for non-compliance.

 

[TheRainMaker]

Pats deserve that pick as the aggrieved party.

What I could find was that teams were forced to swap picks, but no team has gained an additional picks. At worst, Dolphins and Pats should've swapped 3rd rounders.

Dolphins tampering: 5 NFL teams that lost picks and were fined for unethical practice

The Miami Dolphins have been found guilty of tampering and unethical practice as a result of their contact with both Tom Brady and Sean Payton.

www.sportskeeda.com

 

[BTTA]

The Jets should not be punished in this case. Only Hardnan and the teams he leaked the information to (who did not report Hardman)

Never say that, regardless of the rationale or situation.
Plus, you increase the danger of losing the #3 pick, which has always been a considerable concern.

 

[ctpatsfan77]

What I could find was that teams were forced to swap picks, but no team has gained an additional picks. At worst, Dolphins and Pats should've swapped 3rd rounders.

The interesting thing is that the swapping of picks seems to go away when the Patriots are involved. Funny that.

Anyhow, if I were commissioner, I would state that there will be no more swapping of picks for tampering, and possibly not even forfeiting of draft picks. Instead, the penalty would be:

(A) The team that tampered would receive a salary cap credit equal to double the cap hit for the remaining year(s) on the contract when the tampering began, to be taken from the team committing the tampering. So the Dolphins would've lost $45M in cap space and the Patriots would've gained that much.

(B) Teams where the tampering individuals work or have an ownership stake are permanently banned from signing that player. e.g., as Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross was involved in the tampering, the Dolphins would be banned from signing Brady as long as Ross owned the team.

Ditto for coaches, except it's a fine from one team to the other, with no salary cap implications. Also, to prevent a "disgruntled employee" issue, the massive penalties in (A) would apply only in cases where it is clear that senior employees/owners are involved. (B) would apply regardless.