Uh oh, here we go: CBS claims Pats win coin flip at "impossible clip"

[Raymond]

This is awesome. Some opposing coach will, in a future game against the Pat's, be thinking about this prior to the toss......and the Pat's will have already won.

 

[fan345]

the probability of winning it at least 19 times in 25 tries is 0.0073. That's less than three-quarters of one percent.

That is 1 in 7,300 if my math is correct, which is ****ed up.

1 in 136 (take inverse of .0073)

 

[Bruins29]

1 in 136 (take inverse of .0073)

I not a math guy. I tried to google how to make a fraction a "1 in a whatever". I think "one in a" explains the odds better than a % does for some reason. I just couldnt get there.

 

[Kontradiction]

This post is highly reminiscent of a 6 AM phone call that Tom Brady took from a local radio station on the morning after the AFCCG.

That's because I AM Tom Brady. Thanks for outing me... ass.

 

[Rhodey]

Even though all things are possible, this feat is impossible to the one-sided thinking of opponents and those who wish to cause as many off-field distractions for the New England Patriots as required to make them lose. (But this isn't cheating in itself..is it?)

The only thing that comes to mind is that the Pats are using occult forces. It might be as simple as using psychics to see what the coin/toss flip is before it happens. However, I'm not sure if this is against the (current) rules. Of course, if this is the case, they may be doing the same with plays, using a hurry-up psychic, as well. And now that I think of it, Brady appears to be using an elevated form of intuition, which exceeds the normal instincts that the rest are left to work with.

If all these things are off the mark, then check the coin. Of course, the flipper could be on somebody's payroll. Perhaps, there are 2 coins and the one that is flipped is left on the ground; the other is picked up to match the pick?

Bottom line: if someone is beating your team consistently, they must be up to something. Note: it has nothing to do with hard work and preparation...we know that because...well, because.

 

[Kjmass1]

Doesn't the away team call the flip?

 

[PatsFanSince74]

This is clearly a silly thread...or isn't it?

I mean any of us who claim to know anything about stuh-tis-tics know that, over the proverbial "long run" (say, a million or so tosses), a coin with an equal distribution of weight throughout its mass, when tossed into the air in a consistent manner, will end up with a 50-50 "Heads" v. "Tails" split. Or not...

Apparently some Stanford statisticians with too much time on their hands looked into this with a high speed camera and concluded (link below):

"....here's what the researchers concluded: Using a high-speed camera that photographed people flipping coins, the three researchers determined that a coin is more likely to land facing the same side on which it started. If tails is facing up when the coin is perched on your thumb, it is more likely to land tails up.

"How much more likely? At least 51 percent of the time, the researchers claim, and possibly as much as 55 percent to 60 percent — depending on the flipping motion of the individual."

So, given BB's propensity for studying the game down to its smallest details to get the slightest edge for the Pats, is it out of the question that he became aware of this and instructed the guy calling the toss to see if he can observe which side the official is holding "up" when he tosses the coin?

I don't know and, frankly, I doubt it, but I'd love it if even the possibility of this will now start to drive other Coaches out of their minds!

Heads or tails? It depends on how you flip it

 

[Bruins29]

Doesn't the away team call the flip?

Mentioned in the first page of the thread by Danny

 

[Kjmass1]

Where can you find stats on coin flip? If be curious to see the pats road w/l with coin flip.

 

[bbobbo]

They're certainly different, but not from a statistical viewpoint. Every flip of the person flipping 25 times in a row is 50/50. The length of time between each flip has no bearing on probability.

Yup. For anyone interested, the calculation is:

 

[patchick]

I not a math guy. I tried to google how to make a fraction a "1 in a whatever". I think "one in a" explains the odds better than a % does for some reason. I just couldnt get there.

I'm betting plenty of people took the same wrong turn.

.1 is a tenth, .01 is a hundredth, .001 is a thousandth. So .0073 is 7.3 thousandths.
7.3 per 1000, divide both terms by 7.3, = 1 in 136.

But practically speaking, that's not the real probability we're talking about. There are 32 teams flipping, so the chances that SOME team will win that often is 32 times greater. Then consider that the number of flips was cherry picked to come out with the most extreme result.

IOW, it's just not very unlikely at all. Which is too bad, because I'd like to think that Belichick has ruthlessly bent the laws of probability to his will.

 

[Wax Frog]

Eventually, teams will force the NFL* to constrain BB, like Hannibal Lector was in Silence of the Lambs, when he was wheeled out to talk to the female politician.

BB will be on the sidelines in a straight jacket, strapped to a gurney, with a steel cage bolted over his head.

The NFL* doesn't know how he is cheating, but d%#*!@t, he has to be doing something!

Full disclosure - I never saw the movie... Dear God, it's finally happened - we're on to fava beans!

 

[Bruins29]

There are 32 teams flipping, so the chances that SOME team will win that often is 32 times greater.

Got it! Monkeys and Typewriters.

If 32 monkeys flipped a coin and it came up heads 19 times it would take 136 Monkeys to type "we elect to defer"

Got it.

 

[dales804]

I never saw the movie

You're missing a great one. I recommend you go watch it.

 

[Bruins29]

Full disclosure - I never saw the movie...

?

 

[Wax Frog]

You're missing a great one. I recommend you go watch it.

Sometime in the late 80's / early 90's I mostly got out of the habit of watching movies. I got jaded I guess. Mental note of your tip made.

 

[WinstonSmith]

Am I the only one that is pissed that the Pats have only 19 out of 25!!? Based on the pathetic level of competition we should be much closer to 100%. I blame Bob and Bill for being cheap bastards and keeping the coaching staff level so freaking low. If we had a dedicated coin flip guy I guarantee that we'd be pushing 22 or 23 out of 25.

 

[letekro]

Full disclosure - I never saw the movie... Dear God, it's finally happened - we're on to fava beans!

You should see this movie. First of all, it is one of the greatest suspense films of all time. Second, it features one of the greatest characters in film history. Third, it is chock full of quotables that still widely circulate in pop culture. It boggles my mind that there is a sentient being that has not seen it.

 

[Bruins29]

First of all, it is one of the greatest suspense films of all time.

Its actually considered a horror movie, though is has much suspense in it. Crime thriller, whatever.

 

[Bruins29]

It boggles my mind that there is a sentient being that has not seen it.

I know people who have not seen Star Wars