The New England Patriots*, Pt. 2
Thursday November 8, 2007
Categories: Popular Culture
Wow, passionate emails on my post re: the Patriots*. In the last year I've posted more than 800 (?!?!) different items but this one got a lot of people plenty ticked off. I'll summarize the complaints: - I was being...
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Right on, David! I'm a die-hard sports fan too, but somewhere, somehow, somebody has to stop the madness.
It's a damn game, people! Or, perhaps more accurately, it's just another business. When you play by the rules of Enron, WorldCom and Tyco, you pay by the rules.
It is scary when we excuse cheating or we say that "everyone is doing it" or it is OK because it is just a game.
See, I don't think anyone's saying that. They did bad. They got caught and punished. After that, they started demolishing their opponents like no team in the history of the sport.
In the end, it comes down to just how bad an affront you think it is that, in violation of league rules, the Patriots taped their opponents. The fact that they're still winning games by around 25 points a game indicates to me that the sideline taping, while bad and deserving of punishment, really wasn't a big deal.
I don't think it's anywhere near as bad as performance-enhancing drugs.
First off, using equipment to steal signs is a very old trick-- one that worked for the Giants when they beat the Dodgers in the one-game NL playoff in 1951. And everyone's heard stories of football teams trying to steal each other's playbooks. That doesn't mean it's OK. It does mean that it's something that teams have done from time immemorial, like committing pass interference. When they get caught, they should be punished.
In addition, taping doesn't pose health risks, and present terrible choices for people hoping to make it in the league.
As to Bonds, you're right that there's been no formal process, and I wouldn't support his being jailed or thrown out of baseball without it. But it's perfectly legitimate for people to say that they believe that Bonds has done some not-so-great things, based on, say, the material in Game of Shadows.
I'm not liking the Patriots right now because they are running up scores on really bad teams. Brady is setting himself up for a cheap shot sack if this keeps up, but he knows the concenquences...
All teams video tape games, and the Patriots were not doing it according to league rules. If that makes them cheaters (or cheated), they got caught and were punished. I drive faster then the speed limit from time to time, and have been caught, which I guess makes me a criminal. As long as I don't have to share a cell with Richard Ramirez I guess I should be grateful. I guess the point is that competitive sports teams will always look to gain an advantage. They would not employ scouts otherwise. The serious of the infraction is also a consideration. If the criteria for crowning a champion is that there can be ABSOLUTELY no hint of unfair advantage then we would never be able to crown a champion, because there will always be something that someone can insist was an unfair advantage.
Phil
Fair's fair, I should disclose that I'm a Patriots fan from birth. I remember watching Hugh Millen throw 3 INTs to Deion Sanders of the Falcons, and having to hear Ahmad Rashad go on and on about it, in the midst of that Pats' 1-15 season. So I have a bias here.
Also, Phil's post makes sense. I think that they're running up the score in reaction to stuff like what Shula's saying, but I have no real evidence for that.
Honestly.. I live in the state which has the worst football team ever.. (MN Vikings...) and even though the Giants got caught cheating against us in a playoff game, it's still wrong. I'm not a "fan" of any team. mainly because I'm not a fan.. of any other corporation. it's merely watching a public company's employees play a game that any one of us can play at a slightly higher level. I walk down the street where I live and watch little league football and have a blast seeing kids enjoying the sport, and enjoying the physical nature of being able to run into their peers and not get in trouble. boys will be boys. but to live vicariously through these "professional" players and think that they are higher than the kids I watch playing on Sat afternoons is absurd. and when the object of the game is to sell-out tickets, and make money.. of course like any company that's existed since the beginning of time there are points where the chose less that desirable ways of making themselves more competitive. is it wrong.. you bet. but what else do you expect from a system that is made to inspire that kind of behavior?
Well said, David.
I kind of worthy these days if the asterisk factories might already be running at full capacity.
Kind of wonder. I kind of not worthy these days as a typist/grammarian.
Two things:
1) As for the Patriots running up the score. If you don't want a team to drop 50 on you, stop them. It's the NFL, where each team has the same amount of salary cap to spend on elite athletes. How is it the Patriots fault their opponents can't draft and sign good defensive players?
2) My main problem with Don Shula isn't so much what he said, its the timing. He doesn't say a word during "Spygate" but now that the Patriots have a legitimate shot at going undefeated after beating the Colts, he now feels that they should have an asterisk after their record if they were to go undefeated (he has now backed off these statements). Seems a bit dubious to say the least.
Doug says: "I kind of worthy these days if the asterisk factories might already be running at full capacity."
That's funny! :P
I wouldn't label the whole Patriots team as cheaters. The coach was responsible for what happened and he deserves what he got. The team works and plays hard. They are making their point and should score as many points as possible. Why shouldn't they be entitled to set records? When the Colts did it last year it was great and Peyton is the best...
Shula is just a bitter old man. When Spygate first broke he didn't have a problem with the pats methods. Bellicheck is doing what any coach would try to do...now that the undefeated season may be matched he is bitter....go figure
Maybe they are mad that you label them cheaters, as opposed to saying they cheated. Will they forever deserve the label "cheaters" in your opinion or do they at some point just become the team that cheated?
In sports, there is a distinction between gamesmanship and cheating. It's the reason Gaylord Perry is in the Hall of Fame, and Mark McGwire is not. Some rules are sacrosanct, even if they aren't written down (like baseball's steroid policy before 2002). Other rules are less weighty, even if they're written in black-and-white (like the rule that says pitchers can't doctor the baseball).
I don't know enough about football to say whether the Patriots cheated, or just engaged in a bit of gamesmanship. The division of opinion within the sport suggests that even the experts don't know where the line falls on this issue.
There is no such thing as "gamesmanship" when it comes to preparing SEC disclosure documents, or running a charitable organization that is entrusted with substantial assets. Therefore, I don't think we should compare wrongdoing on the sports field to what happened at Enron, Worldcom, or Oral Roberts University.
Peace.
The "perfect season", the "perfect team", all began with the fact that they were cheating. Count me in on the asterisk! Just like the home run record holders who have turned baseball into a sport of cheaters. Feel all the history you want, I just feel sick. Take a lesson from baseball's failure. The punishment was a minor slap. Now we are faced with "perfection" springing from the well of cheating. The message is clear, to win, you cheat. Is that really what we want to tell our kids? And they get to keep the second pick of next year's draft? This is a team without honor, and should NOT be celebrated or emulated. They are "perfectly" disgraceful!
Perfect Patriots? NO WAY! They cheated! They got caught cheating. Period. Is this the sign that we are teaching our kids? Everyone is saying Perfect Patriots! Perfect Patriots! So, did everyone suddenly get amnesia on ESPN and not mention they were cheating????? Their coach was named Coach of the Year, I think.. He was honored for his cheating. WoW! Go figure... The Quarterback does what the coach says or else he's grounded or traded.. so of course, the QB knew about the cheating.. I will never ever watch another Patriots game again. I hope they don't make it to the Superbowl... Cheaters never win... Remember it.
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