The Video Tape Rule Violation

I'm going to try to succinctly present my perspective of the Patriots' violation of the video tape rule. It really shouldn't take that long, and I'm not even going to bother with many of the outrageous criticisms that came about after the Week One game. The Patriots, as the leaked video evidence displayed, were guilty of taping the New York Jets' defensive signals. Bill Belichick released a terse statement that essentially described the activity as information gathering for future games; his interpretation of the rule was, without a doubt, a stretch.

What should be remembered in discussing this supposed "scandal," though, is that it is virtually impossible to take a tape during half time or at any point during a game and try to match up what at least three signal callers (one real signal caller, with two dummies) with what a defense is doing. It takes time to take the tape from the field and match up each play that occurs with the film of the game -- this is the preliminary step. Then, you would need to watch numerous plays and try to separate the true signal caller from two or perhaps more dummies. This step could a considerably long time, even for someone who was well versed in NFL defenses and had a familiarity with signal-stealing. If you watch the few seconds of the released film, it shows how different and subtle each signal from each signal caller is. Finally, you would need to chart the defensive plays with their corresponding signals.

It takes time to run through this whole process. If you consider that Bill Belichick is relying on others to do this for him, and you consider him at the very least to be a smart coach, you would assume that he would want to verify this evidence himself before taking advantage of it. Again, this would take more time. Even if Belichick trusted whomever was supposedly stealing these signs during games, there is not enough time in a game to go through this process successfully. It goes without saying that if Patriots' coaches, including Belichick, are putting any time into this process during the game, they are indeed detracting from their overall focus to in-game adjustments.

My challenge to the national press and the constant, deluded critics of Bill Belichick is to do the following. Set up a controlled experiment to try to do what Bill Belichick is supposedly guilty of -- that is, try to steal signs during the time constraints of an NFL game. Surely ESPN and Sports Illustrated have enough "experts" to do it.

So that leaves us with this: what was the taping for if Belichick couldn't use it during a game? It's simple, really, if you know anything about Bill Belichick. Coach Belichick relies heavily on video tapes to gain any competitive advantage. In the NFL, analysis of game film can be the deciding factor in any game; a smart coach can find one nuanced part of a game to take advantage of and help his team win. The best example of this situation can be seen in NFL Films' production, America's Game, on the 2004 Patriots Superbowl team. Belichick tells us in this show that they had a "key" on the Ravens' Orlando Brown -- when his hand was down on the line, "it was 100% run," and when he was in a two-point stance, "it was 100% pass." Unfortunately for the Patriots, Orlando Brown was inactive during the Ravens-Patriots game (which the Patriots won). Where would Belichick find this and verify it? Clearly, he would do so through film study.

I can say with certitude, having followed this issue and Belichick's career, that the taping of opposing defense's signals was simply another way of Belichick using any avenue to gain his team a competitive advantage. It's impossible for Belichick and the Patriots - until I'm proven otherwise - to successfully steal signals during a game. This takes time, and obviously, the videotaping was for future games. Shame on any NFL team that was too lazy to change their signals -- ask anyone in Major League Baseball.

So does this amount to cheating? Again, no one has any proof that the Patriots ever utilized the videotaping to their advantage. My belief is that the Patriots, like any other team, were engaged in stealing signals. But this tape also shows a lot of things -- when the Patriots offense is on the field, how do the defensive signal callers react? For example, do they take too long in certain circumstances to call plays? How do they react when certain personnel enter the game?

There is no doubt that the Patriots broke the rules, and they paid dearly. Bob Costas was upset at Commissioner Goodell for taking only one first round pick because the Patriots have two: So, should the Patriots be punished more for breaking a rule because they have the best draft management around? To call the Patriots cheaters, or to say Belichick is evil, though, are both massive stretches and venomous claims.

I challenge the so-called national "experts" to show how a team can steal signals in a game and use them effectively. I think it's pretty obvious that this whole issue has exposed an underlying disdain for the New England Patriots and their coach. There have been numerous leaps of judgment by the press - for example, that the signals can be stolen during a game and implemented at half time - and I feel the media should be held accountable for their one-sided, uneducated coverage of the issue.