Walsh tapes

It turns out Matt Walsh has turned over eight more tapes of New England Patriots opponents but his vault does not include a tape of the Rams' walkthrough practice before the 2002 Super Bowl, the New York Times reports. If that's all that comes out, it's likely this affair will fade into the past. The NFL is eager to see it go away. It's bad business for the NFL to cast a cloud over the Patriots' success. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell already has stated that if all Walsh produces is more in-game tapes of opposing coaches on the sidelines then that's not news. The Pats have already admitted to that. One of the Walsh tapes is from a 2001 Bills game. Of course, the taping had nothing to do with the Pats' defensive domination of Drew Bledsoe and the Bills' offensive line this decade. It had nothing to do with the benefit the Pats got when a certain Bills coach punted from the Pats' 32 down by 10 points (see, Gregg Williams, 2002). Nevertheless it was cheating, and the Pats benefitted. Included in Walsh's tapes were the 2002 AFC title game win over Pittsburgh. It's possible and perhaps likely that Pats "research chief" Ernie Adams, the brilliant right-hand man of coach Bill Belichick, used those sideline tapes at halftime to quickly match them up with the actual game tape and provide some benefit to the defensive play calls in the second half. How much benefit? Probably not a lot, but some. So where does this leave us in assessing the legacy of Belichick and Tom Brady? It's gray. It's hard to make a concrete statement that their titles are tainted. Most advance scouts I talk to say they are not, and that any benefit the Pats got was minimal. We're left to draw our own conclusions at this point.

---Mark Gaughan

Comments

[Bster]

Maybe Walsh got his palms greased. Maybe Walsh and co. disposed of the real good tapes. Maybe that was the negotiation item that spread out over a month or so. Maybe I don't even believe that but....it could be.

[Mike C]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't Belichick and the Pats claim it only happened last year and never before? If so, wouldn't this constitute evidence of a coverup?

In any case, it's obvious now that this has been going on for a very long time, at least since the beginning of their run. Anyone who thinks it doesn't taint their legacy is fooling themselves. Football is, in many ways, a game of chance: you make your play call, and you hope it works well against whatever defense is lined up against you - knowing the call in advance, even if it just happened in the second half of games, is a HUGE advantage.

The NFL may sweep it under the rug, but I hope the media remembers when it comes time for Belichick's HOF candidacy. (He should have been suspended at least a year for what he did, and certainly now for what appears to be a coverup)

[Relzor]

Without those tapes, we would have never known about the fans chanting:
Luck-y Ba-by Luck-y Ba-by
Luck-y Ba-by

Man was that a good time.

[Stephen]

Anyone that has played Techmo Superbowl knows that knowing the opposing play gives you a huge advantage.

Unless you have Bo Jackson.

[Mac]

Be careful of rationalizing yourself into a twist, Mr. Gaughan. Let the facts of the case guide you. Belichick and the Patriots cheated, period. In suggesting the advantage gained from their cheating was "minimal," you come across sounding like an apologist for them. It's patently absurd to treat them and the embarrassing situation they created as anything less than willful cheating of a system they fully understood.

Furthermore, if said advantage gained was "minimal," why bother putting in the effort? Why bother taking the risk of being caught? It surely must have been worth something to someone. I for one always marveled at how that "crafty" Belichick and his Patriots always seemed to make the right adjustments at halftime, invariably putting away their opponents (especially our Bills) in the 2nd half. Cheating would explain much.

In conclusion, I think many in the media are so enamored by Belichick's perceived "genius" and Brady's exaggerated reputation for winning the big games (he's 0 for 2 in the last two critical big games he's played in, isn't he?) that you somehow cannot fathom these "heroes" have feet of clay.

Belichick cheated. Brady and his teammates benefited from that cheating. Don't attempt to understate the facts of the case. Cheating is wrong and must be punished. The fact this "storied" franchise has been found guilty of cheating the system very definitely tarnishes their accomplishments -- as well it should. Don't rationalize it to death. There is no grey area here. The Patriots cheated, period.

[David]

Bottom line- Pats are a dirty, classless organization that puts winning above all else. They consider themselves above the game. Not sure how much of an advantage taping other teams gave them but I think it's pretty bad they were doing it during an AFC Championship game. Still doesn't excuse the shameful performances the Bills have had against them in the past though.

[Chet Zeshonski]

Here's a thought: The Pats didn't tape any team last season after the Jets in Week 1. They ran the table until the Super Bowl. They didn't get those titles solely because they cheated.

[Harry Kozlowski]

The fact that there is no Rams walk-through tape doesn't mean there never was one, or worse. Getting caught cheating means constant suspicion. Some say the Pats gained no advantage from taping signals so why did they do it for 7 seasons under Belichick? There is a cloud over all the Pats accomplished. All of their amazing comebacks and titles are tainted. If Pete Rose can be banned for life because his betting on games may have affected how his team played, then I can't see how you can dismiss what Bill Belichick and the Pats did. It's disgraceful and nothing short of significant suspension is called for here.