Ryan Hannable @RyanHannable 23h23 hours ago
On @DaleHolleyWEEI, @SI_PeterKing says there are only 2-4 owners who are anti-Goodell.
On @DaleHolleyWEEI, @SI_PeterKing says there are only 2-4 owners who are anti-Goodell.
norm from cheers said:Kravitz just won't let it go:
"“He always asked for the footballs way, way before he was supposed to get them,’’ said Baltz, who was an NFL official from 1989-2013."
Bob Kravitz @bkravitz 8m8 minutes ago
Jim McNally is back with the Patriots, but retired Indy-based official Mark Baltz had suspicions about him years ago.http://www.wthr.com/story/30056286/kravitz-blogindy-based-nfl-official-baltz-was-suspicious-of-mcnally-years-ago …
Edit: atleast he has a name with the story, unlike DVN.
Baltz said the same thing back in (roughly) February on OTL (that's the Naqi story, by the way). This is not new; just recycled.tims4wins said:So this former official reported him to the NFL, and the NFL either A) found nothing or B) ignored it. Further evidence that either nothing was happening or no one ever cared.
https://twitter.com/RyanHannable/status/644237648706576384"]23h23soxhop411 said:
Jed Zeppelin said:Kravitz is writing for a rabid and still sore Indy audience that eats this stuff up as much as we do. The genesis of that article was probably something along the lines of "hey, Indy ref nobody cares about who has nothing at stake, care to say something bad about the mean old Pats? Truth optional, innuendo preferred."
Also, lol at DVN. The biggest "fact" gleaned from his story was something Belichick already admitted to that people weren't aware of because, well, they're dumb.
edit: The problem with Kravitz is that he received so much positive reinforcement from the aftermath that it just makes sense for him to keep putting this stuff out there. Same with Doyel, who is much, much worse and gave up any attempt at journalism probably since the first time he picked up a pen.
Minus Volin who found it "interesting".Hoya81 said:Lot of Boston media people currently calling out Kravitz for not fact-checking the number of games the linesman covered in Foxboro.
Hey, it's [pseudo] science!Myt1 said:This is what happens when one starts with a conclusion and tries to reverse-engineer reasoning. It's pretty much the worst way to sift and weigh evidence.
dcmissle said:Ok so three nightmare scenarios predicted over the last 8 days alone have not transpired.
No investigation of stolen play sheet allegations.
No crucifixion over head sets in Pitts game -- to the contrary, cleared in less than 24 hours.
No discipline or further proving of these two guys.
So collectively some of us have to get a grip.
Except that there was genuine concern expressed here on each of these things, even when one allows for humor. Just trying to muffle the noise.Shelterdog said:
Burn that straw man right down!
Of course allegations of Patriots cheating dominated the news cycle again the day after you wrote it.
Which is perfect because it means we can go back to taping again. Belichick with the long con.nighthob said:The one bright side of the media's stupidity is that we're rapidly approaching boy who cried wolf territory. By this time next year these stories will be about as believable to the public at large as alien abductions and bigfoot sightings.
nighthob said:The one bright side of the media's stupidity is that we're rapidly approaching boy who cried wolf territory. By this time next year these stories will be about as believable to the public at large as alien abductions and bigfoot sightings.
ifmanis5 said:538 with a nice debunking stat: http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/if-the-patriots-are-cheating-at-home-the-stats-dont-show-it/?ex_cid=538twitter
Smiling Joe Hesketh said:
That's pretty good, but no one gives a damn about statistics. They care about storylines. Facts don't matter any more.
Agreed. And it really is a nice diversion from brain injuries, DUIs and all the other ills of the game.Smiling Joe Hesketh said:
That's pretty good, but no one gives a damn about statistics. They care about storylines. Facts don't matter any more.
Van Everyman said:Besides, isn't the counter to this that the Patriots cheat everywhere? Sure, they don't have access to headsets or the balls (or Gatorade) when the game is played on the road, so they just steal the other teams play book by rummaging through the trash.
Van Natta, who co-wrote the story with Seth Wickersham, says they have received more than a dozen calls from various league sources since the story was released.
“When you do a story like this, you shake the tree and very ripe fruit falls into your lap,” Van Natta said. “There are some interesting leads that Seth and I are going to address. I don’t think we’re done with this just yet.
Translation: Other NFL people who saw that they could anonymously gripe about the Patriots and get it published in an “investigative report” want to get in on the action.
Smiling Joe Hesketh said:
Except that the stats for the other teams in the league don't bear this out, unless you want to suggest that the Eagles (who outperform their expected by a huge margin on the road) are also cheaters. Which they aren't.
But again, no one cares about statistical rebuttals. Facts are boring.
Smiling Joe Hesketh said:And besides, Bruce Allen over at BSMW is saying that ESPN is preparing a follow-up hit piece on the Pats:
Don't kid yourselves, folks: the league and ESPN are out to get the team. And there will be no requirements for facts. Any anonymous gripe against the team is going to be reported as stone-cold truth by these guys.
Lovely.Smiling Joe Hesketh said:And besides, Bruce Allen over at BSMW is saying that ESPN is preparing a follow-up hit piece on the Pats:
Don't kid yourselves, folks: the league and ESPN are out to get the team. And there will be no requirements for facts. Any anonymous gripe against the team is going to be reported as stone-cold truth by these guys.
Who cares. The more shit that comes out, the less that will stick. I hope they put out 20 more hit pieces, it'll just go from semi-serious to absurd pretty quickly. I can already guarantee that the majority of fans don't give a fuck anymore. They only care about the season at this point.Smiling Joe Hesketh said:And besides, Bruce Allen over at BSMW is saying that ESPN is preparing a follow-up hit piece on the Pats:
Don't kid yourselves, folks: the league and ESPN are out to get the team. And there will be no requirements for facts. Any anonymous gripe against the team is going to be reported as stone-cold truth by these guys.
FL4WL3SS said:Who cares. The more shit that comes out, the less that will stick. I hope they put out 20 more hit pieces, it'll just go from semi-serious to absurd pretty quickly. I can already guarantee that the majority of fans don't give a fuck anymore. They only care about the season at this point.
Let the hit pieces pile up and the mystique build.
FL4WL3SS said:Let the hit pieces pile up and the mystique build.
johnmd20 said:
Definitely. That column is probably the most read, most linked piece ESPN has ever done. It's sensational and total BS but it also sells. It's kind of reprehensible that the Pats are public enemy #1. Teams should be trying to emulate the Pats. Instead, they are doing the opposite, gossiping and whining.
Why isn't it possible for the Pats to cheat on the road? Just send Mini-tron in to "penetrate" the opposition via the opposing cheerleaders and have them do our dirty work, 007 styleifmanis5 said:538 with a nice debunking stat: http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/if-the-patriots-are-cheating-at-home-the-stats-dont-show-it/?ex_cid=538twitter
joe dokes said:
...generally a good reporter...
All I keep seeing is ESPN continues to push this story. Florio and others have poked holes in it and moved on. If this next "report" comes out, I could see it lasting no more than a morning. Real football is being played and people are losing interest in this drama. This is nothing more than as smear campaign and if it truly were an investigative study, they would have gotten at least one person to go on record.johnmd20 said:
You're wrong. Opponents and fans are not in any way done talking about this.
geoduck no quahog said:
A genuine "reporter" would be researching the real story behind DFG: Why did the NFL lie (or, at minimum, selectively choose and stretch the facts) if they thought they had a case against New England? A real reporter would be seeking low-level sources within Exponent or interviewing the Princeton professor concerning prejudices in their findings. A real reporter would be seeking sources within the NFL that could give clues about high level executive actions leading up to the findings, and the actions of other teams. A real reporter would be striving to get his hands on transcripts. A real reporter would be pursuing the facts behind the intercepted ball, along with the facts behind the kicking ball scandal. A real reporter would be endeavoring to uncover any league-wide vendetta against New England - and which (if any) ownerships were/are involved.
For some reason, real investigative reporting in this case seems to have disappeared. It certainly can't be done by the sports writers who call themselves journalists, but I'm curious why it's not a juicy enough story for genuine journalistic investigators to pursue. Is the NFL really that powerful?
I've been thinking the same myself, but perhaps the answer is that the NFL really doesn't matter enough for a "real journalist" to devote the time and energy to doing this sort of work Woodward and Bernstein style.geoduck no quahog said:
A genuine "reporter" would be researching the real story behind DFG: Why did the NFL lie (or, at minimum, selectively choose and stretch the facts) if they thought they had a case against New England? A real reporter would be seeking low-level sources within Exponent or interviewing the Princeton professor concerning prejudices in their findings. A real reporter would be seeking sources within the NFL that could give clues about high level executive actions leading up to the findings, and the actions of other teams. A real reporter would be striving to get his hands on transcripts. A real reporter would be pursuing the facts behind the intercepted ball, along with the facts behind the kicking ball scandal. A real reporter would be endeavoring to uncover any league-wide vendetta against New England - and which (if any) ownerships were/are involved.
For some reason, real investigative reporting in this case seems to have disappeared. It certainly can't be done by the sports writers who call themselves journalists, but I'm curious why it's not a juicy enough story for genuine journalistic investigators to pursue. Is the NFL really that powerful?