#DFG: Canceling the Noise

[DeJesus Built My Hotrod]

It's not just one thing. It's a confluence. You have sore loser teams in the face of a dozen plus years of excellence, butt hurt media who cover those loser teams and mediots who BB shits on every chance he gets, power hungry asshats in NFL leadership, particularly a former NFLPA turncoat, an asshole with an ax to grind against the Pats, and a union busting lawyer, all led by an egomaniac of legendary proportions, who likely wanted to knock Kraft down a peg after the whole assistant commissioner thing, and the perfect test case for expanding commissioner powers without negotiating the CBA. If the NFL can do it to their second most marketable star, who is going to stand up to them? And if they lose, who cares, because, like I said a couple hours ago, this is just going to make the NFLPA focus more on player discipline and be willing to give other things up the next negotiation.

In the end this is in 100% win-win situation for the NFL. And it really sucks

 
Its not even this complicated.  This entire offseason has been dominated by talk of deflated footballs and whether or not a franchise QB was generally aware or not of someone doing something nefarious.  
 
Last offseason was dominated by whether or not the NFL was generally aware of a video of one of its better known players viciously tuning up his girlfriend in a casino elevator as well as several domestic violence cases and your typical garden variety drug busts, DUIs and club fights.  There was also the upcoming trial of star tight-end turned murderer.  
 
And lest we forget, there was still a lot of discussion about the fairness of the NFL settlement with former players over concussions as well as what the NFL was doing to combat such injuries going forward.  
 
This "story" has given the NFL headlines for what amounts to a silly controversy and it doesn't harm the brand one whit outside of, maybe, the people who have been dominating the threads about this topic.  And the vast majority of you/us will continue to watch the NFL going forward regardless of whether Tom Brady did order a code red or his reputation tarnished despite him being innocent.  
 
If anyone got played by this whole charade it is all of us.

 

[soxhop411]

 
Although the NFLPA along withTom Brady and the NFL along with commissioner Roger Goodell have a scheduled settlement conference with U.S. District Judge Richard M. Berman in New York Wednesday, the hope is the two sides will settle on their own.
The two sides haven’t been able to settle things, as it has gone this far and according to the latest report courtesy of the Washington Post, it still seems unlikely.
“I don’t see much willingness to move toward a middle ground,” an unnamed source, speaking on the condition of anonymity because the case is in court, told the paper.
Added another: “You never say never, I guess. [But] I don’t expect it.”
In earlier negotiations the two sides were far apart as the NFL wanted a sizable suspension imposed on Brady, while the quarterback and the NFLPA insisted they wouldn’t settle for anything that had the quarterback missing any games.
Goodell and Brady are scheduled to appear in court Wednesday morning.

http://itiswhatitis.weei.com/sports/newengland/football/patriots/2015/08/10/report-settlement-between-tom-brady-nfl-seems-unlikely/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

 

[PedroKsBambino]

 
I think it's much more straightforward.  This was all an effort to protect Goodell and Pash: the league office couldn't take another scandal and if the initial deflategate brouhaha all turned out to be an accident because Troy Vincent and Kensil don't understand physics, that's another big credibility hit. 

 
I tend to agree, and I also think the balls weren't reliably measured pregame and once the story started and they realized that, they were doubly-stuck---they couldn't risk an investigation that would expose the obvious proof problem, and they needed something that both fit the narrative ('Cheatriots') and protected the insiders.
 
A smarter Commissioner with more integrity might have brought in someone truly outside at that point and let the chips fall where they may---but that is not RG.

 

[ipol]

The thing is, the actual science in the Exponent report isn't bad at all
 
[Makes my point, then]
 
If the report were subject to any kind of peer review whatsoever, those conclusions would have been torn to shreds.

 
Well, yeah. ;-)

 

[Section15Box113]

So we haven't heard from McNally for awhile. How long until he reappears on Oprah having lost 121 pounds?

I find this thought highly unlikely, yet amusing.

 

[ManhattanRedSox]

So we haven't heard from McNally for awhile. How long until he reappears on Oprah having lost 121 pounds?

I find this thought highly unlikely, yet amusing.

I've been wondering about this as well. If he was prodded by Jastremski and Brady to deflate footballs, how does this low level, game day jagaloon keep that story to himself? All ESPN needs to do is show up at the guys' door with a bag of cool ranch and a 2 liter dr. Pepper and this guy is singing like a canary

 

[TheoShmeo]

The possibilities are many.
 
He was paid A LOT of money to stay quiet.
 
He is very loyal.
 
He is afraid that he'll be made into a Steve Bartman like pariah in his hometown if he talks.
 
He was prodded somewhat but took matters into his own hands with the levels.
 
He wasn't the most precise Deflator and did not actually know what levels the balls would be at.
 
He's generally ascared. 
 
A combination of some or many of the above.

 

[Eddie Jurak]

The possibilities are many.
 
He was paid A LOT of money to stay quiet.
 
He is very loyal.
 
He is afraid that he'll be made into a Steve Bartman like pariah in his hometown if he talks.
 
He was prodded somewhat but took matters into his own hands with the levels.
 
He wasn't the most precise Deflator and did not actually know what levels the balls would be at.
 
He's generally ascared. 
 
A combination of some or many of the above.

Is a hypothetical deflator breaking any laws?

 

[garzooma]

I've been wondering about this as well. If he was prodded by Jastremski and Brady to deflate footballs, how does this low level, game day jagaloon keep that story to himself? All ESPN needs to do is show up at the guys' door with a bag of cool ranch and a 2 liter dr. Pepper and this guy is singing like a canary

Some writer (Florio, maybe?) pointed out that the fact that neither the NFL or Wells got anything out of McNally is pretty strong evidence that nothing happened.
 
I've also wondered about whether the Manhattan DA might bring perjury charges against Brady just to get McNally and Jastremski under oath, thinking that he'd make points with Jets fan voters.

 

[Section15Box113]

The possibilities are many.
 
He was paid A LOT of money to stay quiet.
 
He is very loyal.
 
He is afraid that he'll be made into a Steve Bartman like pariah in his hometown if he talks.
 
He was prodded somewhat but took matters into his own hands with the levels.
 
He wasn't the most precise Deflator and did not actually know what levels the balls would be at.
 
He's generally ascared. 
 
A combination of some or many of the above.

Or he has been sequestered on a ranch somewhere in the American west filming the next episode of the Biggest Loser.

After he wins, he appears on Oprah.

Nothing nefarious.

(Of course, I am a card-carrying member of the Science camp and believe that sometimes a trip to the bathroom is just that.)

 

[Average Reds]

Some writer (Florio, maybe?) pointed out that the fact that neither the NFL or Wells got anything out of McNally is pretty strong evidence that nothing happened.
 
I've also wondered about whether the Manhattan DA might bring perjury charges against Brady just to get McNally and Jastremski under oath, thinking that he'd make points with Jets fan voters.

 
I think we've now jumped the guy who was jumping the shark.

 

[lexrageorge]

Some writer (Florio, maybe?) pointed out that the fact that neither the NFL or Wells got anything out of McNally is pretty strong evidence that nothing happened.
 
I've also wondered about whether the Manhattan DA might bring perjury charges against Brady just to get McNally and Jastremski under oath, thinking that he'd make points with Jets fan voters.

IANAL, but my understanding is that the DA would have to actually provide a little something called evidence in order to get an indictment on a perjury charge.  Goodell's opinion that Brady lied is not evidence of anything, and the DA's request would be laughed out of court. 

 

[crystalline]

The thing is, the actual science in the Exponent report isn't bad at all.  The main finding -- that the Ideal Gas Law would explain deflation of 1 PSI but not 2 PSI -- basically echoes what the board's scientists said six months ago in the mega-thread.
 
The real (and fatal) flaw is the decidedly un-scientific conclusion that any deflation not explained by the Ideal Gas Law -- as measured in a controlled laboratory environment -- must therefore be attributable to human intervention.  That's a patently absurd statement, and I can't imagine any real scientists in Exponent, or anywhere else, endorsing that viewpoint.  
 
If the report were subject to any kind of peer review whatsoever, those conclusions would have been torn to shreds.

At the risk of repeating myself:

That's what Exponent does- cloak bad conclusions in high quality scientific procedures. Because their job is to distract the other party in valid scientific details, to make the conclusions seem more valid merely by association. And of the generalist engineering litigation consulting firms, Exponent has the highest profile because they are the best at this.

Exponent did exactly what their client was paying for.

 

[Myt1]

But . . . they did science to it.

 

[dcmissle]

Some writer (Florio, maybe?) pointed out that the fact that neither the NFL or Wells got anything out of McNally is pretty strong evidence that nothing happened.
 
I've also wondered about whether the Manhattan DA might bring perjury charges against Brady just to get McNally and Jastremski under oath, thinking that he'd make points with Jets fan voters.

Where is his jurisdiction? The game occurred in MA, not NY.

Francesca's grand theory at the jump was that the two guys would fold under pressure from FBI agents in a federal probe. That obviously has not happened either. Everyone has better things to do.

 

[BernieRicoBoomer]

 
I think we've now jumped the guy who was jumping the shark.

 
Thanks for this...been looking for a new sig.

 

[Myt1]

Some writer (Florio, maybe?) pointed out that the fact that neither the NFL or Wells got anything out of McNally is pretty strong evidence that nothing happened.
 
I've also wondered about whether the Manhattan DA might bring perjury charges against Brady just to get McNally and Jastremski under oath, thinking that he'd make points with Jets fan voters.

Don't be ridiculous.

Now, if you had said Montreal . . .

 

[Stu Nahan]

Francesca's grand theory at the jump was that the two guys would fold under pressure from FBI agents in a federal probe. That obviously has not happened either. Everyone has better things to do.

Francesa was completely wrong about something? Shocking. Did he actually say there would be a federal probe over air pressure in footballs? That's stupid and agenda driven even for him. Isn't Fatso the same guy that talked about what a waste of time and resources it was going after Clemens and Bonds?

 

[Van Everyman]

The possibilities are many.
 
He was paid A LOT of money to stay quiet.
 
He is very loyal.
 
He is afraid that he'll be made into a Steve Bartman like pariah in his hometown if he talks.
 
He was prodded somewhat but took matters into his own hands with the levels.
 
He wasn't the most precise Deflator and did not actually know what levels the balls would be at.
 
He's generally ascared. 
 
A combination of some or many of the above.

Didn't a poster in this thread somewhere say that one of the Dorito Dinks had another job w the Kraft Group? Feel like it was sometime within the last week or so ...

 

[MuppetAsteriskTalk]

Didn't a poster in this thread somewhere say that one of the Dorito Dinks had another job w the Kraft Group? Feel like it was sometime within the last week or so ...

 
Yes, and he said he couldn't or wouldn't say more.

 

[Section15Box113]

 
Yes, and he said he couldn't or wouldn't say more.

 
Someone mentioned working Revs games in a similar capacity.
Not sure whether this was confirmed - or, for that matter, serious. 
But since it's not the NFL's business, could see it as a viable option for one or both.

 

[Hoya81]

One of the 2 ball-handling employees is still employed by Kraft. Working Revs games.
 
I can say no more.

 
bump

 

[CaptainLaddie]

Goodell is going to be on OTL tonight, I guess.

 

[jsinger121]

Goodell is going to be on OTL tonight, I guess.

 
Pretty dumb when the judge issued a gag order practically.

 

[Dropkick Izzy]

Just part of his daily media availability. Nothing more, nothing less.

 

[Jed Zeppelin]

Too bad it can't be a sit-down with Rachel Nichols so she can reiterate her question about independence and conflicts of interest that Rog so quickly pooh-poohed months ago with a vigorous defense of the unimpeachable INTEGRITY of Ted Wells.

 

[WoburnDiaspora]

Wait, so Rog. can continue his Public Relations attack on Tom Brady on ESPN AKA Connecticut NFL HQ?   And he thinks the judge is going to be OK with this after the judge told everyone to stop with the rhetoric? I sincerely hope this bites him in the ass.  However, after how this has gone so far it will probably work out in his favor. 

 

[edmunddantes]

I just listened to the promo it sounds more like they are discussing Roger's general full plate with teams moving to LA thus in Chicago one day and the next day in NY to deal with Brady thing. It didn't sound like they had a sit down interview.
 
Could be wrong or missed something in the promo I watched on their site.

 

[HowBoutDemSox]

So is Roger scheduled to be in SDNY tomorrow for Brady settlement talks, then fly to Minnesota for his contempt hearing with Doty the next day? Busy week in federal court for Roger.

 

[CaptainLaddie]

Ah. My bad.

 

[tims4wins]

Hopefully his full plate will lead him to say something stupid tomorrow. We can dream.

 

[RedOctober3829]

Goodell is holding a press conference at 5 pm.  

 

[edmunddantes]

Ah. My bad.

You might still be right. They worded it really vaguely at least to me as I was half paying attention to it. 

 

[E5 Yaz]

Goodell is holding a press conference at 5 pm.  

 
End of the owners meetings. This could be about L.A., with him deflecting Brady questions

 

[edmunddantes]

Goodell is holding a press conference at 5 pm.  

Tell me there are going to be real journalists there to ask good questions. 
 
Questions not about the ongoing court, but ones like "Roger, Judge admonished you in Rice case for being not credible on testimony of Rice, and now you have been shown twisting Brady's words. Can we trust you?"

 

[Jed Zeppelin]

Goodell is holding a press conference at 5 pm.  

Probably an attempt to convince the public that the league is more than happy to reach a mutual settlement but the NFLPA is being obtuse and unwilling to compromise. "See Your Honor? It's them!! See?!?!?"

 

[RedOctober3829]

 

Tom Pelissero ‏@TomPelissero  4s4 seconds ago
Goodell on why NFL didn't correct ESPN report about balls: League fully supported Ted Wells, focused on that. (Not really a direct answer.)
 

 

[Bleedred]

 
 
 

Not really a direct answer?   In what world is that responsive to the Q at all?

 

[ElcaballitoMVP]

Q: How receptive is league to settle case: 
 
A: Judge Berman asked us to appear, we'll do that. About the settlement? We had discussions prior to this, we got this note from the judge today and we'll fully cooperate with that and let the judge handle it from there.
 
Tried to get that as best I could. 

Edit: missed "fully"

 

[tims4wins]

Can't imagine Berman likes that answer

 

[CaptainLaddie]

Can't imagine Berman will like that Goodell called Ted Wells "independent" when the league admitted in the court that he wasn't.
 
Keep spouting that lie, Rogie!

 

[soxhop411]

“@dkaplanSBJ: League source told me no chance of Brady settlement before tomorrow’s hearing”

 

[CaptainLaddie]

Not shocking.  Though I will admit I'm getting very nervous that Berman just cuts the suspension in half because they didn't come to a settlement.

 

[AB in DC]

 

Tom Pelissero ‏@TomPelissero 4s4 seconds ago
Goodell on why NFL didn't correct ESPN report about balls: League fully supported Ted Wells, focused on that. (Not really a direct answer.)
 

 

 
Wells wasn't even hired until two or three days after the Mort tweet!!

 

[edmunddantes]

Which help points to the Wells report being in direct response to the Mort tweet.
 
It really did blow the whole thing up into a much larger issue.

 

[dcmissle]

Not shocking.  Though I will admit I'm getting very nervous that Berman just cuts the suspension in half because they didn't come to a settlement.

That is not a legally permissible avenue, and there is no indication Berman does not follow the law. The penalty either is affirmed or vacated and the matter remanded to the League.

 

[natpastime162]

WTF is Russo going on about Gisele in a burqa?

I get the impression Russo thinks Brady married a BC Grad and he allows her to model part-time.

 

[NortheasternPJ]

So we're back to it's an independent investigation again? Nice work Rog. Way to stumble through that question.

Props to Volin. He did something good.

 

[CantKeepmedown]

WTF is Russo going on about Gisele in a burqa?

I get the impression Russo thinks Brady married a BC Grad that he allows her to model part-time.

Kirk tried to get Russo to connect that to Brady, and Russo's response was, "It just shows that both of them have terrible judgement in how to handle the paparazzi."  Russo's an idiot.

 

[joe dokes]

I can't imagine the judge will be happy that Goodell chose to answer *any* questions about the case today. "Judge Berman asked the parties not to comment in public, and we will respect that request" is the ONLY acceptable answer.