UPDATE (4:15 p.m.): The NFL is reportedly targeting a Patriots locker room attendant in the Deflate-Gate investigation
The NFL has provided few answers about its Deflate-Gate investigation, including what propelled the officials to recheck the Patriots’ footballs in the first place.
Referee Walt Anderson’s crew weighed the Patriots’ footballs at halftime during the AFC Championship Game, even though all 24 of the Pats’ balls were properly inspected prior to kick-off. ESPN reported Tuesday that 11 of the 12 Patriots’ footballs were illegally under inflated when they were reexamined. ESPN’s story says the balls were under-inflated by two pounds of air per NFL regulations, but Pro Football Talk reported Sunday that 10 of the Patriots’ balls were only under-inflated by one pound per square inch. The NFL requires that all game balls be inflated between 12.5 and 13.5 pounds PSI.
WCVB’s Mike Lynch said last week Colts linebacker D’Qwell Jackson turned over what he thought was a deflated football to officials after he had intercepted Tom Brady at the end of the second quarter. But Jackson denies the story.
Related: Deflate-Gate Is Why Non-Sports Fans Think Sports Are Stupid
Another theory that’s been floated out there is that the Ravens tipped the Colts off about the Patriots playing with under-inflated balls. Fox Sports’ Jay Glazer wrote Wednesday the NFL was planning to inspect the Patriots’ footballs at halftime whether the Colts filed a complaint or not. Colts head coach Chuck Pagano served under John Harbaugh on the Ravens’ coaching staff for four seasons. Harbaugh complained that the Patriots were running illegal plays in their 35-31 win over the Ravens in the Divisional Round. (Harbaugh has since rescinded his allegations, and called Belichick the “best coach of the century” Sunday.)
Yahoo! Sports Dan Wetzel has followed up Glazer’s report with speculation that the NFL ran a sting operation against the Patriots. ESPN’s Ed Werder backed that sentiment up on Twitter Sunday.
When told of suspected cheating by #Pats, #NFL tried to catch them in act rather than reminding them of rules. Is something wrong with that?
— Ed Werder (@Edwerderespn) January 25, 2015
Bill Belichick and Tom Brady both deny that they had knowledge of the Patriots playing with deflated footballs in the first half of the game. Belichick said Saturday during a defiant press conference the balls dropped below the league mandated PSI due to atmospheric conditions.
At this stage, the ambiguity surrounding the NFL’s investigation makes it difficult to say the Patriots purposely deflated the footballs. Belichick’s explanation may not be true, but at least he has a story about what happened. The league currently does not.
