PFT: Walsh Was Fired for Tape-Recording Conversations...Belichick Speaks

[tyke1doe]

Though information regarding why he was fired is relevant to his overall credibility, the content of any videotapes he might have won't lie.

That's really the point, IMO.

The Pats said they didn't tape the walk-throughs.
Walsh seems to suggest they did.
He says he has tapes.

The truth should be found on those tapes.

So why can't he just turn them over to Specter?

If, as proponents of Specter's investigation suggest, the Senate has a right to hold hearings into Spygate, wouldn't Congress' right to know trump the fact Walsh gain these tapes improperly?

Why doesn't Specter - who is interested in the truth of this matter - agree to support Walsh's legal fees should any lawsuits result? Specter isn't the only person who is interested in this case. Why hasn't anyone stepped forward to legally protect Walsh? This could be put to rest one way or the other.

Again, the tapes are what's at issue and can either prove the Patriots a liar or Walsh a liar.

 

[tyke1doe]

LOL the Pats are trying to set up the "he taped other teams on his own" excuse if this really was the case why have they not said so before now?

The pats where actually caught doing this crap after he was gone anyway so excuse me if I chose not to believe this

It's too late for that excuse, IMO.

The Patriots said they didn't tape the Rams walk-through. Even if Walsh has tapes that prove they did, the fact that the Patriots kept him on the payroll until 2003 (?) doesn't work to their favor.

At this point, if Walsh's tapes reveal a walk-through, I'm not likely to believe the Pats no matter what they said because they have said they did not tape the walk-throughs and the tapes would prove them to be liars.

 

[theogt]

That's really the point, IMO.

The Pats said they didn't tape the walk-throughs.
Walsh seems to suggest they did.
He says he has tapes.

The truth should be found on those tapes.

So why can't he just turn them over to Specter?

Because he would get sued by the Patriots. If they have nothing to hide, why don't they just release him from his confidentiality agreement?

 

[Big Dakota]

Pats fans seem to thing this is a grad strategy by their front office cheats and will discredit Walsh

http://www.patsfans.com/new-england-patriots/messageboard/showthread.php?t=78017

 

[Ren]

It's too late for that excuse, IMO.

The Patriots said they didn't tape the Rams walk-through. Even if Walsh has tapes that prove they did, the fact that the Patriots kept him on the payroll until 2003 (?) doesn't work to their favor.

Well that's why they are doing this, if they can make people think Walsh is the kind of person who secretly likes to tape stuff they can claim they knew nothing about the tapes and had nothing to do with them then say they're seeing them for the first time too.

 

[sago1]

Sorry but only Pats fans would believe that Walsh taped the walk through on his own w/o the Pats FO involvement. No one else will believe the Pats and besides who knows what else Walsh might have. Of course if he's got no tapes to turn over to either the Commish or Spector then that probably ends the whole thing unless he's got a lot of other stuff which provides some interesting circumstantial evidence.

 

[tyke1doe]

Because he would get sued by the Patriots. If they have nothing to hide, why don't they just release him from his confidentiality agreement?

The Pats should release him from his confidentiality agreement. True.

But this gets back to the issue I raised earlier about what business does the Senate have in this.

If the Senate can't subpoena (I got it right this time) witnesses or doesn't have the power to compel its witnesses to turn over evidence as part of its investigation, then what good is it?

 

[tyke1doe]

Well that's why they are doing this, if they can make people think Walsh is the kind of person who secretly likes to tape stuff they can claim they knew nothing about the tapes and had nothing to do with them then say they're seeing them for the first time too.

That aint gonna fly now that they've been caught taping games. If, indeed, Walsh's tapes show the Rams walk-through and the Pats didn't fire him on the spot, they're guilty regardless whether they approved of it or not.

And saying they didn't know about it won't be believeable because they've already been caught cheating. Who's going to believe them now - outside of Pats fans.

Their credibility would be shot.

 

[theogt]

The Pats should release him from his confidentiality agreement. True.

Glad we can agree. Now what does that tell us about the Patriots?

But this gets back to the issue I raised earlier about what business does the Senate have in this.

If the Senate can't subpoena (I got it right this time) witnesses or doesn't have the power to compel its witnesses to turn over evidence as part of its investigation, then what good is it?

You're assuming that compliance with a congressional subpoena would be a defense to a breach of his confidentiality agreement with the Patriots. I have no idea if it would. I'd have to (1) read the agreement, and (2) research the case law on the issue.

 

[FuzzyLumpkins]

Because he would get sued by the Patriots. If they have nothing to hide, why don't they just release him from his confidentiality agreement?

Thats been my question the entire time.

 

[masomenos]

I actually find myself believing Belichick. I think it was underhanded of him to try to circumvent to spirit of the rule, but he found what he thought was a loophole that would give him competitive advantage and he ran with it. Of course it's a bigger issue if they did use the tape for half time adjustments, or if they taped other teams walkthroughs. But I don't think we can assume either of those occurred unless some evidence comes out.

 

[Redball Express]

The Pats keep looking worse and worse and it seems they have no clue that they are the bad guys here.

When you have the league office being a culpable party to the wrong-doing..then that makes it hard to pin anybody down.

The fact that the NFL disposed of the tapes is just as mysterious as any of this other stuff.

And yes, the Pats have tried to be TEFLON PATS in this whole incident and they have done a good job, with the NFL's help.

The way this whole thing has been handled smacks of previous knowledge that not just the Pats are guilty here. I think other teams have gone this route or some version of it in the past and as long as teams look the other way about it..

..nobody was concerned.

I mean teams have been stealing signals for years and that's nothng new. What's new is the way the technology has progressed to the point of being able to be stealthy and hard to see.

I'm a professional videographer and this story about the video staff not processing the video in the edit room until later in the week during the next opponent preparation is ludicrious.

A camera guy is going to shoot the video, go back in the tunnel, take the camera and walk in a coaches office, shut the door and play back the footage to an assistant coach or whomever was supposed to look it over and then relay that information to whomever.

The whole thing probably took 30 minutes to do from start to finish.

And done discretely, it's undetectable with the miniature DVD cams in use now. And there are exotic stealth cams with fiber optic lenses that can be clipped to your ear to look like a bluetooth device or some sort of headphone arrangement that carries both video and sound.

I know, because I've used them at concerts and sporting events where cams are not allowed.

You can buy the technology on eBAY.

So I must tell you, I wouldn't doubt that it's possible that this guy Walsh acted on his own in doing some of this and it's possible certain people wouldn't know about him having done it.

But it's also just as plausible that it's still being done elsewhere in the NFL.

Very little in this league is original. It's all been done before but just done with a different twist.

And the fact that possibly the Pats have gotten into trouble doing it leads me to beleive others have been doing it and that the NFL is trying desparately to put a cork in this whole thing before there is a breach in the dam concerning it's use around the league.

I'd expect the Pats and the NFL to float something to discredit Walsh. That's the #1 way to get his statements to become meaningless. But the league better pray that nobody else has any evidence that this is happeneing elsewhere.

Because if that news breaks, Mr. Goodell is as good as gone and this cash cow we call the NFL is in for a controversy that will make the Black Sox look like neophites when it comes to fixing games or affecting the outcome of games.

I can see the ghost of George Allen licking his fingers right now at the prospects of waiting for the next shoe to drop.

:shush:

ReDBaLL ExPreSS

 

[burmafrd]

No one beleives the Pats except their fans. BB and company have spent the last 6 years acting all big and bad and surly and now that particular chicken has come home to roost. BB has no credibility with anyone and should not have= his actions over the years show that. His need to totally control things makes the tentative actions of the pats to claim that Walsh did this without authorization even funnier.

 

[khiladi]

When you have the league office being a culpable party to the wrong-doing..then that makes it hard to pin anybody down.

The fact that the NFL disposed of the tapes is just as mysterious as any of this other stuff.

And yes, the Pats have tried to be TEFLON PATS in this whole incident and they have done a good job, with the NFL's help.

The way this whole thing has been handled smacks of previous knowledge that not just the Pats are guilty here. I think other teams have gone this route or some version of it in the past and as long as teams look the other way about it..

..nobody was concerned.

I mean teams have been stealing signals for years and that's nothng new. What's new is the way the technology has progressed to the point of being able to be stealthy and hard to see.

I'm a professional videographer and this story about the video staff not processing the video in the edit room until later in the week during the next opponent preparation is ludicrious.

A camera guy is going to shoot the video, go back in the tunnel, take the camera and walk in a coaches office, shut the door and play back the footage to an assistant coach or whomever was supposed to look it over and then relay that information to whomever.

The whole thing probably took 30 minutes to do from start to finish.

And done discretely, it's undetectable with the miniature DVD cams in use now. And there are exotic stealth cams with fiber optic lenses that can be clipped to your ear to look like a bluetooth device or some sort of headphone arrangement that carries both video and sound.

I know, because I've used them at concerts and sporting events where cams are not allowed.

You can buy the technology on eBAY.

So I must tell you, I wouldn't doubt that it's possible that this guy Walsh acted on his own in doing some of this and it's possible certain people wouldn't know about him having done it.

But it's also just as plausible that it's still being done elsewhere in the NFL.

Very little in this league is original. It's all been done before but just done with a different twist.

And the fact that possibly the Pats have gotten into trouble doing it leads me to beleive others have been doing it and that the NFL is trying desparately to put a cork in this whole thing before there is a breach in the dam concerning it's use around the league.

I'd expect the Pats and the NFL to float something to discredit Walsh. That's the #1 way to get his statements to become meaningless. But the league better pray that nobody else has any evidence that this is happeneing elsewhere.

Because if that news breaks, Mr. Goodell is as good as gone and this cash cow we call the NFL is in for a controversy that will make the Black Sox look like neophites when it comes to fixing games or affecting the outcome of games.

I can see the ghost of George Allen licking his fingers right now at the prospects of waiting for the next shoe to drop.

:shush:

ReDBaLL ExPreSS

It is interesting that you added the dimension of technology to this whole argument, which is what I have stated in the past. Technology today is light years ahead of the past, so the impacts of technology on analyzing a game in real-time are much greater than even ten years ago.