New England taped Rams' final 2002 Superbowl walkthrough

[Guest]

PHOENIX (AP) -- A member of the New England Patriots' video staff taped the St. Louis Rams' last walkthrough before the 2002 Super Bowl, a Boston newspaper reported Saturday.

The NFL, however, said it was satisfied this was not another Spygate.

"We were aware of the rumor months ago and looked into it. There was no evidence of it on the tapes or in the notes produced by the Patriots, and the Patriots told us it was not true," NFL spokesman Greg Aiello told The Associated Press.

Citing an unidentified source, the Boston Herald reported that a Patriots employee recorded the Rams' walkthrough at the Superdome in the New Orleans a day before the Super Bowl. New England beat the heavily favored Rams 20-17 its first NFL title.

The Herald reported that a source close to the Patriots in the 2001 season said the team held a walkthrough at the Superdome in New Orleans before the game on Feb. 3, 2002. After the Patriots took a team picture, a member of their video department stayed inside the stadium and taped the Rams' session.

It was not known whether the cameraman was told by the Patriots to film the practice or what he did with the tape, the Herald said. The Rams were two-touchdown favorites, but lost on Adam Vinatieri's last-second field goal.

"The suggestion that the New England Patriots recorded the St. Louis Rams' walkthrough on the day before Super Bowl XXXVI is absolutely false. Any suggestion to the contrary is untrue," Patriots spokesman Stacey James told the AP.

Rams spokesman Rick Smith, reading a statement from team president John Shaw, said, "At this point, we have no comment."

The unbeaten Patriots will try to win their fourth Super Bowl in seven seasons Sunday when they play the New York Giants.

Early this season, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell fined New England coach Bill Belichick $500,000 and docked the team $250,000 and a first-round draft pick after the Spygate scandal. The Patriots were accused of videotaping New York Jets defensive coaches as they signaled to players.

New England did not have a walkthrough Saturday. The Giants held one at the Arizona Cardinals' practice facility.

A walkthrough is done without pads or helmets, giving teams a chance to practice their formations.

Goodell spent much of his state of the game address Friday talking about that episode. He said he did not think the Patriots used such tapes to win previous titles.

"There was no indication that it benefited them in any of the Super Bowl victories," he said.

Goodell also defended his decision to destroy notes and videotapes linked to the Spygate, saying "there was no purpose for them."

Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., who sent Goodell a letter asking for explanation, said Goodell's response "didn't make any sense at all."

[darklordofthesith]

so? arlen spector is a big spender here in pennsylvania. this happened years ago and the guy who filmed it was released by the patriots before the superbowl in 2001. so his story is a copout. go pats!!!

[TDQuiksilver]

Yawn. :sleep:

And look what happens when my Patriots don't "cheat and steal" ... a perfect season (with a pending win today) ... I do love how other teams act so innocent though. It's no secret other teams have done such things behind the scenes. It still all boils down to execution though, reglardless of what you know and don't know.

[Guest]

And look what happens when my Patriots don't "cheat and steal" ... a perfect season (with a pending win today)

Aren't you forgetting the controversial opening day victory against the Jets?

[Mathachew Veteran]

Aren't you forgetting the controversial opening day victory against the Jets?

Question: which one of these statements are false?

The Patriots taped the Jets.

The tape was confiscated during the first quarter.

The Patriots never used those tapes because of the above fact.

The tape, among others, were destroyed.

The Patriots mostly dominated their way to 18-0.

Answer: None.

The tape was useless and had absolutely no bearing on that game's outcome.

[Guest]

Question: which one of these statements are false?

The Patriots taped the Jets.

The tape was confiscated during the first quarter.

The Patriots never used those tapes because of the above fact.

The tape, among others, were destroyed.

The Patriots mostly dominated their way to 18-0.

Answer: None.

The tape was useless and had absolutely no bearing on that game's outcome.

The fact remains, they still intended to gain an unfair advantage over an opponent and by doing so, violated league rules.

They attempted to cheat, and the league agrees with me. Whether or not it had an impact on a VERY successful (I'm not trying to take anything away from New England here) season is irrelevant. I've never once suggested it has.

[Mathachew Veteran]

The fact remains, they still intended to gain an unfair advantage over an opponent and by doing so, violated league rules.

They attempted to cheat, and the league agrees with me. Whether or not it had an impact on a VERY successful (I'm not trying to take anything away from New England here) season is irrelevant. I've never once suggested it has.

In this instance, the key word is attempted to. Fortunately for them, they didn't (and honestly shouldn't have, not with that kind of talent). At that point, the tape was confiscated and there was no advantage to be had other than the normal means of gaining one, and as such the only foul was the taping. I think Goodell made the right move fining Belichick and the organization instead of punishing the whole team. I read this in an article, and it's something to ponder: it's highly unlikely any of the players knew what was going on, and that it was likely only the coaches that knew about it. How many players that would've known would have screamed foul when they no longer played on the team? I sure as heck would've. Anywho, they've earned their record. I'm not ready to offer an opinion on previous titles.

[fusionspill]

if they cheated or not they defiently fooled everybody by playing the game well and winning it. You still have to play well if you are cheating in a game. just because one person says they have video and plays of the opposite team doesnt mean they can just walk to the end zone and win the game, you still have to play the game as a team. that means you have to run, block, cry and sweat to the end zone. teams that cheat can also lose. but why did they lose? they didnt play good enough.

[devnulllore]

Yawn. :sleep:

And look what happens when my Patriots don't "cheat and steal" ... a perfect season (with a pending win today) ... I do love how other teams act so innocent though. It's no secret other teams have done such things behind the scenes. It still all boils down to execution though, regardless of what you know and don't know.

Good point my friend! Oh except for the pending win..... :( (see my longer post elsewhere)

I wish people would just get over it. One, alleged, incident in the first game of this season and suddenly they have been cheating forever! The story came from a disgruntled employee... nuff said.

[yisman]

I hope Belichick gets suspended

[Guest]

Apology.