Spygate

The Patriots Spy Case

This case dates back to the 2007 NFL season, when the Patriots were "On Fire", meaning their season was good.
They were accused of filming the opposing defense's hand signals to gain a competitive advantage. And this happened in a game against the New York Jets, one of the teams that is historically a great rival of the Pats on September 9th 2007.
But don't put away your New England Patriots cap just yet, it's not that simple!

Beware: filming opposing signs is not banned in the NFL, but it is regulated!
Teams have never been prohibited from filming opposing franchises or observing the signs being passed around. How could it be justified given that the whole stadium can see them!
In this respect, the term "Spygate" is a bit too strong to describe this event.

How did the Patriots cheat?

It is important to know that since the 2006 season, the NFL has defined the places where you can "observe" and record your opponents.
The problem in the case of the Patriots, is that they filmed from their area ON the field, outside the areas allocated by the NFL. The coach at the time, Bill Belichick, was named responsible.
William "Bill" Belichick has been coaching in the NFL for more than 40 years, he has coached the Colts, the Jets, the Giants, the Browns, the Broncos, the Lions and the Patriots since 2000 with whom he won 6 Superbowls. We are talking about a big name in the world of American soccer! It is him who in January 2000, when he had just been promoted to head coach of the Pats, who chose a certain Tom Brady in 199th position!

What were the sanctions?

Following this incident, the NFL requisitioned the cameras and documents in the offices of the New England Patriots (the training and the offices of the coaches are not necessarily at Gilette Stadium). These documents were destroyed by the NFL.
After a 10-day investigation, Belichick was fined $500,000 and the Patriots were fined $250,000 & denied the first round of the following year's draft. The fine for Belichick was the largest ever given to an NFL coach.
Belichick defended himself by saying that he always thought that this practice was allowed.
Even today we wonder about the interest of such a scandal. Indeed, all NFL teams record the games of their opponents to dissect them and work on the strategy. Whether the cameras are in one place or another it does not change anything, the signs are not intended to be hidden anyway.

The congress gets involved

In 2008, the matter came to the forefront again after Senator Arlen Specter made a statement to the press about his concern over the unexplained destruction of the tapes. A ping pong between NFL Commissioner Goodell and Senator Specter ensued... which went nowhere.
More accusations followed, and even lawsuits from fans of opposing teams who were upset that they were eliminated!

In the end

In addition to the financial impact for the Patriots, it is their image that has been damaged. Today, they are still one of the most hated teams in the NFL.
This 2007 season will end at Superbowl for the New England Patriots, final that they will lose 14 to 17 against the Giants of New York