Arlen Specter Will Move Investigation Forward

According to this report out of ESPN.com, Senator Arlen Specter plans to continue his probe into the NFL’s destruction of the Patriot Tapes.  Apparently Mr. Specter was not happy with the explanation Mr. Goodell gave over why the tapes were destroyed.  After a long discussion with the commissioner behind closed doors, Mr. Specter emerged looking as crypt-keeper-esque as ever.  He then issued a statement detailing his intentions to continue this witch hunt, wasting taxpayer money and deflecting at least a little bit of attention from the real issues in this country.
Shouldn’t Arlen Specter have better things to do?  I know I said this yesterday, but I’m going to continue to harp on it.  We’re in the middle of a war, on the brink of a recession, and we have massive issues with health care and education in this country.  Yet somehow, Mr. Specter seems to believe that the best use of his time is the investigation of the Patriot Tapes?  There were some other tapes destroyed recently.  I’m not going to say what was on those tapes, but I will say I think maybe they were more important than some football - at least to elected Senators.
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Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on February 15, 2008 - Post a comment

Goodell Defends Destruction of Tapes

Until the Patriots start making offseason moves, this will be the predominant storyline, mostly because Arlen Specter has nothing better to do with his time, apparently.  In today’s installment of Spygate: The Sequel, Roger Goodell has defended his destruction of the Patriot Tapes, while Senator Specter apparently does not share his sentiment.  Specter and Goodell met yesterday for nearly two hours behind closed doors in a meeting the Senator requested in an attempt to shed more light on the scandal from the beginning of this NFL season.

You know, with Congress going after two professional sports organizations at once, you might think that this country wasn’t on the brink of a recession, or embroiled in an very unpopular war, or dealing with many very important votes on things like torture, wiretapping, and a plethora of other issues.  You might think it was actually the job of our elected officials just to keep sports organizations in line.  It’s not, and the men and women we elect into office should stick to the important stuff and leave sports well enough alone.  That’s my opinion, anyway.

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Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on February 14, 2008 - Post a comment

Goodell to Meet with Specter Today

According to this report out of ESPN.com, today will be the day that NFL commissioner Roger Goodell meets with U.S. Senator Arlen Specter about the Patriots Spygate scandal.  Specter has been shouting and grandstanding as of late about the handling or possibly mishandling of the whole issue, especially in reference to the NFL’s destruction of the Patriot tapes.  There were only six videotapes handed over by the Patriots, and this has sent of some warning alarms to certain people, especially those who continue to cry foul about the Pats’ alleged taping of the Rams prior to their Super Bowl meeting.

I expect that very little will come of this meeting in the way of any more sanctions against the Patriots.  This matter was handled internally, as it should have been, and is pretty much closed.  The NFL looked into every allegation, and their officials concluded that the Pats had turned over all their materials in the matter.  My view on the matter is that the Senate has bigger fish to fry than the NFL, but whatever they need to do to waste a little time and get a few more votes, I suppose.  But I wouldn’t get too bent out of shape about it.

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Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on February 13, 2008 - Post a comment

Five Things the Patriots Need

ESPN.com has started their offseason diagnosing of each respective team’s needs as we enter free agency.  They list the Patriots’ needs within their AFC East article (scroll down a bit to find the Pats).  And no, a time machine was not on their list, though perhaps it should be.  No, the pundits at ESPN.com believe that the Pats need to address the areas of linebacker, cornerback, safety, offensive line, and running back.  While I agree that the Pats will certainly have to get younger at linebacker and they will need to replace big time players at corner and safety, I’m not sure they really need more running backs.

The offensive line is probably the biggest question mark on the list.  The Pats are known for having one of the best offensive units in the league, but the experts at ESPN.com believe the Patriots need depth along the line.  I didn’t notice an issue this season, but if the people at ESPN.com say it, then it must be true. As for the running back situation, I think the Pats had some bad luck and might want to pick up one younger RB in the late rounds of the draft to develop, but I don’t see a pressing need for the Patriots to pick up another RB just yet.

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Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on February 12, 2008 - Post a comment

Former Pats’ Video Assistant Mum

According to this report out of ESPN.com, former Patriots video assistant Matt Walsh will not comment on anything pertaining to his role or lack thereof in the Patriots’ Spygate scandal. Walsh is one of the video assistants who was supposedly a part of the Patriots’ secret videotaping of the Rams’ final practice just before the 2002 Super Bowl.  The Patriots of course won that Super Bowl on a last second field goal by Adam Vinatierri after showcasing a brilliant defensive scheme to combat “The Greatest Show on Turf.”  With rumors swirling, many were hoping Walsh would offer some enlightenment.

Of course, in vintage Belichick fashion, even his former employees remain tight-lipped about anything that goes on behind closed doors within the Patriots organization.  This type of honor and devotion is endearing, but will be seen as little more than a thumbing of the nose at the league by some fans.  However, until Commissioner Goodell does anything more to draw the information from Walsh by applying a bit more force, it seems that silence will be the only answer fans and journalists receive in reference to Spygate.

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Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on February 11, 2008 - Post a comment

Will the Pats Re-Sign Moss?

With the season now finally behind us, it’s time to do some of that moving forward Bill Belichick was talking about.  The Patriots have many tough decisions to make in this offseason, especially in the wake of their disappointing (yes, disappointing) 18-1 season.  Had the Patriots won it all, there would be many fewer question marks.  But perhaps no question looms larger than “What should the Patriots do about Randy Moss?“  There are a great many options for the Patriots, and they will likely explore all of them before finally coming to a decision.

A long term contract for the receiver is a troubling proposition.  Though Moss was on his best behavior throughout 2007, there is no guarantee that he will remain on his best behavior until the end of his career.  Moss took a paycut to play for the Pats for the chance at a Super Bowl ring.  Now that the Patriots have fallen short, no one really knows how Moss will react.  New England can’t let him walk away, because Tom Brady will flip out if they do.  So the only option appears to be to put the franchise tag on Moss.  Of course, no one yet knows how Moss will react to that either.

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Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on February 8, 2008 - Post a comment

SpyGate Part 2?

I’ve tried to stay away from this ugly mess of a story for as long as I can, but with SpyGate once again rearing its head as the offseason is upon us, I can’t ignore it any longer.  In the latest development, it seems the NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell is willing to give former Patriots video assistant Matt Walsh indimnification for any information he might be able to turn over about the Patriots’ allegedly taping the final walkthrough practice of the St. Louis Rams before their meeting in the Super Bowl during the 2001 season - or any other information he might have about the Patriots supposed spy campaign.

I won’t pretend to be some kind of industry insider with the super scoop, but I will say that this sounds pretty bad.  I’ve been following this story all year, and for the most part it just seems as though it’s all being blown way out of proportion.  I believe the best course of action for most anyone would be to reserve judgment on this issue until the whole thing plays out.  Also, I believe it’s absolutely ridiculous that congress has gotten involved in this issue.  To be completely honest, I would think they have more important matters to attend to.

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Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on February 7, 2008 - Post a comment

Belichick Moving Forward

It’s never easy to lose the Super Bowl.  You spend all year working, practicing, playing your guts out and winning.  Then you get to the playoffs.  You keep winning, and you get all the way to the Super Bowl.  It’s all you’ve dreamed of all year long, dating back to your final loss of the last season.  And then you get to the Super Bowl, and you lose.  It’s an unfamiliar feeling to Bill Belichick and these Patriots, but it is one that Bill Belichick is handling just as he handles everything else.  With his usual lack of bravado or general emotion, Bill Belichick is moving on from this Super Bowl loss.

Of course, no one should be surprised to learn that this is the line Bill Belichick is taking on this particular matter.  The man is made of stone no matter what tempest swirls around him, so it is no shock that he is publicly addressing this situation with his usual buttoned-up approach.  But make no mistake.  This loss will stick with Bill Belichick for quite some time.  If anything, this loss will make it even more likely that the Patriots win the Super Bowl next year, because Bill Belichick will spend even more time going over tape and rehashing all the things the Patriots did wrong in this game.  Next year promises to be another exciting one for the Pats.

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Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on February 6, 2008 - Post a comment

Moss and Brady out of Pro Bowl

Only one day after losing the Super Bowl, it appears Tom Brady and Randy Moss have opted out of the Pro Bowl.  Both Brady and Moss cited ankle injuries as their reasons for missing the big game in Hawaii.  Brady will be replaced by Cleveland Browns quarterback Derek Anderson, while Moss will be replaced by Cincinnati Bengals receiver Chad Johnson.  While it won’t be the same Pro Bowl without the quarterback and receiver who helped each other set amazing individual records during the regular season, both the replacement players are well-deserver in their own right.

First of all, there will now be rampant speculation as to how injured both of these players were during the Super Bowl.  They certainly didn’t look like the Tom Brady and Randy Moss of the regular season.  Brady in particular missed a few passes that he normally would have made on Sunday.  Moss didn’t seem to hobbled, but perhaps he was just hiding an injury.  Beyond that, this just seems to drive home the point further that despite their individual accomplishments, both Brady and Moss consider this season a failure now.  They won’t be happy until they come back and win the Super Bowl.

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Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on February 5, 2008 - Post a comment

Super Bowl Afterthoughts from the Sports Guy

For the first time in months, I have bad news to report about the New England Patriots.  I haven’t had any bad news to report about the Patriots since the first week of the season, when the Pats were dealing with the initial fallout from SpyGate.  Since then, it’s been smooth sailing for the Patriots, with records being set, all kinds of amazing wins being posted, and a real chance at history in the Super Bowl.  It was all set up perfectly for the Patriots.  The game was practically gift-wrapped for the Patriots.  And then something unthinkable happened.  The Patriots lost the Super Bowl.
I’m still in such shock, I don’t have a clue what to say about the game.  This is Bill Simmons’s take on the entire game, and since he was actually at the game, he has some really interesting things to say about it.  I loved the game as a contest.  It was hard fought and very unexpected.  I still can’t believe how flat the Patriots were.  The Simmons article is extremely well-written and has some great insights, but I would understand if Pats fans just want to wipe this game from their collective memory.  Games like this one hurt for a long time.

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Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on February 4, 2008 - Post a comment


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