Jesus, this thread makes me want to call the wambulance

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Gaining a competitive advantage, cheating, call it what you will -- every single team in every single sport does it.

I despise the Patriots despite living in the heart of New England (grew up a Bills fan in central NY), but wah wah wah ... the only reason people make a big deal about the Patriots "cheating" is because they've been dominant in the Brady/Belichick era. No one else is even close in terms of consistently fielding a contending team year in and year out. It's goddamn maddening to be sure, so people jump on the whole cheating argument. If this were the Jags or the Raiders or my Bills, no would give a rat's ass.
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Gooooo patsssssss !!!!!!
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Go Seahawks!!
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Go football! I'm into college hoops now, and waiting for spring training.
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The REAL sport! :-)
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Like Félix Heredia, Yusaku Iriki and Guillermo Mota did, Mets fan?
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Just a bit of caution for all participants. Let's not make this personal. Remember why we're all here.

:-)
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I kind of think of the New England hate about the same as Yankees hate.
I always say I hate the Yankees. I don't in the least, really. They're a storied institution of winners that make the game better. I just love to watch them lose. :-)

I love watching New England play ball. Tom Brady is an incredible quarterback and I can't think of a coach in the NFL right now that is as talented and as complete as Bill Belichick. His pedigree is outstanding and there is nobody who works harder.
It does drive me nuts that he dresses like a doof.
That said, I'm not a New England fan. I don't root for them to lose as hard as I do the Yanks, but I do root for them to lose so the Steelers don't have to go anywhere near them in the playoffs.

I figure if I hate on the cheating, or Brady's temper, or Belichick's doofy hoodies and it keeps me away from watching them play ball, I lose.
They are an astonishing franchise. One of the very best I've ever seen in 40 years of watching the NFL.
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I think that this is really great!!

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That's awesome. I hope they work out the bet. :-)
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When the Seahawks win, the kids at the children's hospital win!
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I am a Mets fan and I am glad the cheaters got caught.
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Well regardless of the outcome I hope he goes anyway. I know RD Jr. is making the most of his second chance in life and does a lot of charity and kids events, would love to see Chris Evans follow suit. Bam! play on words.
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I work night shift; I haven't seen a game all season. I was just asking the question. You're right: it is always cold when they play, but how often are they measured after a game, always or only upon protest? BTW, I hate cheating too, I just want what happens to be based on science and not emotion.

As for who uses what balls, I thought it was like Baseball, where the home team supplies all the balls for the game.
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Sorry Vin, gotta call BS on this. If the Jags cheated we would actually be amazed that they were paying attention...

:-)
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At the end of the day, NFL is just entertainment and should be treated as such.
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At the end of the day, NFL is just a multi-billion dollar business and should be regulated as such.
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I like money.
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Since they switched back to fully inflated balls at halftime it seems the Pats handicapped themselves in the first half.
I wonder how many of the players are wearing special braces or other appliances that enhance their performance. Everyone does anything they think they can get away with. I grew up in the Drugged Up Players years when they used every steroid and stimulant and pain killer they could imagine. It was fair, I guess, cuz they were all doing it.
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