Belichick has been taping since 2000, Goodell tells Specter

[dbackjon]

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Bill Belichick has been illegally taping opponents' defensive signals since he became the New England Patriots' coach in 2000, according to Sen. Arlen Specter, who said NFL commissioner Roger Goodell told him that during a meeting Wednesday.

"There was confirmation that there has been taping since 2000, when Coach Belichick took over," Specter said.

Specter said Goodell gave him that information during the 1-hour, 40-minute meeting, which was requested by Specter so the commissioner could explain his reasons for destroying the Spygate tapes and notes.


http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news;_ylt=AvqGNH_29sA_ne43VD9Zq8A5nYcB?slug=ap-goodell-specter&prov=ap&type=lgns

[patssle]

Oh goody, maybe Congress can investigate this too!

[OL FU]

Nationalize Pro Sportsxthumbsupx

[dbackjon]

Oh goody, maybe Congress can investigate this too!


They already are...

[dbackjon]

Nationalize Pro Sportsxthumbsupx

We should, as many tax breaks/public support as they get already.

[mlbowl]

“I found a lot of questions unanswerable because of the tapes and notes had been destroyed.” - Specter



BIG SHOCKER!!!xeekx

[hebmskebm]

“I found a lot of questions unanswerable because of the tapes and notes had been destroyed.” - Specter



BIG SHOCKER!!!xeekx

Pro football is the new national pastime. There's no way they'd allow it to be ripped open and gutted the way they're doing it to baseball.

[mlbowl]

Pro football is the new national pastime. There's no way they'd allow it to be ripped open and gutted the way they're doing it to baseball.


Agreedxnodx

[spelunker64]

This is a NFL issue, it was dealt by the NFL and Congress want's to get involved like MLB, but Goodell is a real commisioner and he runs his business. Case closed...

[mlbowl]

This is a NFL issue, it was dealt by the NFL and Congress want's to get involved like MLB, but Goodell is a real commisioner and he runs his business. Case closed...

I agree Congress doesn't need to be involved...but what purpose did destroying evidence serve?

[Franks Tanks]

I still dont understand how Spector has any authority here. This isnt a Enron type accounting and reveune rec scheme intended to dupe investors. The only possible justification I can see is that by cheating on the field the Patriots undeservingly won some games and rasied the value of there franchsie. What other possible reason does the US govt have to intervene can some legal folks explain this??

[Pards Rule]

I said this to my friend last Sept after it broke. Buried in the reporting was the fact that Goodell destroyed the tapes. I told him I found that most curious and I said it probably showed that the taping had been long standing and the NFL just wanted this to go away ASAP and that they destroyed the evidence as it probably also related to the Super Bowls and the NFL couldnt let that get out. Specter says the jurisdiction is based on the anti-trust exemption the NFL enjoys. He is ranking minority member of the Judiciary Committee (former chair when GOP controlled Senate). Current chair is Sen. Pat Leahy (D., VT).

[spelunker64]

He destroyed the tapes to prevent them being leaked to the media and used everynight on E$PN...

[spelunker64]

Every team does this, most just use binoculars and write them down, but this isn't new and won't end...

[CollegeSportsInfo]

I said this to my friend last Sept after it broke. Buried in the reporting was the fact that Goodell destroyed the tapes. I told him I found that most curious and I said it probably showed that the taping had been long standing and the NFL just wanted this to go away ASAP and that they destroyed the evidence as it probably also related to the Super Bowls and the NFL couldnt let that get out. Specter says the jurisdiction is based on the anti-trust exemption the NFL enjoys. He is ranking minority member of the Judiciary Committee (former chair when GOP controlled Senate). Current chair is Sen. Pat Leahy (D., VT).

That's the same point I noticed in the report. The penalty didn't seem to match the crime at all. Since the "crime" was reportedly ONLY the incident against the Jets, the penalty should have been compensation for the Jets (be it a 1st or 2nd round pick forfeited TO the Jets, etc). Instead, it was the loss of picks and the biggest cash penalty in the history of the NFL. It was clear there was more to the story. And it's good that it's coming out now. Institutionalized cheating by an organization is something that cannot exist when citizens in other cities are approving tax funds for stadiums, etc.

[Franks Tanks]

I said this to my friend last Sept after it broke. Buried in the reporting was the fact that Goodell destroyed the tapes. I told him I found that most curious and I said it probably showed that the taping had been long standing and the NFL just wanted this to go away ASAP and that they destroyed the evidence as it probably also related to the Super Bowls and the NFL couldnt let that get out. Specter says the jurisdiction is based on the anti-trust exemption the NFL enjoys. He is ranking minority member of the Judiciary Committee (former chair when GOP controlled Senate). Current chair is Sen. Pat Leahy (D., VT).

The NFL and the New England Patriots are private corporations are the not? So they are not subject to the strict practices outlined by the Sarbanes-Oxley act which public compaines must comply with and that is enforcable by the govt. They may have been cheating in a game, but they werent defrauding or cheating consumer or other businesses. I just have a hard time seeing how Spector should be involved here, despite the potential legal ok to get invloved.

[walliver]

The NFL and the New England Patriots are private corporations are the not? So they are not subject to the strict practices outlined by the Sarbanes-Oxley act which public compaines must comply with and that is enforcable by the govt. They may have been cheating in a game, but they werent defrauding or cheating consumer or other businesses. I just have a hard time seeing how Spector should be involved here, despite the potential legal ok to get invloved.

Most (?all) NFL teams are privately held companies (not publicly traded companies). Sarbanes-Oxley does not apply. The only legal basis for government oversite is the fact that the NFL is specifically exempted from antitrust laws. If congress finds that the NFL is corrupt, they could choose to remove these exemptions.

I suspect that Spector is just a bitter Eagles fan.

[Franks Tanks]

Most (?all) NFL teams are privately held companies (not publicly traded companies). Sarbanes-Oxley does not apply. The only legal basis for government oversite is the fact that the NFL is specifically exempted from antitrust laws. If congress finds that the NFL is corrupt, they could choose to remove these exemptions.

I suspect that Spector is just a bitter Eagles fan.

I believe the Packers are the only incorporated NFL team. I know SOX is only for public companies, but really doesnt Spector have anything better to do? Get our boys outta Iraq or muder some dems to lower my taxes.

[GannonFan]

Belichick takes the George Costanza defense:

"Was that wrong? Should I have not done that? I tell you I gotta plead ingnorance on this thing because if anyone had said anything to me at all when I first started here that that sort of thing was frouned upon, you know, cause I've worked in a lot of offices and I tell you peope do that all the time."

http://www.youthink.com/quiz_images/quiz1075outcome4.jpg

[Peems]

This is a NFL issue, it was dealt by the NFL and Congress want's to get involved like MLB, but Goodell is a real commisioner and he runs his business. Case closed...

That's because he learned from a real commish in Paul T. He and David Stern know what's up


He destroyed the tapes to prevent them being leaked to the media and used everynight on E$PN...

Are you saying that the NFL didn't have the power to just keep them locked up and not release them? I find that hard to believe. The NFL/The Commish are powerful enough that they can withhold whatever they want.