The 2007 Spygate scandal brought attention to the fact that NFL teams routinely try to find out what their opponents are doing. (And as to any of you who still believe that the Pats are the only team that was cheating, we wish you the best in your continued search for a golden-hooved unicorn.)
Though it’s unknown whether teams have stopped cheating in the NFL or have merely taken extra steps to avoid being caught, there’s a pro football league where the motto “if you ain’t cheatin’, you ain’t tryin’” apparently still applies.
While doing his daily tour of the league in search of fodder for the One-Liner feature, Josh Alper found an item in the Globe and Mail regarding an apparent case of subterfuge in the CFL.
A man connected to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers was detected taking notes at a Hamilton Tiger-Cats practice in advance of the upcoming game between the two teams. After being confronted, the man said he was “taking notes on formations” for a team in the Ontario Varsity Football League.
Later, the man said identified himself as Ron Trentini, and he said that he is a friend of Blue Bombers director of player personnel John Murphy. (Coincidentally, Murphy also is listed as the Executive Vice President of NFLDraftBible.com, a web site that attracted much scrutiny earlier this year after erroneously reporting that several first-round prospects had tested positive for steroids and/or marijuana.)
Trentini reportedly was scouting a recent game wearing Blue Bombers apparel. The Blue Bombers, however, have disavowed knowledge of Trentini’s activities.
“It was an open practice and this guy does some [Canadian university]
scouting for us in the Toronto area,” Blue Bombers director of football
operations Ross Hodgkinson told the Globe and Mail. “He was overzealous and he took it
upon himself to make some notes. It was his own doing and as soon as it
was reported to us we sent an apology to the Ticats. Hopefully, that
will be the end of it.”
In hindsight, the Tiger-Cats apparently regret missing an opportunity to flip Trentini.
“To be honest, we probably made a mistake by escorting him out,” Tiger-Cats president Scott Mitchell said. “Considering how quickly he gave up his contacts and his reason for
being there, we probably should have bought him lunch and asked him
some more questions, who knows what we would have found out?”
“The” Scott Mitchell?
I thought he got busted for like illegal spying on the NFL or something.
Given the zeal with which Bob (Take off, you hoser!) Nelson follows the CFL, I find it hard to believe he wasn’t on top this much sooner…
Hahaha, come on Florio, we all know that “the Pats are the only team” that has ever, and would ever, have the gall to “cheat”. Ask any Steelers fan, or Colts fan, and they will tell you that there team has never ever ever ever been a part of any funny business (but between you and me, it is safe to say ALL teams do things to gain an edge, just dont tell that to the fans of the other 31 teams)
Your conjecture that ALL NFL teams cheat is meaninglessin the face of the FACTS that the Cheatriots are the only NFL team to have been CAUGHT doing it, had the team AND the head cheater fined for doing it, and lost a first round draft pick for doing it. Implying that they are not alone is simply your guess, upon which no factual evidence exists.
One relevant point in your piece does, however, reflect on how things remain, and that is your reasoning that either cheating has stopped, or it’s being better hidden. I would bet the farm that Bill Belicheat mploys myriad forms of cheating to this day, and mmakes sure that it will not be found out, at least to his thinking. Once a cheater always a cheater.
Oclap needs to get laid, big time.
Jimmy Johnson said it was rampant when he coached, Jon Gruden was shocked it was even an issue.
Did you find the unicorn yet oclap?
olcap word count:
cheat/cheats/cheater/Cheatriots/Belicheat: 7
Could you possibly be any more of a whiny bitch, olcap? Get a hold of yourself man…your act is embarrassing.
All true football fans are watching the regular season of the CFL.
Thank you to the writer of this piece for acknowledging for the first time this season that the CFL does indeed exist.
At least someone who knows someone associated with Draftbible is doing their homework.
If you are going to talk pro football, you must talk about the CFL.
olcap, your ignorance is beautiful.
Other than the fact that MANY retired players and coaches have come forward and admitted to ‘cheating’, the Pats aren’t the only fan that have gotten caught ‘cheating’ and lost a draft pick because of it. Do some research instead of just assuming, idiot.
“olcap says:
July 15, 2009 10:54 AM
Your conjecture that ALL NFL teams cheat is meaninglessin the face of the FACTS that the Cheatriots are the only NFL team to have been CAUGHT doing it, had the team AND the head cheater fined for doing it, and lost a first round draft pick for doing it. Implying that they are not alone is simply your guess, upon which no factual evidence exists.”
Of course, the fact that a league-wide memo went out at the start of the season, telling teams to knock off the side-line camera work might lead some to believe that the issue was fairly widespread.
And some might argue that, since the Patriots blatantly ignored the memo, and new commissioner Roger Goodell was trying to make a name for himself, is what lead to an extra-harsh punishment in order to get his point across. Kind of like a teacher saying “the next person to talk gets a detention” and then following through with the threat.
Just a thought though.
Why don’t you present it clintdogg? Oh, because it doesn’t exist? Thought so!
Hey, look olcap, cheaters on the West Coast too:
http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20080325/SPORTS/803250383?Title=Tampering-costs-49ers-draft-pick
complete with loss of draft pick and big fines for the “head cheaters.”
Yes, the Cheatriots and Cheaty-niners are cheating, but they are the only ones…honest.
The guy was taking notes for crying out loud.
You can’t compare that to the systematic video taping scheme of Bellicheat’s. Its like comparing armed bank robbery to shoplifting, a bit of difference in the payout and degree of sleaziness, something that Bellicheat is second to none in.
Oclap,
And you weren’t speeding if you didn’t get a ticket, and those 2,000 or so poor souls who actually got sued for downloading music illegally were the only ones who did it.
@JimmySmith -
What gives? I thought all your posts needed a Col Klink reference in them? You’re slipping, dude!
Wow, a JimmySmith comment filled with stupidity. It’s like the sun rising in the East.
“olcap says:
July 15, 2009 11:46 AM
Why don’t you present it clintdogg? Oh, because it doesn’t exist? Thought so!”
Present evidence of former coaches and players admitting to it?
Ok. How about 2 time Super Bowl champion Jimmy Johnson?
After footage from the actual tape was aired on FOX NFL Sunday on September 16, former Dallas Cowboys head coach Jimmy Johnson claimed, “This is exactly how I was told to do it 18 years ago by a Kansas City Chiefs scout. I tried it, but I didn’t think it helped us.” Johnson also said, “Bill Belichick was wrong because he videotaped signals after a memo was sent out to all of the teams saying not to do it. But what irritates me is hearing some reactions from players and coaches. These players don’t know what their coaches are doing. And some of the coaches have selective amnesia because I know for a fact there were various teams doing this. That’s why the memo was sent to everybody. That doesn’t make [Belichick] right, but a lot of teams are doing this.”
Love seeing all the crybaby Cheatriot fanboys with their panties all in a knot!
LMFAO, I love the rose colored glasses that people have.
Some folks, will argue and argue and argue, that since New England is the “only ones” to “get caught”,that they are obviously the only ones that were doing it. That is laughable. The Niners, Broncos, Dolphins, and Steelers have all been fined draft picks, they werent first round draft picks, but they were draft picks none the less. I dont think they got fined because the owner was caught wiping his ass sideways, it is probably because they violated a rule. And as we have heard time and time and time and time again, violating a rule is cheating (unless it is holding, that isnt cheating…..)
But, these same folks, are the same ones that want baseball players to prove that they “didnt” use PED’s. You cant prove that you didnt, it can only be proven that you did (if you did).
It is very easy to pretend that the Pats are the only ones, because they got caught. I still dont understand how it helped them tremendously?
There are 4 coaches on the sideline, signaling to the defense. That means your first job is to figure out which of them are the decoys. Video tapes are not going to solve that one. Then you need to know which signals are real, and which signals are decoys. Then you need to figure out what signal means what……….
I am willing to bet, that I could give you a list of signals, and what each of them means. Then let you watch 4 guys giving signals while you video record it. And you wouldnt be able to tell me what the defensive play was before the “snap of the ball”.
I think that is something that gets lost. Taping defensive signals, “might” help you over a long period of time, but that video tape is not going to help you during the game. Everyone likes to talk about this huge advantage from taping signals (because everyone watches ESPN, and we know how much they dislike that Pats to begin with). How did they get an advantage??? Prove the tangible advantage, on a play by play basis. No one can prove that. It is much easier to just say, well, err, well, they cheated, thats all that matters.
This country has millions of people driving vehicles, I am willing to bet that every single one of them has driven faster than the posted speed limit at some point (even if by accident). However, I will also bet that there is a high percentage that have never received a speeding ticket. Using your argument against the Pats, that means that the only people in this country that have even broken the speed limit, are the ones that were fined for doing it
“Love seeing all the crybaby Cheatriot fanboys with their panties all in a knot!”
^^^^^
“Cheatriot fanboys” is far and away the most gay phrase to be thrown around PFT. Congrats, olcap, you are on your way to surpassing gameday as the lamest troll on PFT.
Which calls for a haiku:
“Cheatriot fanboys”
olcap’s way of announcing
He’s gay and he’s proud
“Yes, the Cheatriots and Cheaty-niners are cheating, but they are the only ones…honest.”
^^^^^^
Fortunately the Denver Cheatcos never circumvented the salary cap and were never fined heaviliy for that…uh, oops
OMG there’s gamesmanship in professional sports! What’s next, someone smoking weed?
Oh, the horror.
so olclap has his “argument” thrown back in his faces so he resorts to “crybaby cheatriot fanboys”. youre a failure
You would love to see boys in panties wouldn’t you olcap, you freak…
* 18-1
Let me just take a moment to slam dunk anyone who dispute’s Florio’s note about the state of cheating in the NFL.
Here’s a little article written by a former NFL quarterback way back in 1967, shedding just a bit of late on the cheating of the Bears, Chiefs and others
This has been posted before but most of you have worked hard to brainwash yourselves into thinking it doesn’t exist.
http://www.thesportgallery.com/sport-stories/1967aug-nflspy.html
I’ve never seen such a big group of whiners as the Patriots fans. They assembled the premier dynasty of the 2000′s, and they still need to come, en masse, to decry the fact that someone called them cheaters!
Everyone knows, Boston fans are better when their teams are on decades-long losing streaks. Get back to what you do best, boys!
Seriously, I bet Roger Goodell would rethink the harshness of the punishment he gave the Patriots, because in making an example of them, he also made it look like it was a much bigger deal, and also exclusive to one team. Which is why so few people actually put reasonable thought into the issue….”I don’t like the Patriots, they broke a rule, they got one of the harshest penalties in NFL history….therefore it must have been the worst transgression in NFL history.”
It also could explain why he destroyed the videos….because he created a shitstorm, and would have had to justify not punishing them further because people would have freaked out over every single incident.
The Real Shuxion says: Oclap needs to get laid, big time.
—————————————–
Somewhere a flock of sheep just shuddered.
yeah, I’m gay because a guy with a nicknameblike hayward giablommi says so… talk about ninnies. LOL
“olcap says:
July 15, 2009 4:13 PM
yeah, I’m gay because a guy with a nicknameblike hayward giablommi says so… talk about ninnies. LOL”
I think you’re gay because of the last three words in your post.
And the LOL at your own post. That doesn’t help either.
“yeah, I’m gay because a guy with a nicknameblike hayward giablommi says so… talk about ninnies. LOL”
^^^^^
I was merely speculating based on overwhelming evidence. But your use of “LOL” certainly confirms it.