Steve Scarnecchia was fired from the Denver Broncos for taping the San Francisco 49ers’ walk-through practice last year. But his role in “Spygate II” didn’t end Scarnecchia’s football career.
Syracuse has announced that Scarnecchia is the football team’s new video coordinator, and Syracuse head coach Doug Marrone said he stands completely behind his new hire.
“I am 100 percent certain he is the right man for this job,” Marrone told the Post-Standard. “Steve knows he made a mistake. He acknowledged his mistake and faced the consequences. I am convinced that he has learned his lesson. Steve is a Syracuse University graduate, and I am thrilled to have him back at his alma mater.”
Calling what Scarnecchia did a “mistake” may be letting him off a little easy: It’s not like Scarnecchia accidentally left his camera running and turned it off as soon as he realized. Scarnecchia surreptitiously taped the 49ers’ practice and gave the tape to Broncos head coach Josh McDaniels, in clear violation of NFL rules. And the NFL considers Scarnecchia a repeat offender based on his previous work with the Patriots’ video department, although Scarnecchia was actually with the Jets, not the Patriots, at the time that the first “Spygate” scandal broke.
But Marrone says he’s confident Scarnecchia has learned his lesson. If he hasn’t by now, it’s safe to say he never will.