It wouldn’t feel right if the New England Patriots weren’t being accused of trying to skirt the rules in some form or fashion.
However, at least in one instance the Patriots have been cleared of any wrongdoing.
According to Tom Curran of Comcast Sportsnet New England, the Patriots have been cleared by the league of altering the injury reports of cornerback Aqib Talib and linebacker Brandon Spikes.
“It was determined that the Patriots complied with the injury report procedures regarding both players,” NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said.
After signing with new teams this offseason, Talib and Spikes both accused the Patriots of fudging their injury reports with inaccurate information in regards to their injuries.
“The Patriots have their way of reporting stuff, but I haven’t had a hip problem since Tampa,” Talib said. “The injury I had was actually a quad injury. It was reported as a hip injury, but that’s how they do things.”
Whether it’s not acknowledging Tom Brady’s hand injury or mislabeling injuries with Talib and Spikes, it certainly isn’t the first time the accuracy of New England’s injury reporting has been called into question. At least in this instance, the league doesn’t view the problem of worthy of any action.