The NFL is investigating an allegation that a Steelers assistant coach assaulted a Patriots fan at halftime of Thursday night’s game.
Adam Schefter of ESPN reports that the NFL’s security department is investigating Steelers tight ends coach James Daniel for “allegedly assaulting and verbally accosting” a fan while Daniel was on his way to the Steelers’ locker room. A Steelers spokesman said the team is also investigating the accusation.
The allegation says that Daniel kicked the fan in the back of the leg and yelled at him. There were witnesses, according to the report. The report also says that Daniel was approached by police about the matter, and that Daniel then began shouting at a police officer.
The 62-year-old Daniel is in his 12th season on the Steelers’ staff and has more than 20 years of NFL coaching experience, having also spent time with the Giants and Falcons.
But… but… the PATRIOTS CHEATED!!!!!11!1!1
He should replace Scobee.
for a change that is good news for Pats
ASSAULTGATE!!!!!!!
Integrity.
This game was wilder than anyone could anticipate
Stay classy Steelers. I guess the good news is that the coach didn’t try to tackle any of the Patriot players while the game was in progress.
Guilty! Get ’em Raj!
Nice.
What the hell is going on!!?
I am sure the Patriots fan just said “Have a great day sir”.
You butthurt steeler fans are really embarrassing yourselves today. Your team SHOULD HAVE WONTHE GAME BY TWO TOUCHDOWNS but choked that game away with boneheaded play calling, poor clock management and failing to execute on critical downs. That’s what you should be whining about today.
Not to mention, wasn’t it Bill Cowher who admitted to taping other teams signals all throughout his coaching career? This ‘holier than thou’ sentiment among you Steeler fans is getting soooo old.
The Steelers covered the fans better than the players…
Integrity.
NFL? If this happened shouldn’t it be the police?
Wow, Steelers are already imploding
Stay classy Boston fans.
My question is why was a Patriots fan anywhere near the Steelers tight end coach?
Patriots security must have been slacking.
Nice the Steelers suck anyway now this guy is gonna get fired!!! Oh well!!!
Since his TE’s were outscored by 4 TD’s to 0 TD’s, perhaps he was a bit testy?
I’m sure the pats fan said some crazy crap but imagine the crap belicheck and Brady have to hear….and they can take it because they are mentally tough. Pittsburgh loses because they are run by simple minded people that apparently cant adjust or deal with crazy fans.
Further evidence the patriots cheated, lets attach a hashtag to it, and get espn to release some random reports
Because the league is becoming unglued due to lack of leadership and everyone obviously thinks they’re now losing due to cheating.
They’ve ruined the NFL. This is out of control.
The NFL is officially the WWE. XFL eat your heart out.
“Hey James, Belichick is better than you”
I’m sure the 62-year old guy just attacked the innocent fan without provocation…
“The fan was running by me and I was mesmerized by the play. I tried to jump out of the way, but too late. It’s shocking to me that my actions could have been or have been perceived as intentional.”
throw the a-hole in jail. My problems with the Patriots stem from their cheating methodology. That doesn’t mean one of their coaches should be assaulted.
Apparently the fan missed wide right.
I don’t believe this story… if its anything the steelers have taught us under this mike tomlin regime its that “the steelers don’t beat anybody”
Roger Goodell has turned the NFL into some bad episode of Jerry Springer. The season started last night, and all we can talk about is everything but the game
#VerballyacostGate
Ladies and Gentlemen: I give you the WWE-TMZ NFL.
Sincerely,
Roger Goodell
Typical steelers. First team doctor caught with 150,000 worth of hgh and roids. Then the head of security covering up many off field incidents, then impede gate, and now assualt gate.
Oh i forgot r4pegate
The Pats are in everyone’s head. This guy is kicking fans. Big Ben is complaining that the Pats did something on Defense that may be legal (in fact it was legal) but it didn’t help his team so they shouldn’t be able to do that.
I guess one of their fans rather.
Well at least he can hit the target when he kicks.
Well they couldn’t beat the team, so they decided to beat a fan. You can’t make this stuff up.
This is hilarious. Every Pats game will have so much emotion tied to it.
Blaming the loss on faulty headsets, crying because the Patriots did a LEGAL line shift, and now, kicking a heckling fan…..
wow, you’d think that with all the experience of getting beat by the Patriots, the Steelers would handle this better.
One thing about this story that does make me laugh, it took until 12:30 PM on Fri, approximately 14 hours after the fact to reach the media. If it had been a Patriots coach, Mortenson would have reported on it before the start of the 3rd quarter last night
The fan must have been a Patriots employee so clearly this was cheating to get a Steelers coach in trouble. Patriots lose a first round pick in 2017 and Brady is suspended 8 games because spygate.
—NFL Front office
🙂
If this is true, show him the door!
FREAKING AMAZING…REMEMBER 3 yrs ago when TOMLIN intentionally TRIPPED an opposing player running down the sideline?? STEELERS??? REMEMBER..they didnt even lose a draft pick!!!! Yet a Head coach can intentionally interfere in a play…and the NFL blows it off. You have the vikings and falcons physically sticking their footballs in a heater box…during a game…ehhhh,,dont worry. You have theFalcons and COLTS (yeah them) admit they pipe in noise via the walking tunnels,,,NFL says..ehhhh so what…..
What a bunch of losers…
Roger Goodell has turned the NFL into some bad episode of Jerry Springer. The season started last night, and all we can talk about is everything but the game
Have to agree with this post and all those like it. The NFL’s incompetence and witch hunt of the Patriots has caused this furor. They are close to inciting a riot. All based on lies and leaks.
Goodell must go and we need Tags back, at least short term, to restore some sanity….before this all blows up in our face.
I love football. It would be nice to have it back.
A PACKERS FAN
This game was just a massive success!
The haters are feeling very butt hurt today. Last night they were supposed to be proven correct. And it was a perfect setup. A night game in the pouring rain. The Patriots were supposed to fumble over and over. Brady was supposed toss numerous interceptions due to his inability to hold and throw the fully inflated ball. And yet he was lights out. 19 straight completions…4 TDs. 79% completion percentage and a 145 QB rating.
Yes….the haters are feeling butt-hurt this morning.
It’s a free country and all, and he can go after anyone he wants, but he SHOULD have gone after his own defensive backfield coaches. At least that way, he’d never be convicted by a jury of his peers.
The Steelers’ new kicker. !
Did Tomlin teach him that kick move? YOUR SUPPOSED TO DO THAT TO THE OTHER TEAMS PLAYERS! Not the fans….
Hey coach, you the real MVP!
Drunk fans can get under your skin but if true he needs to show restraint. You know sticks and stones. But then again unlike the Patriots haters I will wait for the facts. Because it might not be as reported. See haters that is a reasonable way to look at things.
The last time the Ravens went to Foxboro, they nearly won, leading by 14 points twice. Yes, they complained about an illegal formation and as a result, the formation is now banned. The last time the Steelers went to Foxboro, they trailed throughout the game, by as much as 18 points. They whined about headsets. They whined about a goal line play. And then they beat up fans. In one night, the Steelers have done more to bring the game into ridicule than all the other teams combined except for the Patriots. These two teams should only play each other 16 times each year. Would serve them both right. **** + ****** LOL.
OMG.. Patsfans-Abuse-Senior-Gate Get Ted Wells asap.
I am not confident the NFL can get any of this under control at this point. The game is being ruined but immaturity.
Patriots are responsible.
Why are fans in the path of coaches and players on their way to the locker room?
This doesn’t excuse the alleged kicking, but shouldn’t the fan be, you know, in the stands?
If you actually haven’t seen the video of Mike Tomlin trying to trip a player running down the sidelines, you need to watch it. Then just imagine if that was Bill Belichick doing that…. Oh the humanity.
Any chance the fan was wearing Scobee jersey?
its probably the Patriots fault..
Bet Belichick set the whole thing up…
hahahahaha
You can’t make this stuff up!
Next thing we’ll hear is how somebody randomly went thru the Steelers locker room stealing game day play sheets . . . Bahahahahahah
Mike Tomlin should be pissed off at his coaches, cuz his team was UNPREPARRED!
What are we missing here? So the coach is on his way to the locker room and just decides to yell at and kick a fan in the back of the leg? Im sure the mans leg is facing potential amputation as well……. Sounds like a low class lying piece of excrement cheat fan trying to drag a coach into a scandal by acting like a low class lying piece of excrement. What was this fan doing anywhere near the field anyway?
Of course the Pats fan was mouthing off. So what ? Fans shoot their mouths off in every single stadium the NFL plays in.
Players and coaches need thick skin, and letting a fan get under it enough to actually attack him is not very smart. All he had to do was run by the guy and think “what an idiot” to himself as he went about his business of getting his TEs to play better.
Welcome to the Terrordome! The Pats are in everybody’s heads. Games are won before they start.
Not surprising from a coaching staff with a head coach that tripped a player intentionally during a kick return and who also whines like a little baby when both teams are experiencing communications issues. What a bunch of petulant little children.
“We will get it right. We must protect the integrity of the game.”
First he tried to spit on the fan, but his teeth fell out! So he called an audible and kicked him.
Maybe he had a good reason. Isn’t some brutality ok? It is in my house.
Shocker…There was a arrogant, self-righteous blow-hard attending the game last night?
Obviously attending a game in New England is a lot different from attending a game in Milwaukee.
How did he come into direct contact with a fan at halftime when exiting the field? My guess is the fan was somewhere he shouldn’t have been.
I am guessing, and i know its a wild accusation. but, i am going to say there may have been alcohol involved. now the important question to ask here, did the alcohol come from a pre-game ‘lube’ as ordered in the past by brady (cheating), or from a concession stand (kraft cheating). Even if person drank on their own accord pre-game, why were they allowed into the game at the gate? (cheating).
This was only assault and battery, and it wasn’t on a woman on top of a pile of guns, so I’m sure it will only be a game suspension as opposed to 4. However, if they find out he was deflating any footballs during this assault, it immediately bumps up to 6 games, as well as the Steelers being fined a million dollars, and losing every 1st and 3rd round draft pick for the next 10 years. Integrity of the game after all!
steelbreeze676 says:
Sep 11, 2015 12:30 PM
Because the league is becoming unglued due to lack of leadership and everyone obviously thinks they’re now losing due to cheating.
They’ve ruined the NFL. This is out of control.
———————————————————————
You have hit the nail on the head, my friend!
Rodger has whipped up the “haters” into such a frenzy that things really are out of control!
Roger needs to be fired and replaced immediately.
Oh please…like the NFL is going to touch The Teflon NFL Dons….the Patriots lie,cheat, and steal in the NFL with impunity.
In a follow up story Josh Scobee was released and Daniel was added to the 53 man roster.
62 year old bully punking that dude.
#getoffmylawn
KICKTHEFANSASSGATE.
I’m going to enjoy this!!!!!!!!
“The last time the Ravens went to Foxboro, they nearly won, leading by 14 points twice.”
Only from the land of low-expectations, Baltimore, would fans brag about this.
And why are NE fans so confident? Steelers had a mistake-ridden game and Pats played nearly mistake-free, and it took the steelers giving the game away for the pats to get the win.
The Steelers were miffed from the day they knew they had to face Brady. Sure enough, he torched them again. Losers behave in very predictable ways.
I was very critical of Mark Cuban when he predicted the fall of the NFL but at his rate he just might be onto something. The media and fans are spending more time talking about cheating,conspiracies, players getting arrested etc then actually talking about…you know….the actual game of football. Pretty sad IMO.
Lol steelers fans, keep posting how bad your team is slowly becoming. It’s really fun to read
Let’s get Ted Wells on the case. Let’s have Goodell pay another 5 million for another fix of a bogus Ted Wells report and let’s make up another phony rule a la PSI about assaulting fans and dock the Steelers a 1st round pick and fine them a million dollars and drag them through the mud like they did to the Patriots.
Wha??
What was a fan doing where a coach could kick him?
They were trying to make the fan the “fall guy” for their missed kicks…
Deserved.
Note to Self:
‘Do not Mess with James Daniel”
I’d point out that the wheels are falling off in Pittsburgh, but I’d hate to be Captain Obvious.
And why are NE fans so confident? Steelers had a mistake-ridden game and Pats played nearly mistake-free, and it took the steelers giving the game away for the pats to get the win.
===
NE almost always plays mistake-free football. At the very least, they make fewer mistakes than their opponents. It’s kinda their thing.
Wha??
What was a fan doing where a coach could kick him?
====
Answered my own question: he was going from the Coaches’ booth to the locker room at halftime. You have to traverse public areas of the stadium to do that.
It wasn’t a fan, it was John Jastremski, he was jamming the radio signals. 🙂
Stay classy Pittsburgh and New England…
Looks like Ted Wells will be booked solid for the next 18 months.
Surely it wasn’t unprovoked. Patriots fan was probably being obnoxious and had it coming.
Goodell has officially lost control of the league, The NFL is a run away train.
Some jackwagon fan juiced up on the liquid courage trying to be a tough guy. There isn’t anywhere in that stadium that fans are allowed that brings them that close to the tunnels teams go in for halftime.
That fan deserved everything he got. If a 62yr old man can kick your sorry butt, that fan should have just stayed home.
I have know idea what happened of course. But I would give the benefit of the doubt to the sober, experienced, coach.
Somehow Belichick snuck into the Steelers’ locker room during the game and rigged the Daniels’ pants so they kicked the fan as he walked by.
Or maybe they had an employee dress up as a fan and throw themselves at Daniels’ legs to make it LOOK like he kicked them.
Whatever it was, it was likely, maybe, probably, possibly the Patriots up to no good.
I can just feel it.
“Kingmj4891 says:
Sep 11, 2015 12:29 PM
My question is why was a Patriots fan anywhere near the Steelers tight end coach?
Patriots security must have been slacking.”
Daniels was in the visiting team’s press box during the game last night. To go to the locker room at halftime, they have to walk through the club seat lounge. Typically they clear a path for coaches to move quickly, but they still walk past fans in the club seat lounge.
I think this is a made-up story meant to distract from the Patriots’ PR disaster.
I can guarantee you the cheating fan deserved it. No issue here. When its all said and done the steelers will be in the playoffs.
I’d love to know what the fan said that sent Daniel over the edge. Maybe it wasn’t so bad. Maybe having to watch Gronkowski destroy Pittsburgh’s defense made Daniel, a tight ends coach, berzerk with envy.
Then again a lot of fans seem to think that because they bought a ticket they’re allowed to do and say whatever they want to whomever they want. As if they’d purchased the rights to another person’s patience and dignity.
You kind of get the feeling the fan brought this one on himself.
Here, have a Snickers. You get grumpy when your trick play blows up on you.
“Kingmj4891 says:
Sep 11, 2015 12:29 PM
My question is why was a Patriots fan anywhere near the Steelers tight end coach?
Patriots security must have been slacking.”
Daniels was in the visiting team’s press box during the game last night. To go to the locker room at halftime, they have to walk through the club seat lounge. Typically they clear a path for coaches to move quickly, but they still walk past fans in the club seat lounge.
_____________________________
Then where is NFL/Patriots security in this? All coaches should have an escort if they have to walk through a fan area. Just wait til a Raiders fan stabs a 49ers coach or vice versa.
Bill Belichick obviously planted that guys leg in the way of Daniels foot…Or maybe the coach was trying to teach Scobee how to kick
amazenblue says:
Sep 11, 2015 12:58 PM
The Steelers were miffed from the day they knew they had to face Brady. Sure enough, he torched them again. Losers behave in very predictable ways.
–
Not true. Every Steelers player interviewed in the months leading up to this game said that they wanted to play the Patriots’ best with Brady. And Chris Collinsworth could have come down and made the passes Brady was making last night as the receivers were never covered.
Kicked him cuz he was the guy assigned to cover Gronk .
and fans are allowed on the field all you need is a pass
Steelers got legs
Don’t know how use them….
Ambassador Rooney wasn’t looking too good up there in the box.
The NFL owners think they are putting all of the pressure on the Patriots but paranoia takes a toll on the paranoid.
They are actually worried about psi, locker room security, listening devices, and headset malfunctions instead of blocking and tackling.
.
Steelers fans wanted it. Now you got it. Article 46 ” conduct detrimental to the game”, is in full force and effect.
.
From now on nfl should only have the cheating Patriots go play on the road instead of any home game, bc they always cheat, whether it’s headset gate, spy gate, and or deflate gate, etc.lol
Apparently his kicks are more on targets than Scobee’s were….
I will help clear this up for the folks wondering how the fan and coach could cross paths. The coaches booth is located high up, in the upper deck. There are fans way up, in the upper deck. When the coaches that are sitting up in the coaches booth, leave the booth to get to the locker room, they have to walk the same concourse as the fans, and then enter an elevator, go down to the locker room…
Time to dissolve the Patriot franchise and add a new team to LA.
Considering he is the TE coach, I’m sure he’ll be harshly punished by the Steelers and NFL. If he was a franchise QB, it would be a slap on the wrist.
wickfunq says:
Sep 11, 2015 12:26 PM
for a change that is good news for Pats
————————————
Someone got assaulted. How in the hell is that good news for anyone?
Being a Tesla fan who harbors a deep dislike for the NE Patriots organization, I officially dub this latest scandal:
THE GREAT RADIO CONTROVERSY
I’m tired of the -gate suffix.
If you can’t beat them, KICK THEM
The Patriots made him do it….
There is a lot of information missing in this story. It says it was on the way back to the locker room for halftime. So was this fan in a place where he wasn’t suppose to be or what. More information needs to be found out to really know what happen.
I’m sure he will get a slap on the wrist, like all non-Patriot rule breakers.
Was the fan performing the “recording procedure”? Did he record any hand signals, the assault or did he destroy the tape?
Let’s go Pats fan on this. I need to see video evidence and the shoe print on the Pats fan. Even if you find all of that stuff I’m still going to say the coach tripped and while stumbling he hit a Pats fan with his foot.
Tough guy picking on a fan. He should be fined and suspended for 4 games. Steelers can’t perform on the field, so they cause trouble in the stands. Good job Steelers.
Dick Lebeau was very amused last night..
Stay classy Pittsburgh
If you’re over the age of 30 and you start a fight with someone, you’re a complete loser.
rosstuckershair says:
Sep 11, 2015 2:03 PM
Dick Lebeau was very amused last night..
0 0
Why because Butler held the Pats under 55.
freddypatsfan says:
Sep 11, 2015 12:25 PM
He should replace Scobee.
————
Winner. Lets go home.
Have they found a new doctor to pass out hgh and cause these fits of roid rage
we take a moment from imagined crimes and fairy tales for an allegation of an actual crime involving specific people doing real things with actual victims
police investigation is not parallel to wells investigation.
To be fair, it was a patriots fan, so he probably had it coming.
Annoyed Race Fan says:
Sep 11, 2015 1:52 PM
There is a lot of information missing in this story. It says it was on the way back to the locker room for halftime. So was this fan in a place where he wasn’t suppose to be or what. More information needs to be found out to really know what happen.
______________________________
The coach was in a public area. He was going to the locker room for halftime, and to get there from where he was, you have to walk the concourse where the fans are.
If true, how bad is a fan base to cause a respected NFL coach to do something like this. They already showed their low class of human beings with the Goodell chant.
The obvious question is how a Patriot fan got down on the field level in close proximity to the Steeler coach? I thought the Patriot’s pride themselves on such tight security inside the stadium, or least that’s what they told us in discrediting the employee stealing playsheets out of the lockerroom.
Come to think of it, maybe the fan was the employee returning to his seat after he couldn’t find anything inside the locker room, then it might make sense.
Can’t say I blame him.
Yeah it’s all on him. Like he wasn’t taunted by those same classless savages that chanted “where is Roger?”
Where is Roger?? In NY in the fetal position…
What was the fan doing on where he was. Did the coach jump up into the stands and go after the fan. If fan was not in the stand what was he doing out the stands? Was the fan up to no good?
This is the Pats’ fault, right?
Ted Wells will check the Gillette Stadium visitor locker room spy cams for evidence of the kick. Then he’ll file a 14,000 page report. And the media will call it Kickgate.
@ boddickerocp says:
Sep 11, 2015 12:31 PM
The NFL is officially the WWE. XFL eat your heart out. ———————————————————————————- The way the NFL is conducting it’s business means the WWE probably takes exeption to be compared to it!
Mike Tomlin is one of the longest tenured coaches in the League, no?
How many more years until he learns how to manage the clock?
Patriots are the scarlet letter of the NFL
I think we all agree the Police Officer should be suspended until a full investigation by the U.S. DA!
Get rid of him
From a steeler fan
Mike Tomlin is one of the longest tenured coaches in the League, no?
How many more years until he learns how to manage the clock?
———————————————————
He still has to learn he is not allowed to interfere during a punt return.
Fan probably had it coming.
Ummmm…… angry Tomlin humiliates himself in the post game and this clown looks like a fool getting in to it with a fan!! How about putting your energy into game planning??Clock management??
goodellclownshow says:
Sep 11, 2015 3:19 PM
Where is Roger?? In NY in the fetal position…
—————-
He is still seething at Brady’s almost perfect performance last night at the game to which he was uninvited. I wonder what he thought when he saw Ty Law, Wille McGinist and Troy Brown bringing out the 1st 3 SB trophies followed by his ex-buddie Robert Kraft bringing out the 4th! I picture him unshaven, all alone and throwing stuff at the TV!
“Verbally accosted” .. he talked mean to him?.. since when did the first amendment become a crime?
Stadium security is a joke. I have been going to opposing stadiums in college and now the pro’s and the harassment has never been worse.
At least in college the seats are in the end zone where that have security. In the pro’s you are on your own, don’t complain to a security
officer ….he or she will say ” I didn’t see nothin! ”
It’s out of hand and the NFL just ignores it just like all the other issues.
If it doesn’t get Roger publicity why address it !
Fire Him
This was the only guy in Steeler gear that put up any kind of a fight last night.
Ha, I am sure the fan was a real New England gentleman with good manners and vocabulary …..nah the punk got what he deserved…..no he didn’t or his lip would be swollen .
Stay classy Pittsburgh.
I am sure the Patriot fan was trying to CHEAT him out of something. It’s the Patriot way.
Many fans are punks and should stop spewing personal insults, however, any coach or player that physically goes after a fan should immediately be suspended without pay. There is absolutely no excuse for that and it does not matter how ‘disrespected’ the coach or player feels. Any fan that physically attacks a player or coach (or throws something at the sideline/field should be immediately removed from the facility by police and that person should be banned from all future NFL and team events and functions.
How is it possible for a fan and coach or player to get close enough that one could get kicked?
Someone called the cops for getting kicked in the back of the leg and getting yelled at? Yikes. Was it a female fan?
rcali says:
Sep 11, 2015 3:53 PM
I think we all agree the Police Officer should be suspended until a full investigation by the U.S. DA!
——————————
What is the United States Department of Agriculture going to do?
Camp couch: read the previous comments. The coach was leaving the press box, to get to the locker room he needs to walk through the public concourse down to the locker room.
greymares says:
Sep 11, 2015 3:04 PM
If true, how bad is a fan base to cause a respected NFL coach to do something like this. They already showed their low class of human beings with the Goodell chant.
————–
Chanting ‘Where is Roger’ makes us a low class of human beings? Wow, it’s a good thing we didn’t go with our alternate chant, the one where we tell Roger where he can go.
Bill Belichick made a statement today at how ridiculous this is all getting. He referred to the headsets and the ESPN story earlier in the week, as well as people making up falsehoods about the team and that the players work hard to get to where they are….are you other teams crazy? Bill’s never been mad enough to comment on anything like this. Don’t make him angry…..you won’t like him when he’s angry….
Patriot123456 made a great observation about Steeler coverage. Maybe the fun is coming back to football.
jmdanieli says:
Sep 11, 2015 6:51 PM
Camp couch: read the previous comments. The coach was leaving the press box, to get to the locker room he needs to walk through the public concourse down to the locker room.
————————————————–
So what I’m reading is this: some architectural genius designed things so the opposing team’s coach has to wade through the area where most of the drunken yahoos congregate. That’s just ASKING for trouble.
No doubt this guy was some meathead drunk on Sam Adams and his hatred for Goodell. So imagine his joy when he sees the other team’s coach stroll by. If he can’t get at Goodell, he can take it out on this guy! Coach is no shrunken flower, and won’t tolerate some loudmouth getting in his face. You do the math.
Coaches’ headsets that broadcast Boston Top 40.
A stadium that lets yahoos get this close to the other team’s personnel. Wow that’s a fine set-up you have there in Foxborough.