NFL to discuss “protocols” for footballs at next week’s league meetings

Posted by PlexusGroupe on May 13, 2015, 1:03 PM EDT
AP

The subject of game balls will be on the docket at next week’s NFL meeting in San Francisco, the league said Wednesday.

NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy told PFT the league’s “protocols on (gameday)” regarding footballs will be discussed.

Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones, a member of the NFL’s Competition Committee, has also indicated the game balls will be discussed at the league meetings, according to ESPN’s Ed Werder.

Game balls were not among the topics considered by NFL owners at the annual meeting in March. However, the league now appears ready to take a closer look at the issue in light of the Wells Report.

The NFL’s game ball management is covered in the official rule book. As of last year, it was a two-section, 384-word series of guidelines that fit on one PDF page.

The question now is whether the league is ready to make any alterations to the rules or procedures governing the game balls after the investigation into New England’s alleged football deflation in the AFC title game.

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58 responses to “NFL to discuss “protocols” for footballs at next week’s league meetings”

  1. Next they will make the TE position illegal. Followed by RBs that weigh over 240lbs. Then no more right-handed QBs.

    Anything to stop the Patriots from winning.

  3. Why wasn’t this done the day after the Super Bowl? It could have calmed all this BS down.
    answer: horrible management from the top.

  4. I think the Kraft and Belichick should skip the league meetings. What is the point anyways? The league just discusses rules (conspires) to beat the Pats.

  6. The weird irony here is that with the well documented poor quality of NFL quarterback play, the league will probably end up legalizing ball doctoring just enhance every quarterback’s abilities.

  7. They would be crazy not to look and change the rule. ALL game balls should be solely provided and handled by the refs.

  8. Referee will now walk out with a locked box handcuffed to the referee himself. It will take 2 seperate refs to unlock the case turning keys simultaneously to open.

    I joke, but is it sad I wouldn’t be surprised if this eventually happened?

  9. 1. Refs check balls with calibrated gauge and set the PSI to the preferences of the team.

    2. Each measurement is verified by a member of the team and documented.

    3. Balls are loaded into case with two sets of locks. One for refs one for team.

    4. Case can’t be open unless both keys are ready.

    Of course the nfl will screw this up.

  10. How about the man responsible (the referee) is the man responsible?

    Why? Because it’s his designated assignment at all games. It’s not optional like 19″ rims.
    .

  11. How long has Tom Brady been Deflating footballs ? In cold weather games it’s a huge advantage easier to grip throw catch and hold onto rather than a fully inflated ball that is like a brick in cold weather and is much more slick.

  12. im going to say something that has not been brought up yet….

    THEY WERE 1 YARD AWAY FROM LOSING THAT SUPERBOWL!!

    Seattle head coach was their best teammate

    if these balls were so helpful, why was it even that close?????

  13. Isn’t that special?

    The league has known for decades that quarterbacks/teams monkey around with the inflation level in the balls. If the NFL believed that could provide teams a competitive advantage, they should have a) been using precision instruments to gauge the air levels, and b) requiring officials to keep control of all game balls rather than leaving them with team equipment managers.

    But no. They act as though it’s no big deal until Goodell–protector of the shield–decides to create another public scandal that doesn’t just hurt the Pats but taints the game as a whole. Was he trying to divert attention from his unwillingness to deal with incompetent officials (Cowboys/Lions)? Who knows?

    But now the league will discuss shutting the barn door after the horse has escaped. Lovely.

  15. So, kurdishpats1, you’re saying that because they will be trying to set up a system to prevent tampering with equipment it will make it as hard for the Patriots to win as it would if they forced them to play without tight ends, running backs and their quarterbacks?

    I guess tampering with the balls really *did* have a major effect on the outcome of the games in your eyes.

  16. I see a change that will be at least 100 pages written in legalese that no one can possibly understand, with ten loopholes per paragraph.

  17. I really, really hope that the balls Tommy Boy uses from now on will somehow be more closely monitored to be at the correct psi and he will fail using them which will show what a cheating loser he really is.
    Just can’t win without cheating.

  18. Why not implement the policy now that it is so well documented that you had no clue about how to control the old policy….

  19. I still don’t get it why the NFL provides balls for the SB but not for the big games leading up to it.
    If they had then maybe the Pathetics wouldn’t be the *2015 SB “winners.”

  20. It sounds like a great idea, but let’s not forget the reason behind it – because teams like the Pats cheat at all costs, so they can’t be trusted to take care of these types of things on their own.

  21. Referee will now walk out with a locked box handcuffed to the referee himself. It will take 2 seperate refs to unlock the case turning keys simultaneously to open.

    I joke, but is it sad I wouldn’t be surprised if this eventually happened?
    ====
    I could see it, but balls will still lose pressure if you play on a cold day.

  22. How many other quarterbacks have done this ? Why didn’t the NFL use the last day of the season to check all teams ? How do we know this isn’t a common activity amongst many teams. We can exclude the Jets, Bills, Browns and Bucs I guess, as they didn’t really have a quarterback. Why did the NFL only check at half time, this was an obvious sting, yet they let the Pats play a complete half gaining an advantage (yes, they scored more points in the 2nd half with the correct balls, but this is the NFL, so let’s not try to use logic, or sense here)

  23. If the NFL doesn’t take over control of the balls and continues to allow the teams and their QBs to provide the game balls then this whole Brady punishment is a giant scam. If the integrity of the game is at stake then take control of the balls and protect integrity.

  24. How long has Tom Brady been Deflating footballs ? In cold weather games it’s a huge advantage easier to grip throw catch and hold onto rather than a fully inflated ball that is like a brick in cold weather and is much more slick.
    ===
    Warm. Balls. Don’t. Stay. Fully. Inflated. In. The. Cold.

    Lose temperature. Lose Pressure. Always and Forever.

    So how long has he been throwing below-spec footballs in the cold? He always has, and he always will – unless the league decides to move to a continuous monitoring and maintenance regime to keep balls within spec in changing temperature conditions.

  25. I see a change that will be at least 100 pages written in legalese that no one can possibly understand, with ten loopholes per paragraph.
    ===
    Is there any other type of legalese?

  26. New England fans shouldn’t be upset about their team and players getting a lil asterisk next to Patriot* name and next to Patriot players names. Look at the exclusive club they now belong to.

    Lance Armstrong *
    Barry Bonds *
    Sammy Sosa *
    Mark McGuire *
    *TOM BRADY *
    *BILL BELICHICK*
    ***New England Patriots***

    See, no big deal. I’m sure Brady will fight this and won’t missed any games.

  27. It seems like there are pluses and minuses to high and low pressure. What would seem to make sense would be to simply allow the teams to do whatever they want to the balls, super hard, overly soft or something in between. The only condition – get rid of the k-ball. This means that the team needs to figure out just the right mix.

    What the NFL will do however is come up with some crazy protocol that is going to be incredibly complex and will put into motion a whole new set of problems.

  28. Simple solution to the problem. If lower PSI supposedly allow the offense to complete more balls and fumble less as every poor man’s scientist wants to suggest don’t have a minimum or maximum. Aren’t they truly trying to change every imaginable rule to help the offense change this one too. Do fans really want to see alot of fumbling and a bunch of incompletions. Seems obvious To me.

  29. If the patriots would have just followed the rules there wouldn’t be all this controversy and their championships wouldn’t be tarnished like they appear to be now.

  30. New Rule: Don’t ever, never ever let the patriots handle the balls… Not ever.

    Make them play with new ones right out of the box opened the sidelines.

    Can’t ever, never ever trust them again.

  31. 8x Ed Thorp Memorial Champion says:
    May 13, 2015 1:21 PM

    I see no need to do anything different. Send a signal that cheating will not be tolerated. Done.

    Oh naïve one. Certainly after all these years of fines,’ suspensions and expulsions the signal has been sent. The reality is that human’s are involved and given the opportunity some will try to gain any advantage. It’s a constant vigil to stay with, not ahead of those who will try. If it means tighter control over footballs so be it. I for one never, ever want to go through this debacle again when it could be avoided. Of course we have no idea what the next scandal will be but rest assured, it’s coming.

  33. packmanfan says:
    May 13, 2015 1:27 PM

    I really, really hope that the balls Tommy Boy uses from now on will somehow be more closely monitored to be at the correct psi and he will fail using them which will show what a cheating loser he really is.
    Just can’t win without cheating.

    Of course you mean Tommy and Aaron right? Lest we forget Aaron, league MVP freely stated he adds excess pressure because he gets a better feel then hope’s it slips by the ref. Any way you want to cut it that’s cheating too.

  34. Simple solution – the league provides the game balls…that way the Patriots aren’t able to cheat…oh wait, they will always find a way to cheat. #taintedlegacy

  36. Remember when the Patriots kept fumbling and dropping passes in the Super Bowl and 2nd half of Colts game?

    How about properly inflating footballs to QB liking with a calibrated gauge, verify PSI with 4 eyes and then have a league employee not named Gardi or Kensil or the ball thief guy take them out to the field? Is that too much to ask?

  37. It looks to me like the gameball protocol would have worked if the officiating crew had followed it.

  38. I’m a diehard Steelers fan. When the Pats are on the other side of the field, I hate them as much as anyone else does. But people who keep posting about them being cheaters, etc., need to read up on their NFL history–and current events. If you think the Patriots are the only team that has skirted the rules, you are incredibly naive and woefully misinformed. EVERY team has been fined for rule infractions, and stories of gamesmanship throughout the league are legendary. Suddenly in the Goodell era, we have a commissioner that’s cherry-picking teams to hang in the town square–the Pats, the Saints. Next time it could be your team and you won’t find the asterisk talk so amusing.

  40. That Pats fans think Goodell and the NFL really wanted to catch their golden boy coach, QB and owner combo cheating is hysterical. Believe me they hate it but had no choice because of the stone walling. The Kraft-era Patriots legacy of cheating is now set in stone.***************

  42. Should be excellent meetings. Roger Goodell has lined up some guest speakers.
    Ted Wells will give a seminar on “How to make millions if you find the right suckers” (fee: 1 million)
    Walt Anderson will talk on how to keep track of footballs and the difference between a gage with a straight needle vs. a bent needle and how to remember which one you used. (fee: years supply of Alzheimer’s meds.)
    All good stuff brought to you by the $44million dollar commissioner.

  43. I live in NJ had a football in the Garage the whole winter it did not lose any air that is a bunch of BULL and it was the coldest winter ever

  44. I live in NJ had a football in the Garage the whole winter it did not lose any air that is a bunch of BULL and it was the coldest winter ever
    ===
    Even Exponent disagrees with you.

  45. The legal league minimum for PSI’s in the footballs is 12.5, Tom Brady has come out and said that he likes the footballs to be inflated to 12.5 PSI’s, other QB’s in the league have also come out and said which weight they like their footballs inflated too. Maybe if the ref’s had done their jobs properly and recorded the weight at the beginning of the game, it is possible that the league wouldn’t be in another mess.

  46. At first I didn’t want them to make any changes to the Pat. After reading the proposal I think it makes the game more interesting and Pat not as automatic. I do like the rule that if you miss/block the xp the defense has a chance to run it back instead of it being a dead ball and if they do go for 2 the defense has a chance to score points as well if they cause a turnover.

  48. What protocol was it that allowed the Refs to over-inflate the footballs to 16 PSI when the Patriots played the Jets?

    And if the officials don’t care enough to follow their own rules, why are they surprised if the players don’t?

    Football PSI wasn’t a big issue when Rogers admitted he over-inflates… it only became one when someone decided to play “gotcha” with the Patriots doing what every QB probably always did

    It wouldn’t surprise me if the Patriots personnell guy adopted the name “the deflator” just to make sure the officials themselves weren’t cheating by pumping up the balls beyond regulation

  50. igotgamenj says:
    May 13, 2015 2:38 PM
    I live in NJ had a football in the Garage the whole winter it did not lose any air that is a bunch of BULL and it was the coldest winter ever

    ——-

    Tell that to the tires on my daughter’s stroller. I had to start carrying a pump in the diaper bag

  51. I wonder if everyone complaining on here realizes that teams have trying to doctor balls for as long as there has been an NFL. There are stories of teams trying to sneak practice balls into games for years.

    Players cheat, period. Listen to the stories of any NFL player and you will hear about them doing something to get the upper hand on their opponent. Don’t get hypocritical now because it is the Patriots. I am sure your team has had instances where they tried to sneak different balls into games or had players spraying their jerseys with PAM cooking spray or putting Vaseline on their arms so their opponents couldn’t grab them, etc… Get off your high horse, your team cheats/has cheated, too.

  52. The pats should suffer penalties for evey rule that has to be changed from them ruining the game we all love.

  53. And of course the morons Goodell and corrupt owners will say 1 of 2 things:

    1. We need to study this issue more. Or

    2. We will have an answer for you “soon”

    These are the biggest group of incompetent morons in the world

  54. kurdishpats1 says:
    May 13, 2015 1:06 PM

    Next they will make the TE position illegal. Followed by RBs that weigh over 240lbs. Then no more right-handed QBs.

    Anything to stop the Patriots from winning.

    If making ball protocols such that balls can’t be illegally tampered with, and your response is the one above, then you’re agreeing that the Pats were cheating.

    Use some commons sense.

  55. audge86 says:
    May 13, 2015 3:10 PM

    Just let every quarterback pick a psi. Why does it matter?

    Because it affects ball security.

    Just look how the Pats’ cheating reduced their fumble rate.

  57. There is no reason why the teams should have any access to the game balls before the opening whistle anyway. There should be one pool of game balls and the teams have to share them.

    So what if you like them a certain way. Players have to adapt to varying fields, weather, other players, butthead fans and many other things. They can adjust to the football too. At least, the good ones can.

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