All posts by Rod Corriveau

Founder and co-owner of @PatsGazette and Goal Line Gazette, Editor in chief, and hope I don't mess it up Internet guy.
AFC, Carolina Panthers, Denver Broncos, New England Patriots, NFC

My Thanks to the 2015 Patriots

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Payton Manning vs Tom Brady (Photo: Forbes.com)
Payton Manning vs Tom Brady (Photo: Forbes.com)

Well, it’s finally settled in now. The Patriots lost a hard fought AFC Championship game in Denver last Sunday. It gives Patriots Nation a chance to look back on the season as a whole and see what helped, or hurt, leading up to the playoff loss.

The first thing that comes to my mind is the choice to rest banged up starters, and play “preventative” offense week 17 in Miami, seriously, if you aren’t going to the big dance, why rest them right? Nah, Bill was setting the team up for their best shot at a repeat SB run. Face it, we are spoiled as fans of the greatest NFL team over the better part of 2 DECADES…. ( yes decades, plural ) that is insane! In a time of parody within the league (trying to move the best to the bottom, and the worst to the top) Belichick has continued to have the Patriots in playoff position almost every year since he started as head coach.

Chew on this for a minute, have you ever noticed as a fan, whenever the Patriots lose, we catch flak from the opposing fanbases? You know why? (That’s right, they expected the Pats to win) That’s what they’ve been doing and what they will continue to do as long as Belichick’s system is run like it has been run. (In case you haven’t heard…. he’s a genius)

Belichick is on to 2016 and so am I, the Superbowl is in a couple weeks, and I don’t really care who wins. My thoughts are that Denver will get embarrassed on the biggest stage once again, but I’m really starting to be rubbed the wrong way by Cam Newton’s antics and attitude, so it wouldn’t bother me if they called the game at 0-0 after 40 over times and declared both teams losers.

Bottom line is I’ll always be a Patriots fan, I was a fan when they couldn’t play their way out of a wet paper bag, and this year’s team played their asses off, overcame most of their injuries and came up short. Hell there’s 28 teams that didn’t do as good as the Patriots did! I WANT TO THANK THE 2015 PATRIOTS  AND THE STAFF FOR A GREAT SEASON!! AND WISHING THEM ALL THE BEST IN 2016!! #GOPATS

AFC, New England Patriots, NFL

ESPN: Nice Try With The Apology, Next Time Try Sincerity

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inforum.com
inforum.com

As you have most likely heard by now, ESPN issued an apology to the Patriots in the middle of the night. Nice attempt at sincerity, but no dice.

If you are like myself, I barely watch or listen to anything from ESPN. Being on social media, I have a great amount of respect for Mike Reiss and his coverage of the Patriots organization, however it stops there. To call ESPN the TMZ of sports would be an understatement, and an insult to TMZ.

Now here’s where I draw the line, everybody is entitled to their own opinion, as long as it’s based in fact, with no facts to back up an opinion it’s only biased lip service. I also understand that many sports media personalities either played or have ties to other NFL franchises other than the Patriots. However that does not excuse putting out false reports that are later proven false and not corrected right away (hello Chris Mortensen). Do you hear me ESPN?

NOW YOU HAVE THE AUDACITY TO DO IT AGAIN?

So ESPN puts out the rumor that was reported (and disproven both in 2008) that the Patriots filmed the Rams walk through prior to Super Bowl XXXVI. They did this not once but twice in the last week. Then issued a 17 second apology in the middle of the night. Very touching, pardon me while I reach for a tissue. (Not really)

Problem is is that media is driven by hits or responses, create a stir if you will. The personalities having other allegiances will always dispise the success of the Patriots, Tom Brady, Bill Belichick and the team (no other team has a winning record against these 2) because it’s easier to call them cheaters and constantly put out false information intentionally, than admit that no matter how good they think their team/teams are… the Patriots are just that much better.

That’s my rant for the day… and yeah, #DefendTheWall #ExonerateBrady and by all means #BoycottESPN

AFC, New England Patriots, NFL

NFL: Deflategate, Why would Roger Goodell Go After Tom Brady?

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Generated by IJG JPEG Library
Generated by IJG JPEG Library

From the first pages of the Wells Report, it’s clear that Tom Brady was in the NFL’s crosshairs. It took a logical stretch, but Mr. Wells was sure to hang that “more probably than not… generally aware” label on old number twelve, opening the door for Troy Vincent and Roger Goodell to slap him across the teeth with a good, hard punishment.

The suspension itself proves that Brady must be guilty, some people say. Why would Roger Goodell go after Tom Brady, maybe the most recognizable face in the NFL, a man who has done nothing but promote good sportsmanship and class for the past decade and a half? Why would he punish him so severely, unless he had no choice?

The answer is…(click to-> read more)

Story by: Sports Police

AFC, New England Patriots, NFL

NFL: Deflategate, How Many Lies Does It Take To Punish An Innocent Man??

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With the release of Brady’s appeal hearing transcripts (all 10+ hours and 457 pages worth) it appears that the advantage is swinging in Tom’s favor.

Let me first start off by saying I haven’t read the transcript in its entirety, however I will gather together all the facts I have from there and the whole debacle as it has unfolded so far.

On the night of the AFC Championship game referee Walt Anderson first claimed to have used the “logo” gauge (Which read .3-.4 psi. higher than the “non-logo” gauge) when checking game balls prior to the game. Then Wells re-interviews Anderson later, getting him to say he wasn’t sure about which gauge he used. That way Wells gains an advantage to come to the pre-determined conclusion that the balls must have been deflated by Patriots personell. (Wells gets to subtract .4 psi)

During Brady’s appeal, Wells vehemently stood by the the character of Walt Anderson and the integrity of Anderson’s recollections of the procedures performed on the game balls that evening. Even though Anderson originally said he used the “logo” gauge, Anderson must have got that part wrong, so Wells just goes with the second interview where Anderson wasn’t sure, and assumes he used the “non logo” gauge. (Lie #1)

When the Patriots balls were measured at halftime, after being in the officials locker room for 4 minutes (not enough time to effect the psi coming from 40-50° outside temp.) the lowest ball measures 10.9 psi on the ” logo” gauge, when you add in the ideal gas law which predicts a 1.0-1.2 psi drop (from Exponent inc. Findings) that would make a corrected reading of 11.9-12.1 psi on the LOWEST balls psi measurement! (There were only 3 balls that fell outside the range, other 2 were higher)

This led Wells to ignore the science (buried in the footnotes) Because the findings were not conclusive enough to prove someone had tampered with the balls after inspection. (Unless you can get Anderson to say he may have used the “non logo” gauge) Then you can justify charging your client millions to get to a pre-determined conclusion.

Leak #1: Getting public opinion on your side

The NFL office leaked information to Chris Mortensen that 11 of the 12 balls were 2 psi below minimum of 12.5 psi. (None were – a blatant lie) lie #2

Wells also tells Brady during investigation that he (Brady) will not suffer any disiplinary action for not turning over his cell phone.  And, of course, we all know that was one of Goodell’s two points for upholding his suspension. (Lie #3 on side of prosecution, in case your keeping score)

Wells also testified that a text conversation between Jim McNally and Jastremski was about “inflation” of footballs after the Jets game and it was interpreted by his (crack) legal team as being about “deflation” (yep 5 million dollars for this) Seriously? (Lie #4)

Let’s get to my last point from Wells’ testimony. He said he conducted the investigation pursuant to the “policy on the integrity of the game, and enforcement of competitive rules.”  That’s the other reason for Goodell upholding the suspension. Problem is that the players are not privy to those rules, nor are they bound by them, they are given to Owners and not players. So that’s lie #5 for the league. (There’s many more, I just picked those 5)

Leak #2:  Make Brady Look Bad

Bonus lie #6 stemming from league leaking Brady “destroyed” his cell phone instead of turning it over. Leaking it that way would lead you to believe the line of investigation they had all along, this was not an “Independent” investigation. NFL employees do not “wordsmith” drafts of “Independent” investigations.

Brady also did not get a “fair” investigation either, “fair” finds all the facts to come to a conclusion, it doesn’t “pick and chose” to support a pre-determined conclusion.

#ExonerateBrady

AFC, New England Patriots, NFL

New England Patriots: Patriots and Patriots Nation Stand Firm Behind TB12.

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As all of you know by now, the league and it’s idiotic commissioner Roger Goodell (the money making machine) has stood fast on its 4 game suspension of Patriots Quarterback Tom Brady.

Brady issued his first public statement since this whole debacle (to keep it clean) started, via his Facebook site this morning. In the post he maintained his and any of the Patriots organization’s innocence of any wrongdoing (or knowledge of) pertaining to the inflation of footballs. Brady also mentions that his legal team assured him that his cell phone would not be called into question or need to be turned over to the league. He also addressed the fact that at the time of his appeal, he supplied a list all the recipients of phone calls and text messages for the time frame in question. (Which the league wanted, but refused to look into anyhow)

If all these text messages were so important to the investigation, wouldn’t a fair investigation for BOTH parties involved warrant checking at least a few of these phones? After all we all know that one phone gives you Both sides of text conversations.

This whole process was ridiculous from the start, Once the Wells Report (all 243 pages of nothing more than bird cage floor liner) was disproved as insufficient (by itself and real independent science) the league shifted focus to the fact that Brady didn’t turn over his cell phone as the main reason for the suspension being upheld.

If you’ve ever gotten into an argument with a Patriots hater, this tactic should look very familiar to you, when you point out where they are wrong or ignorant of the facts, what do they do? Yep, they change the subject. Do you think this is any different? If it smells like garbage, that’s probably what we’re looking at.

Robert Kraft as well as Belichick and some of Tom’s teammates had a chance to speak today. Kraft and the Patriots team members spoke of their unwavering support for Brady, and Belichick declined to comment (all of which would be expected).

What was totally unexpected was Patriots owner Robert Kraft’s comments on how the league which he is a very large supporter of, essentially spat in his face (not his words). This is an excerpt from his statement.

20150729_145719

It takes a very strong man to admit his mistakes and basically discount his faith in the League as a whole.

The word “Integrity” has been thrown around by alot of individuals over the last 7 months, and that right there, Mr. Goodell  is the finest example you will see in your lifetime! Are you paying attention? See you in court.

I am proud to be a member of Patriots Nation! #FreeBrady

NFL

NFL: “DeflateGate” Texts. Are They Really A Smoking Gun?

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AN IN-DEPTH LOOK AT THE DEFLATEGATE TEXT MESSAGES

Ok, let’s set this straight one more time.

I, like most members of Patriots Nation, have heard more than enough from the NFL and all the haters that have the Patriots organization in their cross hairs (again).

As the Founder of @PatsGazette, which has now branched out into the internet with goallinegazette.com, and having 32,000+ followers on twitter, I seem to get my fair share of haters that want their 15 minutes of Fame trying to prove their arguments (and the Wells Report) truthful. Above all else, the Wells Report can’t even prove itself truthful (If you’ve read it you already know this).

So the NFL and the haters seem to be sticking by the “deflator” text messages between  the Patriot equipment assistant, John Jastremski, and Pats‘ officials locker room attendant Jim McNally as the sole proof that Tom Brady’s knowledge of deflated footballs was “more probable than not”(seriously?) So if that’s what they’re going to stick with after 5 million dollars and countless man hours let’s take a look ourselves, shall we?

Here’s the original text where McNally labels himself “The Deflator”

Screenshot from Wells Report
Screenshot from Wells Report

Well there it is in all its glory! That small excerpt is what seals the fate of one of the greatest NFL teams and it’s quarterback of the last decade plus, right? Not so fast…. the Wells Report dismisses hundreds of texts between McNally and Jastremski as jokes, but we are supposed to take this one single text seriously? First and foremost, it was sent June 9th…smack in the middle of the off-season (good time to go on a diet).

The part of this text that makes it sound so detrimental is the implied context (what the NFL and Wells want you to believe it means) and the placement of where it appears in the report. (You see it was written in such a manner as to lead you to a conclusion that THEY wanted you to reach).

Taken from Wells report contents
Taken from Wells report contents

As you can plainly see, it was put in the report right after the section; events surrounding the AFC Championship game (section III)   Why would you follow up the details of the handling of footballs in the AFC championship game with a text message from 7 months prior? Truthfully if they were put in a timeline they would probably have no correlation at all, would they?  Not to mention that out of hundreds of text messages, it’s the first, but not the only time its used.

What was the real context of the term “Deflator” shared between two good friends that seemed to joke around a lot? Let”s take a look at the  only other time the term was used to try to gain some insight on context.

Screenshot from Wells Report
Screenshot from Wells Report

There’s actually a couple of interesting facts about this text from McNally to Jastremski.

  1. Look at the date,  it was sent during the Green Bay vs. New England game. McNally does not travel with the team, he is employed part-time, and is only present at home games (the Wells report doesn’t bring that out). So technically he could have sent footballs inflated to 15 p.s.I. and the game officials would have reset them anyhow (one could only hope they would have anyway).
  2. Why would McNally send a text about (supposedly) letting air out of footballs to someone that wasn’t even handling the footballs at the game? (That would be up to Packers personell) Look at the text “Deflate and give somebody that jkt”.  Jkt?

So tell me, exactly what does that mean? Jacket? That’s my take on Jkt… wouldn’t you think that’s what it meant?  Remember the diet I brought up earlier? Pretty good excuse to give away a jacket, because it no longer fits, isn’t it?

In conclusion I’ll state the obvious, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell hired Ted Wells with an agenda to stick it to the Patriots. The only thing that they have accomplished $5,000,000 and 243 sheets of toilet paper later is painting themselves into a corner (again)

It’s very sad that I can connect all this with common sense and the internet. Goodell….. it’s your turn.

Yep, kinda like this.
Yep, kinda like this.

You can follow me on twitter at @PatsGazette (I’m always there even when I’m supposed to be elsewhere)

AFC, New England Patriots, NFL

What Do You Think About The Patriots Secondary?

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Malcolm Butler makes the play courtesy of USAToday

Well by now we all know that the Patriots secondary from 2014 has been picked clean. Darrelle Revis was lured back home to the Jets by tampering from owner Woody Johnson (cheaters: 100 k fine).

Brandon Browner was allowed to test the waters of free agency, so he decided the money (and the grass) was greener in New Orleans.

Kyle Arrington was released by the Patriots and promptly signed with the Baltimore Ravens (remember the team that whined so much about ineligible recievers so much that the NFL had to change yet another rule because Belichick is a genius?) Yeah, them so he could play slot corner for Harbaugh. (I wonder if the Ravens fans will scream at their televisions as much as I did?)

Anyhow the reason your here is to do our poll, so without further adioux, you can make your choice below.

Malcolm Butler makes the play courtesy of USAToday