by Patrick Thorman

Created on: May 14, 2008   Last Updated: May 17, 2008

The New England Patriots broke an NFL rule and were caught doing it. That much is indisputable. What does seem to be in dispute is how this affects, or taints, their past and future accomplishments.

To suggest the drastic step of adding an asterisk is taken, one needs to look deeper than the mere fact that "they cheated" and measure what actual advantage the Patriots gleaned from videotaping coaches' signals. Issues like these are not as black and white as some in the media make them out to be. It seems many detractors have been sticking their fingers in their ears and shouting, "They cheated! They cheated!" without actually analyzing what their particular infraction gained them.

The crux of the issue is that the Patriots videotaped the coaching signals of opposing teams to be analyzed at a later time and logged in a video library. This differs from what is allowed by NFL rules in one, and only one way. They used a video camera to gather and store this information. If they had done this with binoculars and a notepad as all other teams do, and kept these on file either electronically or in hard copy, they would have broken no rule. That is the bare bones extent of their guilt, and the sole infraction for which they were punished by the Commissioner of the NFL. The severity of this misstep is open to interpretation, but it is a fact that they were in violation of a rule.

It is common knowledge that NFL coaches both "steal" signals and change their own signals to prevent other teams from deciphering them. It is part of the game and has been going on for decades. Any real advantages gained by this common practice are up for debate, but are likely negligible. Jeremy Green, who was a pro scout for 10 years with the Browns and 49ers, had this to say about what he did as a scout and what the Patriots could gain from their usage of a video camera to record signals: "I used a pair of binoculars and prepared sheets to chart what I saw...It was my job to chart what signals he (opposing formation caller) gave and which players came in and out of the game...There is not a lot left uncovered by advance scouting and what's not there can often be found in (legal scouting) films shot during games...What they would have gotten would have amounted to maybe a small fraction of what they already know anyway."

We have heard that "whatever" they did, it must be severe based on the punishment handed down by the NFL. What we never hear is what they actually did, or what it actually gained

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