Deflated footballs, again. This time it's with the Pats...

I just think it's silly. Whether it affected the game or not (and it looks like it certainly did not), IF the Patriots are found guilty of having intentionally tampered with the balls, it is still breaking the rules.

Example: The Phillies' utility infielder, Freddy Galvis, got caught using PEDs a few summers ago and was suspended. The PEDs had zero impact on his play. But when you break rules, you suffer the consequences, even if breaking the rules did nothing to boost your game.

Tired of all the news conferences/alerts/etc.
 
Interesting read here putting more wood on the fire: Patriots lack of fumbles since rule change.

In 2006, Tom Brady (and Peyton Manning) lobbied in favor of changing an NFL rule that mandated home teams provided game balls for both teams. Brady wanted the NFL to let every team provide its own footballs to use on offense, even when that team was playing on the road. After Brady and Manning’s efforts, the NFL agreed to change the rule. Prior to that change, there would be relatively little advantage to playing with deflated footballs because both teams would be using the same balls.​
 
TheChief said:
Possible explanation:

Twelve game balls are chosen by Brady. One game ball is taken out for early, early warm-up, maybe by a kicker or someone wanting to throw the ball around. Pretty common. That one ball gets cold from being outside.

Then, all twelve balls are inflated to the proper pressure and taken for use in the game. The cold weather affects the warmer balls, causing lesser pressure. The only ball up to snuff is the one that was already cold from being outside.

Seems plausible to me. Physics experts, what is the effect of the cold weather on football air pressure?
Click to expand...

Try a simple, at home experiment. Blow up a balloon inside your house. It would be at room temperature of say, 72F. Put it inside your refrigerator for about 30 minutes, then take it out. You will find that it has deflated.

Locker room temperature 70 degrees, give or take. Field temperature 45 degrees, give or take. The same principle applies. The air pressure inside the ball will go down as it assumes the field temperature.

Supposedly, when this was discovered at halftime, all the balls were inflated to the legal pressure. First half, Patriot outscored the Colts 17-7, using the deflated balls. Second half they outscored them 28-0. Any advantage the Patriots gained would seem to be minimal. I guess the underinflated footballs made the Patriots block and tackle better.
 
psychojoe said:
Try a simple, at home experiment. Blow up a balloon inside your house. It would be at room temperature of say, 72F. Put it inside your refrigerator for about 30 minutes, then take it out. You will find that it has deflated.

Locker room temperature 70 degrees, give or take. Field temperature 45 degrees, give or take. The same principle applies. The air pressure inside the ball will go down as it assumes the field temperature.

Supposedly, when this was discovered at halftime, all the balls were inflated to the legal pressure. First half, Patriot outscored the Colts 17-7, using the deflated balls. Second half they outscored them 28-0. Any advantage the Patriots gained would seem to be minimal. I guess the underinflated footballs made the Patriots block and tackle better.
Click to expand...

So .. if that is the case, why don't all balls deflate by the half? Especially in much colder temps? Pretty much every game every week?

http://www.sportingnews.com/nfl/sto...-bill-nye-science-guy-super-bowl-49-2015-xlix

Also BILL NYE HAS SPOKEN! Haha this whole thing is just getting ridiculous. If intent is found, find out who did it and punish them. Whether it's the equipment guy, Bill, Brady, a random person, whoever. Move alongggggg.
 
I'll give the likely scenario.

Brady has already said he likes them softer, maybe they pumped them to the minimum of 12.5 for him. And due to the climate change weather another x pounds goes out causing this stupid media frenzy...

Kudos to Kraft for standing up and backing his team like he did. This whole thing is way overblown In my opinion.
 
PhillyGirl, I did not express my thought clearly enough. The balls do not totally deflate. The balloon might, depending on how well it is sealed after it is inflated. The motion of the air molecules inside the balloon, or ball, is more at a higher temperature than a lower one. The extra motion means higher pressure, the lesser motion lower pressure. I don't know if you have ever had occasion to check air pressure on Ra tire, but the guidance, if you want to get the tires to the recommended pressure, is to check the tires when they are 'cold', that s not heated up by being recently driven. The effect of heat causes the tire pressure to be more if the car has been driven, so you let it sit for a while to get the tire temperature down to that of the surroundings.

I do not pretend to know how much the roughly 25 degree difference between the playing field in the locker room and the playing field would cause, but that can be tested experimentally.

One thing that smells about this to me, is that supposedly it was discovered by a Colts linebacker after he had an interception. He noticed it, but not the game officials who are handling the footballs on every play for both teams. I am supposed to believe that.

I question just how much advantage a deflated football would provide anyway. If this had been a 24-21 game I would be paying much closer attention to this one. I only saw the very end of the first half and the second half of the game, and the game was being decided because New England was man handling the Colts on the line of scrimmage on both sides.
 
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