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Arlen Specter was very upfront about part of his motivation for calling for an independent investigation into Spygate. He’s a Senator from Pennsylvania and he’s concerned that tapes made of the Steelers in 2004 may have contributed to their loss in the AFC Championship game.
He was less forthcoming about another potential reason for his anger at the NFL. Specter has very close ties with Comcast, based in his state, and they’ve been fighting with the league about the placement of the NFL Network on their cable networks.
On ESPN’s NFL Live, Sal Paolantonio said “the NFL Network, just last Tuesday, filed a complaint with the FCC against the Comcast Corporation for discrimination. They want those NFL Network games to go on the regular tier.” Because they’re dealing with the federal government and because Specter is so close to Comcast, they need to tread lightly lest the league make more of a mess for itself in Washington.
Paolantonio also said that part of the reason Specter made a public plea for the outside investigation is that Senator Patrick Leahy, the Chairman of the Judiciary Committee, balked at holding Senate hearings on Spygate. That leaves a Mitchell Report-type investigation as the likely outlet for Specter’s concerns.
That raises another question. The Mitchell Report investigated all of baseball for steroid use, shouldn’t a similar investigation into cheating in the NFL go beyond the Patriots to find out how many teams are guilty?
May 14th, 2008 at 5:07 pm
AMEN, let’s air every teams dirty laundry! Then fans of other teams can stop pretending to be holier than thou.
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Rating: 3.65 / 5 with 3 rating(s)
May 14th, 2008 at 5:11 pm
Well if Comcast puts the NFL network BACK
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May 14th, 2008 at 5:13 pm
this is so not over. And it is going to get dirty.
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Rating: 1 / 5 with 1 rating(s)
May 14th, 2008 at 5:14 pm
If Comcast puts the NFL Channel BACK on the regular tier where you don’t have to pay extra like it USED to be then more people will have a chance to watch the games, not as much as when it was on the reglar networks mind you, but their will be less people who complain about it, like myself, it’ll be just like a ‘magic bullet’.
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May 14th, 2008 at 5:15 pm
It’s becoming awkward regarding Sen. Arlen Specter because there seems to be true motivation behind what he is doing instead of purely “making the game better,” as was apparent with former Sen. George Mitchell and baseball.
This Comcast situation only adds to that. It’s fine for Specter to pick on the Patriots, but if he continues to do so, then as Florio alluded to, pick on the other 31 teams as well.
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Rating: 3 / 5 with 2 rating(s)
May 14th, 2008 at 5:23 pm
Be careful what you wish for fellow NFL fans.If anyone on this site truly beleves the Patriots were the only team that has done this,then the people who live in Key West better be ready for a snowstorm . Jimmy Johnson has gone on record that he did it also along with other coaches. You have to feel bad for Senator Spector, it is obvious that the brain cancer is progressivng faster than thought.
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Rating: 4.2 / 5 with 5 rating(s)
May 14th, 2008 at 5:31 pm
“That raises another question. The Mitchell Report investigated all of baseball for steroid use, shouldn’t a similar investigation into cheating in the NFL go beyond the Patriots to find out how many teams are guilty?”
That is the proverbial elephant in the room. All the Patriots haters think Goodell is sweeping this under the rug for the benefit of the Pats. He’s doing it for the benefit of the entire league. The longer this keeps popping up in the headlines, the worse it will be for everyone, not just the Patriots.
All the Pats bashers hoping this keeps getting dragged on better be careful what they wish for. You’re a fool if you believe they’re the only team with skeletons in their closet.
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Rating: 5 / 5 with 3 rating(s)
May 14th, 2008 at 5:36 pm
Yes
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May 14th, 2008 at 5:38 pm
i can’t wait for him to find out the steelers (along with the rest of league) has been doing this for years
non-story
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Rating: 2.35 / 5 with 3 rating(s)
May 14th, 2008 at 5:41 pm
If my state senator spent this much time on spygate, i would actively campaign against him in the next election. I love football as much as the next guy, but there are more important things to worry about right now and the last thing the govt needs to do is waste money on another mitchell report that will generally tell us nothing we didn’t already know.
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May 14th, 2008 at 5:48 pm
Specter is trying to draw attention to himself. I believe it is very presumptuous and cynical to say that Specter is doing this for Comcast. That is innuendo on his intentions. Nonetheless, Congress has no authority to investigate the NFL because no laws were broken.
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May 14th, 2008 at 5:51 pm
I was just listening to Sal Paolantonio on the Mike Missanelli Show in Philly and Sal said that Arlen Specter addressed Congress today about Spygate and apparently there is more to it than what you (Mike) have covered so far. Specter claims that Walsh told him that he had to go through “great pains” to hide what he was doing, when he was doing it, and he also had first hand knowledge of members of the coaching staff tipping off the players about some of the things they learned on the video tape. Here’s the kicker; Goodell never asked him about that.
As far as Specter’s so called conflict of interest is concerned, there isn’t one, yet. He has said a few times on WIP’s Morning Show that he may retire after his term is up. His reason being “I am going to be 83 years old by the start of the next term and I want to enjoy the rest of my life I have with my grandchildren”. We’ll wait and see if he does. Plus, it would behoove the NFL to placate the Senator because they do have this little appeal with the FCC regarding getting the NFL Network on the regular tier. Nevermind the contract they had agreed to.
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Rating: 1 / 5 with 2 rating(s)
May 14th, 2008 at 5:51 pm
I couldn’t disagree with Sal more on this one. The notion that the NFL needs to tread lightly here is riciculous. Specter is an elected official and the thought that he might use his political power to stonewall is ridiculous. Comcast owns this guy - he doesn’t own them. He’s just grandstanding right now because his team(s)got beat by the pats.
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May 14th, 2008 at 6:05 pm
If there is to be a “Mitchell-like” outside report, it should absolutely cover all teams, not just the Pats, if it’s going to have any credibility.
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May 14th, 2008 at 6:13 pm
I don’t have Comcast in my area. I have cable, and NFLN is not on a free tier, so I pay extra for it. So what?
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May 14th, 2008 at 6:17 pm
What people forget is that using steroids, in baseball or anywhere else is a illegal act. Steroids are a class 3 controlled substance in the US. Possession of or use of steroids without a prescription is a FEDERAL crime punishable by law. This is a valid reason for our federal government to become involved in the situation that baseball was dealing with IF baseball was fostering this type of atmosphere.
Having someone taping signals while against NFL rules, is not against the law, Hell I don’t even know if cheating in a sport is illegal. As fans we have to keep this in perspective. Surely, Sen Specter has to keep this in perspective as well. This is starting to become comical.
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May 14th, 2008 at 6:19 pm
will these congressmen please shut the f*** up and go back to you know, running the country, instead of wasting taxpayer dollars on football (I give enough of my own dollars to the league)
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Rating: 5 / 5 with 2 rating(s)
May 14th, 2008 at 6:43 pm
There should also be an independent special investigation of all campaign contributions and special interest monies made to the benefit of Senator Arlen Spector. Now that would undoubtedly turn up some interesting dirty laundry. He’s a career politician, which means he’s on the take. I’m sure the NFL has already started digging.
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Rating: 5 / 5 with 1 rating(s)
May 14th, 2008 at 7:01 pm
@dagodfather: Goodell clearly stated that Walsh indicated he had to be careful and not be obvious about what he was doing. Goodell said that all teams go to great lengths to hide what they are doing and do things to give them an edge. He didnt see it as a big deal and neither do I. It was the rule violation that matters. The fact that they hid what they were doing indicates that they knew it was wrong but Goodell already said he didnt believe the excuses anyhow. Nothing new there.
Also given Specters biggest campaign contrib. is Comcast there is certainly a conflict of interest. He is attacking the NFL and its commish who happen to be in a huge controversy with his biggest campaign contributer. Now who is not being forthcoming?
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May 14th, 2008 at 7:08 pm
If Specter was a loins fan or a Bengals fan would he care about Spygate? Would he be having meetings with Walh or Goodell over this? This is nothing more than abuse of power by a high ranking offical in our goverment. I guess it is a good idea to have a committee look into this and spend Tax payers dollars on this. I guess the people down in New Orleans couldn’t use the money.
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May 14th, 2008 at 7:21 pm
I am a die hard Patriots fan. At first I was all for an independent investigation. After all, the Pats reportedly have plenty of evidence that they are not alone in this matter of cheating in the NFL. I have no reason to doubt this. BB is a smart guy, and I doubt he would do something this blatant if he didn’t have an ace up his sleeve. I thought it was a bit unfair for the Patriots to be the scapegoat on this. However they are best suited to take the hit, and they did.
An independent investigation would be a bad thing though. Anyone who knows the NFL also knows that cheating is not isolated to the Pats. Look up the history of Al Davis sometime. I mean an opposing coach once went into the locker room and shouted “I know you’re listening AL!” Either the investigation will be on all teams, and will damage the league tremendously, or it will all be focused on bringing down the Pats. Either way, I don’t want it to happen. They should let this die and go back to playing the game. Fans in NE will just have to get used to being the “bad boys” of the NFL, even if it isn’t just or deserving (for the players at the very least).
No laws are being broken. Society is not in any way threatened. The government should keep its paws out unless they can prove otherwise. This is a matter of internal policy. The only way the government should get involved is if the Pats take it to court arguing that the policy is unclear (a case they could likely make, policy must be written clearly, and easily understood). The Pats declined to do that in the interest of the NFL.
So here is a Pats fan saying no. No independent investigation. And to Specter I would say this: Go take a history course. Focus on Rome. When the senate became too corrupt to function, they used the games to placate the masses. They did not dare interfere, lest the populous start focusing on the corruption of the government. Seeing as Specter has ties to Comcast (his biggest two investors), and is blatantly disregarding a conflict of interest, surely he realizes that if he damages the games, he might well be ruining himself as well. What Specter is doing is bad for football, bad for him, and bad for America. Our society is facing enough peril right now with war and a looming depression. Don’t continue destroy our games.
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May 14th, 2008 at 7:21 pm
It is very exhausting to listen to Patriot fans whine about Congress investigating Patriot cheating. Perhaps Florio should write a blurb about the federal anti-trust exemption that the NFL enjoys at the discretion of Congress. Congress has the right to investigate at any time whether the NFL deserves such consideration.
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Rating: 1 / 5 with 1 rating(s)
May 14th, 2008 at 7:40 pm
Author: FreeAgentPro
Comment:
It is very exhausting to listen to Patriot fans whine about Congress investigating Patriot cheating. Perhaps Florio should write a blurb about the federal anti-trust exemption that the NFL enjoys at the discretion of Congress. Congress has the right to investigate at any time whether the NFL deserves such consideration.
I’ve read it all too and it seems to me that you are one of only TWO posters on this board that think that way. Everyone else whether a pats fan or a pats hater pretty much is against using taxpayer money on an NFL investigation.
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May 14th, 2008 at 8:02 pm
Arlene specter is a Senator and should be worrying about the direction this country is headed in rather than worrying about football. Maybe he should do an investigation into what the U.S. Constitution is and how congress has voted on issues to see if these issues were constitutional or not. That would be much more interesting, I’d bet we could find alot of fault in congress and the white house over our current economy!
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May 14th, 2008 at 8:03 pm
@PFTiswhatitis - First off, let’s get one thing straight, Comcast did not give Specter squatola. Comcast is a corporation and it is illegal for a corporation to fund political campaigns. Brian Roberts contributed to his campaign. If Specter does not run for another term, how exactly does Brian Roberts benefit? Let’s just say that Roberts does play this card, what is he going to do if Specter says no?
Secondly, if the Patriots truly thought that they could tape the signals, why hide what they were doing?
Lastly, is it possible, no matter how remote in your mind, that Specter is on the up and up and that he is trying to help the sport he loves?
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