Do you think Patriots deflating footballs is getting blown wait out of proportion?

Blowing this WAY out of proportion. In all the discussion I have heard this week, I haven't heard anything about why the refs didn't notice this every time they touched the ball (after a score, walking off a penalty, measuring first down, putting the ball back into play, etc). I believe the Pats used the lack of air to their advantage, but they could have played with balls provided by the Colts, and still wiped up the Colts.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, It's technically cheating. But it's two gd PSI people? If you think the pats got to the Super Bowl because of 2 PSI then you are deluded.

I don't know what the situation is as far as other teams doing it as well, however, many NFL insiders suggest that is is common. If it is indeed common, and an individual is in a position where he will lose his job if he is not competitive, he would be somewhat foolish not to behave similarly. When the Pats made the decision to deflate balls, it was a risk-reward analysis. For such a small advantage, deflating balls would probably only be done because it is seen as a relatively small un-risky infraction. Most likely because it was and is now (probably) a common practice in the NFL. Unfortunately, because of the Patriots past, and it being just before the super bowl, this has become a huge scandal. Odds are, that YOUR favorite team also makes similar infractions, yet isn't successful enough to have them dredged up for the media circus. Imagine a scenario where the Patriots start deflating balls per the QBs preference years ago just like many other teams in the league. They then make it to the Super Bowl, however, the media "reveals" their deflations as a starting moment of unsportsman-like behavior just prior to the SB because they have typically been unfriendly (as an organization) to media, and the behavior that gets them views. Yes, the Pats had it coming, because they were technically breaking the rules, but I wouldn't doubt it if there were some sorry doings on the part of most NFL teams that aren't exposed because those teams have the benefit of NOT being the Patriots.

I really don't think that deflated balls explain a 45 to 7 score. If the balls were only deflated when Tom Brady was throwing them and they were also easier to catch wouldn't they also be easier to intercept IF the defense was playing well. First I doubt that IF the balls were in fact deflated that Brady had nothing to do with it. I don't think the Patriots needed to cheat in order to beat the Colts ( who use to be my favorite team ) as I said the score demonstrates that there was more at work than just deflated Footballs. Also I don't think the Patriots will need to cheat in order to Beat Badly the Sea Hawks. Has anyone thought for even a second that this whole fiasco may just be something to bring even more attention to the Super Bowl. Deflated Footballs or any kind of cheating WILL NOT decide this Football game the Better team will Win, whether you like it or not and the Better team is the Patriots and the Patriots will WIN , just because you don't like the Patriots doesn't mean the cheat it just means they win more than you would like and you know what ? It's just too bad. You can cry now or you can cry later ,but you will cry !

If that's the reason the Colts got humiliated and dominated, then Dallas must have deflated their footballs a few weeks ago too.

Yes, it's getting blown out of proportion greatly. If it were any other team, it wouldn't be this big in the media right now. But people love to hate and criticize the Patriots, so there it is.

Yes it has. Professional sports teams always take advantage of any opportunity for an edge to win the game, no matter what sport you're talking about. In this case, at halftime, the footballs were checked because of a complaint, found to be under-inflated by a couple of pounds, and inflated to meet the requirement of PSI and size. That made no difference to the Patriots because they scored 28 more points the second half of the game. I've read stories of professional baseball teams who use heavier chalk or less chalk on the foul lines, depending on if it gives them an advantage of their players being able to keep a bunted ball down the line in fair territory, or putting down less chalk on the foul lines if their competition has good players who bunt the ball, so the ball has a better chance of going foul, and out of play when a bunt is attempted. A team's reputation follows them everywhere, and if the owner(s), coaches, players and fans are content with a reputation of "cheating", then the opposing teams will usually find a way of overcoming any advantage.

Just because you don't think it doesn't make a huge difference doesn't mean it's not cheating. An Olympic sprinter will be thrown out of a race for jumping the gun by 1/100 of a second and didn't even mean to. A pro golfer will be penalized 2 shots or disqualified for signing a wrong score card for bushing a single blade of grass in a hazard, and in both cases - it didn't make a huge difference. Rules are there for the integrety of the game - sorry to say in this day and age, especially with the younger generation, this seems to be going down the toilet. Cheaters should always be disqualified from the game - take Lance Armstrong & Marion Jones - as much as I admired them, they got the black eye they deserved - the Patriots deserve the same - "CHEATERS"

Yes, very much so. If the NFL is gonna make this big of a deal out of underinflated balls, they should have the officials test them before each play. The fact is that NE won 45-7. 28 of those points were scored using the "legal" balls. We've yet to prove that the Patriots even deflated the balls. Seriously, the pressure in the game balls is a specification that ought to met, but this is ridiculous. Congrats on all the answers (most I've ever seen a question get).

Yes... It's totally smear and raw/bad advertisement imho. I've only heard Tom Brady's side, and Bill Belichick's side.

I've heard nothing from Chuck Maganao... Nothing is reported by him on the NFL official website...

Whereas the NE Patriots page has got about two stories on the matter, and seemed about five stories earlier today.

I've heard rumours of official investigation but nothing about an official investigation happening, aside from press claiming to be making the official investigation on behalf of the NFL League.

My further view is that, The Indianapolis Colts have got sore technique, and are throwing about false accusations made out of jealousy and/or some near emotion of jealousy. Brings the whole NFL into disrepute from ball checking, all the processes, who sees what last. I've further reason to believe that some form of distress is within the Colts team, by Colt team members being dropped, which snowballs into bad defensive flips.

The smear made me think of transparency though. Laying out the footballs on the table before the game with the big screen so the fans can see the PSI reading.

A couple of panelists are saying the story is weak. One of the veteran panelists says it's pretty much impossible to miss the deflate because of the process. It's totally incredulous to have a 60minute game and the referee not be alerted and/or to self aware of the appearance/shape of the football.

I think some people have lost their eyeballs and with a bit of dubiousness coming across as guilty, whereas it's just dubiousness of the inability to spot a ...some media word they used like... 'extensively' deflated football.

So in all... It's smear. Someone has got it out for the Patriots OR is trying to have that old tale (and bad tale, all tales are bad) of 'any press is good press', which brings interest to the NFL sport, and thus cranks up revenues, maybe profits, meanwhile there are pawns who have to be brought before a scattered crowd, and goooooood morning Barabus. Insanity. I found myself looking at stuff to buy from the NFL from the story. Bad.

Big point... Stats wise, Patriots have no motive to want to decrease the PSI.

Maybe, but when you think about the fact that Marshawn Lynch was gonna get suspended for wearing gold shoes out on the field and the Pats didn't even get punished for the deflation that might have cost the colts the game then no, it's not being blown out of proportion, in fact, the NFL should be doing more about it.

The (alleged) deflated balls were removed from the game before the second half, and yet a) the Pats scored 28 points using 'proper' balls, and b) the Colts, with their own (allegedly, since no one has apparently also checked the psi of their balls) balls, couldn't score a single point.

No one is screaming that the GB loss last week should be a do-over since Rodgers admitted that he prefers a ball slightly higher than what is used, and I will bet that any QB would prefer their own psi, even that of the Colts.

It's the Pats. They're in the bullseye no matter what they do.

Honestly, I'm NOT a football fan.

But I must say that the NFL is for sure a big deal, they can't allow cheating. So I think it's ok that they're making a big deal out of it. Who knows how many games the patriots won because of the deflated balls??