Shortly after the New England Patriots defeated the Indianapolis Colts 45 to 7 in the AFC Championship Game on 18 January 2015, rumors started circulating that the Patriots had gained an advantage by providing under-inflated footballs for game use. While that charge has not yet been proved, the NFL has said that they have opened an investigation into the matter.
NFL spokesman Michael Signora confirms the NFL is looking into whether footballs were properly inflated in Patriots-Colts game.
— Bob Glauber (@BobGlauber) January 19, 2015
Pro Football Talk reported on 19 January 2015 that several footballs were removed from the sidelines of the AFC Championship game after officials determined that the footballs did not meet league requirements:
Footballs are periodically inspected by officials during games and according to NFL VP of officiating Dean Blandino "it's not unheard of for a ball to be removed from circulation and then tested during the week for whatever issue there was."
Former NFL official Jim Daopoulos said that numerous factors could cause a football to deflate during a game:
If the NFL determines that the New England Patriots intentionally deflated the balls to gain an advantage over the Indianapolis Colts, the team could face a $25,000 fine:
New England quarterback Tom Brady said that the accusations were ridiculous:
Subsequent reports indicated that the league's initial determination was that 11 of the 12 balls provided by the Patriots were underinflated:
Other accounts noted, though, that sneaking underinflated footballs into an NFL game was likely a much more difficult and complicated process than might be assumed:
Also, further reports noted that the underinflated footballs were swapped out at halftime and replaced with backup balls:
Some sources noted that unless only the Patriots were using under-inflated footballs, the phenomenon should have benefited both teams:
However, others pointed out that game balls are supplied by both teams, not just the home team:
Last updated: 21 January 2015