Patriots Spygate: Investigators Reportedly Struggling To Find Connection With Videographer

The National Football League has officially launched an investigation into the New England Patriots for recording the Cincinnati Bengals sideline during their game against the Cleveland Browns. Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reported that investigators have interviewed several members of the Patriots organization in the past few days. The team has also collected devices from some members in an effort to confirm the connection between the video crew and the football operations. The Spygate scandal is still alive.

New England said that this was an innocent error made by the videographer. The cameraman has been suspended. The team said there was no malice behind the recording activities as the man was just making a “Do Your Job” feature on an advance scout. The NFL suspected because of the Patriots history with similar scandals.

It looks like the Patriots are right about this, as investigators have yet to determine the connection to football operations. NFL investigators are focused on this one.

“As one source explained it, there’s a sense that investigators want to make that connection and a perception that they are showing frustration when unable to tie the video crew to the football employees,” Florio writes. 

Determining the connection between the cameraman and the football operations is of utmost importance to the NFL’s investigation as it would say confirm whether the tapes were used for illegal activities ahead of the game against the Cincinnati Bengals. If guilty, the Patriots would receive a much more serious punishment by the league. They may even lose their draft picks.

If investigators can’t find a connection, the penalty will be less severe. The team will probably receive a fine.

ESPN’s Mike Reiss reported that the NFL may come down with a ruling on the problem as early as this week. So they won’t have to wait for too long to learn more about the potential fine. How will the Patriots handle the fine? They have already been there. But, they didn’t do anything wrong. The cameraman made a mistake.

New England is off to winning their last game of the season. They are playing the Miami Dolphins on Sunday.