With just over four minutes left in the game and the Patriots about to attempt another field goal, the stadium snowplow operator Mark Henderson - who by mutual agreement had been clearing off the yard markers throughout the game - veered from his line cleaning duties and cleared a spot on the field for New England kicker John Smith.ĭolphins coach DD Don Shula* went apeshit on the sidelines, but Smith made the kick and the refs allowed it. Through the first three and a half quarters, the two teams only attempted two field goals: both unsuccessful. Conditions were so bad that the teams combined to attempt just 11 passes, while rushing got them a combined 375 yards and zero touchdowns. SUMMARY: On December 12, 1982, the Dolphins and Patriots played the " Snowplow Game" in the middle of a New England blizzard. A similar dynamic played out 8-years later with the irrationally large Deflategate penalty.ĭo you still think Spygate was the biggest cheating scandal in NFL history? Then this page is for you. Docking the Patriots a first-rounder was a concrete way for Goodell and the other 31 owners to try and restore parity. The Patriots dominating the league in the salary-cap era was disruptive to these franchises, a threat to ratings and, ultimately, to league advertising revenues. Since it was his first year as commissioner, he really, really wanted people to respect his authoritah!īig picture: because parity across all 32 NFL teams is in the best interest of the league.
Why was the Spygate penalty so high? Small picture: because Goodell was really pissed-off that he told Belichick to do something and Belichick ignored him. PUNISHMENT: As punishment for filming the game from the wrong location, NFL commissioner and former Jets public relations intern Roger Goodell fined Patriots head coach Bill Belichick $500,000, fined the Patriots $250,000, and docked the team their original first-round selection in the 2008 NFL Draft. According to the 2007 NFL Game Operations Manual, legal game videotaping locations "must be enclosed on all sides with a roof overhead." However, there are places in the stadium where you are allowed and not allowed to film from. Videotaping your opponents offensive and defensive signals during a game is not prohibited by the league, even today. A year later, as a form of payback, the Jets flagged the Patriots for the same activity.
During that game, a Jets cameraman was caught filming the game and Patriots signals and removed from the stadium. The Patriots filmed from an unapproved sideline location instead of from an approved indoor location.Ĭoincidentally, the Jets had engaged in the same filming activity during their Novemregular season game against the Patriots in Foxborough. SUMMARY: The Patriots were disciplined for videotaping their Septemregular-season 38-14 road victory against the New York Jets from the wrong location. PUNISHMENT: Each player was suspended for four games for violating the league's PEDs policy. Includes all documented infractions from 1960 to present with this Wikipedia page as the primary source.
SEVERITY = 0.5 video cameras per punished incident.
They not only put those players at risk for physical injury, but they also affect their economic livelihood by impacting their perceived value and their ability to secure appropriately-valued playing contracts. Players who illegally improve their performance unfairly penalize players who follow the rules. SUMMARY: Performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) are used by players to illegally improve athletic performance above what legal training and preparation can do.