Don't Forget the Patriots Could Still Get in Trouble for the Bengals Videotaping Incident
By Michael Luciano
The New England Patriots found themselves in hot water once again in December when a videographer for the "Do Your Job" web series was found to have filmed the Cincinnati Bengals sideline during a game, which could theoretically have been used to help the Patriots decipher Cincinnati's signals for when the two teams faced off a week later.
The Patriots have yet to be officially punished for this, but the book isn't totally closed just yet. The NFL could still fine them or do something to make the organization suffer even though the Patriots won't lose any 2020 draft picks because of this.
Would like to point out that the Patriots made it to the draft without getting punished for their videotaping incident. Four-plus months have passed, and no word from the NFL.
— Ben Volin (@BenVolin) April 23, 2020
There still may be punishment, but it seems that the NFL did the Pats a solid by dragging it out.
Ah, yes, convenient they weren't punished before the draft.
The Patriots are no stranger to cheating scandals that mess with draft preparation, as SpyGate and DeflateGate have both cost them first-round picks. While this is nowhere near as blatant or serious as those two scandals, someone hired by the Patriots filming an opposing sideline could easily be something that forces Goodell to administer punishment.
Bill Belichick and Co. still waiting for Goodell to either slap them on the wrist or exonerate them despite the league vowing to wrap this up in a timely fashion months ago.
NFL hopes to decide quickly whether to punish Patriots for taping Bengals’ sideline https://t.co/EYztx8cIT5
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) December 10, 2019
The Pats might not lose any draft picks as a result of this scandal, but they could still see a somewhat hefty fine come their way.