Once Matt Walsh handed over the sought-after video evidence the league wanted, most fans thought the door would be closed on Spygate and the controversy sounding the Patriots.
Even NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell declared an end to Spygate after meeting with Walsh for about three hours on Tuesday morning.
Senator Arlen Specter, however, thinks differently. After a sit-down chat with Walsh, he wants an independent investigation, similar to the Mitchell Report in baseball, into the New England's method of videotaping signals in an effort to save the integrity of the NFL as a league.
In some respect, Specter made some solid points in terms of the lessons that can be learned from Spygate, including a message he emphasized to the younger generation that it's not okay to cheat. He also touched on the need for more accountability among teams to ensure the integrity of the game is not tainted.
Indeed, there's no question that the incident should be taken seriously. Plotting to hire a cameraman to stand on the sideline and videotape the opponents' signals was against NFL policy and is kind of classless. It maybe gives credence to LaDainian Tomlinson's comments following a divisional playoff loss to New England two seasons ago, vehemently stating that the Patriots were classless because of their head coach Bill Belichick.
But as I've said since the Spygate incident was uncovered in September, it's completely naive for people to think that this is the only case where a team has attempted to steal or have stolen signals. The Patriots organization has seemingly been the scapegoat for something that goes on more in sports than people want to think.
For that reason, there shouldn't be a private investigation conducted. Like I said, this kind of cheating to gain a competitive advantage has been occurring since the modernization of sport itself. Even John Madden has admitted to it happening when he coached the Oakland Raiders in the 1960s and 1970s.
If someone like Spector feels Spygate is worth investigating, then there should be a prob into the off-field practices of teams in every major sporting league.
Nevertheless, the league handled the situation correctly and disciplined the Patriots appropriately. The fact that Goodell revoked a first-round draft pick from the Patriots as well as fined Belichick $500,000 and the team $250,000 was punishment enough and there's no need for a further investigation of Spygate, as Specter seems to believe.
With Walsh agreeing to come forward, Specter has come out of it sounding pretty bitter. Being from Pennsylvania, he grew up a fan of the Pittsburgh Steelers, one of the teams New England was found to be videotaping, and almost seems to have a personal vendetta against the Patriots.
In a press conference on Tuesday, Specter argued that during the 2005 season in which New England won their third Super Bowl in four seasons, the Patriots were able to beat the Steelers 41-27 in the AFC Championship game because, four months earlier, they gained and used signals after videotaping an earlier regular season meeting between the two teams that saw Pittsburgh destroy New England 34-20 at Heinz Field.
Along the same lines, Specter said he's "elected by 12 million people and a lot of them are Steelers fans . . . I'm incensed about what happened with the Steelers." But seriously, let it go. That was like three years ago and it's time to move on with your life. I was completely incensed when the Seattle Seahawks were ripped off in Super Bowl XL by some horrible refereeing, losing 21-10 to the Steelers as a result, but I don't hold grudges for it anymore. Specter apparently can't do the same, and even after owner Dan Rooney and head coach Mike Tomlin said they want to put Spygate behind them, he seems intent on resuscitating Spygate and nailing the Patriots to the cross.
My question is, doesn't Specter have more important political issues to worry about than Spygate? I can understand why Congress has made an effort into eliminating drug use in sports, especially baseball, because it's sending a message to young athletes that there are consequences for their action - both to their personal health and also to their sporting careers. But spending an unnecessary sum of money into a further investigation of Spygate is a whole different issue and something that needs closure.
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