Deflategate: The Super Bowl’s big drama explained

DEFLATEGATE. By now you may have heard the term in passing. Over the next week, you’ll be hearing it a lot more. This is the scandal rocking the NFL.

DEFLATEGATE.

By now you likely will have at least heard the term in passing. Over the next week, the chances are you’ll hear it a lot more.

Ahead of Monday’s (AEDT) Super Bowl XLIX between the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks in Glendale, Arizona, here’s an explanation of the scandal that has rocked the NFL.

WHAT IS DEFLATEGATE?

The New England Patriots have been accused of deflating footballs to make it easier for their superstar quarterback Tom Brady to grip the ball, and for his receivers to catch it, in the first half of their 45-7 rout of the Indianapolis Colts in the American Football Conference championship game — essentially, one of the NFL’s semi-finals.

The DeflateGate front pages are predictably ~ballsy~ http://t.co/94mSxlKTRf pic.twitter.com/XRGgpdyExb

— SB Nation (@SBNation) January 23, 2015

HOW WERE THE DEFLATED BALLS NOTICED?

NFL teams each provide 12 American footballs for a contest, all of them checked for proper air levels by referees before the game and returned to the teams.

During a game, each team’s offensive unit uses only the balls its team provided. That became an issue when Indianapolis intercepted a pass from Brady and Colts players questioned the ball’s air level. The balls were checked at half-time and made to conform to NFL standards of 12.5 to 13.5 pounds per square inch.

In any case, the Patriots led 17-7 at halftime with the apparently lighter balls, but outscored the Colts 28-0 in the second half with balls the league says were proper.

Could you tell the difference between a regulation and an underinflated football? http://t.co/upwGJwBpzV #Patriots pic.twitter.com/J3scriBfZV

— The Boston Globe (@BostonGlobe) January 23, 2015

WHAT ARE THE PATRIOTS SAYING?

Both New England coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Brady have insisted they have no idea how the balls came to be under-inflated after meeting league inflation requirements in a pre-game inspection.

“There have been questions raised, and I believe now, 100 percent, that I have personally and we have as an organization have absolutely followed every rule to the letter,” Belichick said. “At no time was there any intent to compromise the integrity of the game.”

MY BALLS ARE PERFECT! Haha pic.twitter.com/9uS3Jggxnd

— Ignacio Murillo (@igmurillo) January 23, 2015

WHAT’S THE LATEST?

The NFL is reportedly looking intently at a Patriots locker room attendant.

Fox Sports reported that the NFL had already interviewed the “person of interest” and was “trying to determine whether any wrongdoing by this individual occurred” after surveillance video showed the attendant taking the footballs from the officials’ locker room to another room before bringing them onto the field.

The internet had a field day with Tom Brady’s press conference #DeflateGate http://t.co/JSYiM3H0Vs pic.twitter.com/Vgsn2AgD6d

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) January 23, 2015

WHAT DO THE SEAHAWKS HAVE TO SAY ABOUT ALL THIS?

Outspoken Seattle cornerback Richard Sherman has created a mini-storm of his own, saying it was unlikely the Patriots would ever be punished, even if the NFL found the team was in the wrong.

Sherman says Patriots owner Robert Kraft and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell had too close a personal relationship for the league to take strong action against the team.

“Will they be punished? Probably not,” Sherman said.

“Not as long as Robert Kraft and Goodell are taking pictures at their respective homes... Talk about conflict of interest,” Sherman said, a reference to pictures posted on social media of Goodell attending a party at Kraft’s home on the eve of last weekend’s game at Foxborough.

The Seahawks’ Richard Sherman says there is a “conflict of interest” with the NFL and the Patriots.

HAVE THE PATRIOTS BEEN INVOLVED IN A SCANDAL LIKE THIS BEFORE?

Coach Belichick was fined $500,000 in 2007, when the team was caught videotaping the hand signals of opposing teams, in contravention of NFL rules.

“I think the perception is the reality,” Sherman added. “Their resume speaks for itself. You talk about getting close to the line.”

WHAT WILL BE THE OUTCOME?

According to an ESPN poll, nothing...

POLL RESULTS: Lots of fans think the NFL will ultimately do nothing with #DeflateGate pic.twitter.com/aUgl50pmP1

— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) January 22, 2015

— with wires

Originally published as Deflategate: The Super Bowl’s big drama explained