NFL says Patriots’ distracting video board tactic did not violate league rules

From Spygate to Deflategate, the NFL caught the New England Patriots red-handed in their schemes during the Bill Belichick era, attempting to circumvent league rules and gain a competitive advantage. The team is back under the microscope this week for another newly uncovered ploy, but this one will not rise to the level of a scandal like the previous two. As crafty as the Patriots' now-viral use of the Gillette Stadium video boards on opposing field goal attempts might have been, the NFL said it is completely legal.

Former NFL strategy and analytics coach Ryan Paganetti discovered that for over a decade—generally during the latter half of Belichick's tenure—the Patriots displayed a reversed, live view of the field on their video board during opponents' special teams snaps. From a kicker's perspective, a second set of uprights appeared on the video board behind the actual goalpost, creating a mirror image of the field.

This disorienting view directly in kickers' lines of sight occurred only when opponents attempted their field goals. In the games where Paganetti noted such use of the video board, none of the Patriots' 52 field goal attempts came in front of that mirrored camera angle.

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Original source: https://www.cbssports.com/