The NFL’s Investigating The Patriots For Deflating Balls During The AFC Championship Game And Here’s Video

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#DEFLATEGATE? #BALLGATE? #BALLGHAZI? The NFL’s investigating the New England Patriots for allegedly deflating footballs during the AFC Championship game. A deflated ball is easier to control, especially under wet conditions. Bob Kravitz of WTHR broke the story late last night.

The story was confirmed by the NFL early this morning.

At the beginning of the third quarter the game was stopped so referees could take a ball out of play (video above). According to NFL rules, a ball must have “12.5-13.5 pounds per square inch of pressure and weigh between 14 and 15 ounces.” Additionally, balls must be available for testing “two hours and fifteen minutes before kickoff.” As Kravitz tweeted, a violation of these rules would mean a loss of draft picks for the Patriots.

This was certainly not a deciding factor in the Patriots blowout win over the Colts, but given their history (Spygate) you have to wonder what else is/was going on.

(H/t: CJZero, Mark)