On Sunday, the National Football League punished the New England Patriots for inappropriately filming the field and sideline during a game between the Cleveland Browns and Cincinnati Bengals on December 8 according to ESPN. The production crew was credentialled by the Browns, however, the NFL or the Bengals were not notified by the Patriots before the game.
The Patriots have been accused of cheating on numerous occasions. Two previous times they have been penalized. In 2007, the Patriots were fined $250,000 and lost their first-round pick in the 2008 NFL Draft for secretly videotaping the New York Jets’ defensive coaches from an unauthorized location. Patriots head coach Bill Belichick was also fined $500,000 for an incident best known as Spygate.
Then the Patriots were fined $1 million, lost two draft picks in the 2016 NFL Draft and saw star quarterback Tom Brady be suspended four games after it was determined that Brady had ordered the deflation of footballs in the Patriots’ 45-7 win over the Indianapolis Colts from the 2014 AFC Championship. This infraction was known as Deflategate. Here are five punishments the Patriots are receiving from their latest violation of filming the Bengals/Browns game.
- Patriots receive a hefty fine. Patriots owner Robert Kraft once again has to open his wallet. This time the fine is worth $1.1 million.
- David Mondillo banned by NFL. The Kraft Sports and Entertainment Supervising Producer and videographer was initially suspended and then fired by the Patriots before the NFL announced its discipline against the Patriots.
- Patriots production crew penalized. For the 2020 National Football League season, the Patriots will not be allowed to shoot any games. It should be noted that due to issues related to coronavirus, all NFL teams may not be permitted to shoot other games either. The video production may be limited to only the broadcasting television network that has the rights for a particular game.
- Patriots senior officials must undergo training. It is not known if Belichick is disciplined here, but Patriots “senior club officials will undergo required training on league operation and game policies.”
- Patriots lose third-round pick. The loss of the draft pick applies to the 2021 NFL Draft.
