Published on July 20 by KLR Publishing, this 270-page book takes a detailed look at the NFL cheating scandal that resulted when the New England Patriots were caught videotaping an opposing defensive coach’s sideline hand signals in September 2007. Many of you will remember that Patriots head coach Bill Belichick was fined $500,000 by the NFL for his involvement in the incident. The team was slapped with a $250,000 fine and had a first-round draft pick taken from them.
In “Spygate: The Untold Story,” O’Leary alleges and attempts to prove that the September 2007 incident, which occurred during a game against the New York Jets, was just a small part of an elaborate videotaping and electronic eavesdropping system employed by the Patriots. The Patriots not only videotaped live games, but they also went to great lengths to spy on other teams at practice and during pre-game walk-throughs. The Patriots have supposedly employed this cheating system during Belichick’s entire tenure as head coach at New England, which began in 2000.
O’Leary also alleges that New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady is one of the main players in the cheating scheme. He supposedly uses a helmet rigged with a radio that allows assistant coaches to talk to him right up to the snap of the football. In the NFL, all quarterbacks use helmet radios, but by rule they’re monitored by game officials and are shut off with 15 seconds left on the play clock.
O’Leary’s book also includes several statistical studies of New England’s game results from 2001 through 2011. The studies were prepared by Dr. Miao Zang, who holds a PhD in statistical science from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas. The studies look at New England’s win-loss record at home, their perfect home record during that time and their record against the spread. This discussion in the book covers three chapters, but in a nutshell, it all shows that something very unusual was going on with the Patriots during this time.
“This Spygate affair is the biggest cheating scandal in American sports history,” O’Leary said. “It overshadows the Black Sox throwing the World Series in 1919. At least the Black Sox conspired to actually lose the Series. The Patriots conspired to win, and won three Super Bowls.”
I have to admit that I’ve always sort of admired Bill Belichick, but this book sure makes him look like a dirty cheater. Also, those of us in Alabama know that University of Alabama head coach Nick Saban is one of Belichick’s protégés. Saban served as defensive coordinator at the Cleveland Browns when Belichick was the head coach there, and Saban is considered an offshoot of the Belichick coaching tree. “Spygate” does mention Saban and his ties to Belichick a couple of times, but in no way indicates that Saban was part of any cheating.
In the end, I enjoyed this book and would recommend it to any football fan in the reading audience. To date, it’s the only full-length book about the Spygate scandal and is definitely worth reading if you’re a fan of the NFL.
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