Positive Meet Negative
The NFL once again decide to hand the Patriots severe sanctions that seemingly outweighs the crime. Or in this case, the Patriots tv crew filming the Cincinnati sideline back on December 8th when the Cincinnati Bengals were visiting the Cleveland Browns at First Energy Stadium. The Patriots’ fines, according to ESPN’s Mike Reiss, are:
- $1.1 million in club fines.
- Loss of a third-round pick for the 2021 NFL Draft.
- Patriots TV Film Crew no longer allowed to film or shoot NFL Games during the 2020 NFL Season.
- Senior Officials will be required to undergoe training on league operations and game polices
This comes in addition to David Mondillo, formerly with the Patriots film crew, being terminated by the Patriots prior to the league’s discipline today. He was suspended by the Patriots at the time of the NFL investigation and will be banned from all NFL facilities until further notice.
The news was broke by NFL spokesperson, Michael Signora, who confirmed the punishment after ESPN broke the news on Sunday night. A New England spokesman confirmed that the team won’t contest the league’s decision and will accept all fines.
Is Cam The Answer Now?
With the huge signing of former no.1 overall pick and NFL MVP Cam Newton, New England fans seemed to feel optimistic for the 2020 NFL season. But the league’s punishment coming out immediately after this is pretty brutal. Ironic, given the timing coming immediately after Cam was signed but that is purely speculation. The Patriots QB room consists of:
- Jarrett Stidham - Patriots 2019 4th Round Pick.
- Brian Hoyer - Long-time NFL Backup
- Cam Newton - Former No.1 pick in the 2011 NFL Draft and Carolina Panthers’ starter.
- J’Mar Smith - Former QB for Lousiana Tech Bulldogs, undrafted following the 2020 NFL Draft
- Brian Lewerke - Former QB for Michigan State Spartans, undrafted following the 2020 NFL draft.
As of now, the Patriots are now in a stronger position then they were afew months ago following Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski’s departure to Tampa Bay. It remains to be seen if Cam Newton will add enough explosiveness to the Pats offense under Offensive Coordinator Josh McDaniels but the NFL season is not set to begin until Sept. 10th. The starting QB position right now is Newton’s to lose at this point.
