Whether or not you believe the New England Patriots have cheated at various points over the seasons of head coach Bill Belichick's tenure is entirely up to your personal leanings. Whether the Pats have established a reputation as cheaters or rule benders, however, doesn't exactly seem to be a matter of opinion, as indicated by recent comments from former NFL head coach Tony Dungy, espousing the actions of current Denver Broncos and former Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning. Per Dungy, who was making an appearance on the Dan Patrick Show, a report from Peter King in 2010 which suggested that Manning would leave the visitor's locker room to discuss Colts plays whenever the team was visiting the Patriots home stadium in Foxborough because he believed the Pats bugged the room, is entirely accurate.
"I know that that is very true, and, you know, as Peyton talked to guys who played for the Patriots, some of the guys who came over - whether it's true or not he treated it as true. We didn't have a lot of strategy discussions inside the locker room there," Dungy said, via Michael David Smith of ProFootballTalk.com.
Per Smith, Dungy went on to stress that he doesn't know that the Patriots were cheating, but that Manning remained very cautious.
"Peyton takes everything to the nth degree," Dungy said, via Smith.
While it's certainly not a smoking gun, especially considering Manning's fanatical commitment to overpreparedness, it's another in a long line of suspicious reports involving New England and their constant search for any and every competitive advantage. While Deflategate my ultimately go the team's and quarterback Tom Brady's way where his four-game suspension is concerned, Manning's fear, co-mingled with 2007's Spygate, have to at least give fans of the team pause.
