Report: Belichick fined $500K, Patriots lose 2 high draft picks

Belichick Fined or Suspended?
Game Forfeiture Off the Table
Team Will Lose Draft Pick(s)

According to a report by Mike Lynch of WCVB-TV (Channel 5, Boston), the NFL will fine New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick $500,000 and take two first-day draft picks from the team.

Meanwhile, Don Banks and Peter King of CNNSI say the league is weighing a multiple-game suspension of Belichick and taking a single high-round draft pick.

Update [2007-9-13 19:34:25 by tommasse]::
Lynch attributed his information merely to "sources" and that Belichick has not yet been notified by the league. That notification is expect Friday by fax. The half-million dollar fine cannot be paid by the team or ownership, according to Lynch, and the draft picks could be a first- and third-rounder.

King and Banks said several options are still being considered, but one item has been taken off the table: forfeiture of Sunday's 38-14 win over the New York Jets. The duo attribute their info to "NFL sources."

Their primary prediction includes a two- or three-game suspension for Belichick and a first-, second- or third-round draft pick. Other considerations vary in severity, but the league is reportedly trying to spread the punishment over Belichick and the team, and not one or the other.

In our poll ...

If a lower-tier team, say Detroit or Cleveland, had been caught stealing defensive signals, would the uproar be as great? Would the league's punishment be as severe?

Think about it before you decide. If Seattle, a top-tier NFC team, beat the snot out of bottom-feeding Detroit and caught one of the Lions employees with an unauthorized video camera on the sideline, would the story be so sensational?

Would the league make just as much an example out of Rod Marinelli? Would he be fined a half-mil? Would he be suspended? Would a team like the Lions, who can so ill afford to lose a single draft pick, much less a high-round pick, much less multiple high-rounders, be assessed such a severe penalty? Would anti-Lions fans and media bullies come out of the woodwork and pile on?

I don't know. It's definitely possible. What do you think?

I'll post again tomorrow when the official punishment is known, and we can debate its fairness then.

Update [2007-9-13 21:9:26 by tommasse]::

BigBlueIdiot has lambasted my simple philosophical poll question, proving he has a vendetta against me and this web site. I asked the question, as most information sources post polls: To present alternative viewpoints, to inspire discussion, and to obtain the feedback of its consumers. Current results of the poll, thanks to you, my loyal readers, support this concept.

But, Pinhead found it reason to attack me. But that's because he's not interested in the kind of debate in which adults participate. He engages solely in insults and name-calling. It's just another opportunity for him to advance his agenda of bile-spewing hatred.