Matt Walsh will meet with the NFL

[Rambos]

NFLN says a meetring is set, lets get down to it cheaters!

[TheBritishRam]

Commissioner to meet with Walsh on May 13
National Football League


The NFL released the following statement this morning:

An agreement has been completed between the NFL and Matt Walsh that will allow Mr. Walsh, a former videotape operator with the New England Patriots, to share with the NFL information about activities occurring during his employment with the club from 1997-2003.

Commissioner Goodell will meet with Mr. Walsh in the commissioner’s office on Tuesday, May 13, the earliest date that Mr. Walsh, who lives in Hawaii, will be available on the east coast.

The agreement also requires Mr. Walsh to return any tapes and other items in his possession that belong to the Patriots. In return, the NFL and the Patriots have promised not to sue Mr. Walsh. They also will indemnify him for any expenses, including legal fees that he incurs in connection with the interview.

Commissioner Goodell determined last September that the Patriots had violated league rules by videotaping opposing coaches' defensive signals during Patriots games throughout Bill Belichick’s tenure as head coach. Coach Belichick admitted to his use of the taping practice on a regular basis as a result of what he said was his misinterpretation of the rule. Commissioner Goodell imposed substantial discipline on Coach Belichick and the club as a result of that practice. The interview with Mr. Walsh will seek to determine whether he has any new information about that videotaping practice or other possible violations of league rules.

Following the meeting with Mr. Walsh on May 13, there will be a news media briefing later that day in New York that will be attended by Commissioner Goodell (specific time and location to be provided at a later date).

[moklerman]

The agreement also requires Mr. Walsh to return any tapes and other items in his possession that belong to the Patriots.

That's all you need to know, folks. You can bet Goodell has an industrial strength shredder or vat of acid in his office by the time Walsh shows up.

The Patriots won't bet penalized any more than they already have. Walsh either caved or got paid.

[jkramsfan]

Originally Posted by moklerman

That's all you need to know, folks. You can bet Goodell has an industrial strength shredder or vat of acid in his office by the time Walsh shows up.

The Patriots won't bet penalized any more than they already have. Walsh either caved or got paid.

I hope he makes extra copies in case Goodell accidently loses the original ones.

[Mooselini]

Originally Posted by jkramsfan

I hope he makes extra copies in case Goodell accidently loses the original ones.

Good point. Like I do when I edit videos and film, I always make a backup incase something screws up. Let's hope Walsh did the same.

I really hope the Patriots get penalized for their actions. They don't deserve to walk away like nothing happened.

[Rambos]

I hate to say this but I don't trust Goodell.

[Ramer]

I bet nothing comes out of this. It is all going to be swept under the rug & the Partiots (Cheaters) are going to walk free.

[moklerman]

It's just too ridiculous. If the NFL really wanted to police it's teams, Walsh wouldn't have to hand over every shred of evidence, the league would just ask for copies.

[Keenum]

Be careful Walsh, Goodell may just burn these, and say "Let's move on."
I don't trust him.

But HOPEFULLY, Walsh will admit and have proof of the Rams walkthrough (all we know is that somebody probably taped it, we don't know if it was Walsh from anything I have heard).

The very LEAST that should happen should be a big fat * beside every game the Pats cheated in.

[r8rh8rmike]

Originally Posted by jkramsfan

I hope he makes extra copies in case Goodell accidently loses the original ones.

Since he agreed to turn over everything in exchange for not being sued by the league or Patriots, he's screwed if he does make copies and tries to use them in any way.

You know the Patriots are going to claim Walsh was doing any taping on his own without their knowledge. I just hope he presents a good case with evidence to back up what he says.

[RamOfDenmark]

Here is another article about the meeting and the deal that they came up with:

By BARRY WILNER, AP Football Writer

NEW YORK (AP)—Matt Walsh will get his day with the commissioner. What he has to offer is anyone’s guess.

The former Patriots assistant will meet with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell on May 13 about New England’s videotaping of opposing teams. It took a couple of months, but the league reached an agreement with Walsh on Wednesday.

“Commissioner Goodell will meet with Mr. Walsh … on May 13, the earliest date that Mr. Walsh, who lives in Hawaii, will be available on the East Coast,” the NFL statement said. “The agreement also requires Mr. Walsh to return any tapes and other items in his possession that belong to the Patriots. In return, the NFL and the Patriots have promised not to sue Mr. Walsh. They also will indemnify him for any expenses, including legal fees that he incurs in connection with the interview.”

During Super Bowl week, and nearly five months after the Patriots were sanctioned for illegal taping of the New York Jets in the season opener—a $500,000 fine for coach Bill Belichick, a $250,000 fine for the organization, and the loss of a first-round draft pick on Saturday—there were reports of possible other videotaping by the Patriots. Those reports centered on Walsh, who shot videos for the Patriots during his six-year stint with the organization.

Since the Super Bowl, Goodell’s staff has sought a meeting with Walsh.

“Today, Mr. Walsh and the National Football League reached an agreement under which the NFL will provide legal indemnification and a release of claims against Mr. Walsh relating to his employment by the Patriots and the Patriots’ videotaping operations,” said Walsh’s lawyer, Michael Levy of McKee Nelson LLP. “I am pleased that we now have an agreement that provides Mr. Walsh with appropriate legal protections. Mr. Walsh is looking forward to providing the NFL with the materials he has and telling the NFL what he knows.”

So what might Walsh have and what does he know? The Patriots say he has nothing.

“The New England Patriots are pleased to learn that Matt Walsh is finally willing to come forward to meet with the NFL,” the team said in a statement. “We are eagerly anticipating his honest disclosures to commissioner Goodell next month and the return of all the materials he took during his time of employment.

“We fully expect this meeting to conclude the league’s investigation into a damaging and false allegation that was originally levied against the team on the day before this year’s Super Bowl.”

The allegation was that New England videotaped the St. Louis Rams’ walkthrough on the day before the 2002 Super Bowl. Although Belichick admitted to Goodell during the Spygate investigation that his team often taped opposing coaches’ signals during games, he adamantly has denied anything about that Super Bowl.

“I’ve never seen a tape of another team’s practice. Ever!” Belichick said at last month’s NFL owners meetings. “Certainly not that one.

“I think they’ve addressed everything they possibly can address. I’ve addressed so many questions so many times from so many people I don’t know what else the league could ask.”

In their statement Wednesday, the Patriots reiterated that stand:

“At all times, we cooperated fully with the league’s investigation and stand by our initial public statement from Saturday, Feb. 2, 2008: The suggestion that the New England Patriots recorded the St. Louis Rams’ walkthrough on the day before Super Bowl XXXVI in 2002 is absolutely false.”

The agreement with Walsh will allow him to “share with the NFL information about activities occurring during his employment with the club from 1997-2003,” the league said.

Walsh also will be barred from using any material related to Spygate for commercial purposes “or in any manner that could reasonably be expected to be disparaging to the NFL” or the Patriots.

He also will not be allowed to speak with any third parties before meeting with Goodell.

Belichick has said the videotaping was a misinterpretation of the rule. He told Goodell he was handing over all the tapes in September, and Goodell destroyed them. So if Walsh has any evidence, it could be quite damaging to Belichick and the Patriots.

“It is important to note that there has never been a confidentiality agreement restricting Matt Walsh, and no legal protections were ever necessary for him to speak to the NFL, to media outlets or to anyone else regarding his employment with the Patriots,” the team’s statement said. “Walsh has been granted a significant number of privileges through this agreement, none of which the Patriots or the NFL were obligated to give.”

The agreement requires Walsh to hand over all pertinent material by May 8.

Link

[RamOfDenmark]

Originally Posted by RamOfDenmark

Walsh also will be barred from using any material related to Spygate for commercial purposes “or in any manner that could reasonably be expected to be disparaging to the NFL” or the Patriots.

The agreement requires Walsh to hand over all pertinent material by May 8.

So he has to hand over all material - i.e I assume he is not allowed to keep copies for himself as proof of anything.

And he is not allowed to use any material in a way that is "disparaging" to the NFL or the Patriots. That seems like an agreement widely open to interpretation to me and a nice legal loophole that allows them to go after him if he does not keep everything secret and allows the NFL to present the evidence exactly as they see fit.

So what's to stop Goodell from 'accidently' losing the tapes once again? And if Walsh kept copies and tries to bring them out they go after him for not handing over everything? Or in the other case where Goodell only loses some of the tapes and shows 1 or 2 to the press and claims that is everything there is. Then if Walsh brings out more they come down on him with full force in court because he is using the material in a way that is "disparaging" to the NFL and the Patriots?

It is also stated in the article that the NFL will pay for any expenses related to him presenting his evidence - I only wonder if they're wiring him 100,000 $ for 'airline tickets' and so on, if you know what I mean.

Maybe I'm just a pessimist and this is only speculation of course. But the NFL could silence my doubts very easily and very quickly and I sincerely hope that they do. How?

By simply making available the video evidence, in full, to the public. Nothing to hide? Good, now prove it.

[Mooselini]

Commissioner Roger Goodell is prepared to punish the Patriots again if Matt Walsh has a tape of the St. Louis' Rams pre-2002 Super Bowl walkthrough.
"Taping a walkthrough is much different from what I punished them for," he said Thursday. Goodell admits he has no idea what information Walsh has, but says his "mind is open" on the matter. The two men will meet on May 13.

I found this on rotoworld. Looks like they may get punished afterall. Next year's round one would be quite pleasent.

[blood85]

Goodell is not going to do anything. Can you imagine if the walkthrough (WAS/IS) the reason they won the Superbowl against us and Goodell finds the evidence to be TRUE...what then?? Do the Patriots forfiet the trophy to us? No. Do we get something like, their #1 draft pick for the next 20 years (the points they scored against us in that game)? Probably not. We are lucky if we would even get a bag of chips and a six pack of beer.

[Keenum]

I also think Goodell may say some crap like "We did find a video tape showing the Rams walkthough, but I did not think it was sufficient enough to pursue further punishment for the New England Patriots and would not have given them an advantage. We will take no further action on this."

That would really tick me off...