The Patriots Could Face Discipline for Alleged Filming Incident, and the Fans Are Weighing In

Following a battle between the Cleveland Browns and the Cincinnati Bengals, a report surfaced that [...]

By John Newby

Following a battle between the Cleveland Browns and the Cincinnati Bengals, a report surfaced that the NFL was investigating the New England Patriots due to an alleged filming incident that had occurred. A team-credentialed photographer was caught filming the Bengals' sideline for minutes on end. This was reportedly part of the "Do Your Job" video series.

Weeks later, reports have surfaced that the Patriots could be facing discipline from the league. ESPN's Adam Schefter reported on Saturday that a punishment could be handed out in the next two weeks for "acknowledged gameday video violations." Schefter continued to report that the punishment could include fines, draft pick forfeitures, and potential front-office suspensions.

With this news surfacing on Saturday, mere hours prior to the playoff battle between the Patriots and the Tennessee Titans, the fans took to Twitter to express a variety of reactions. Some were frustrated by the league while others felt that this punishment should be severe.

The discipline has not yet been revealed, and the Patriots are currently focusing on the upcoming battle with the Titans. The fans, however, are debating the punishment on social media.

(Photo Credit: Adam Glanzman/Getty Images)

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With the news of a potential fine, some fans headed to social media to criticize the Patriots for "cheating" prior to their matchup with the Cincinnati Bengals. Specifically, these individuals questioned why Bill Belichick and co. would need to gain a competitive advantage against a team that had won one game all season. This quickly created more discussions about timing.

As many explained, it's not the team that matters in this situation. The league has strict rules about filming other franchises. The Bengals just happened to be the upcoming opponent at the time.

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Does NFL commissioner Roger Goodell despise the New England Patriots? There are many fans of the team that believe this to be true after Tom Brady was suspended four games in 2016 for deflated footballs. In their opinion, Goodell will use this filming incident to slap a severe punishment on the Patriots.

After Schefter reported the news of the pending discipline, some expressed the belief that a late-round pick and a significant amount of money in fines would be the punishment. Others, however, said that Goodell would be throwing the proverbial book at the team.

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Saturday morning, there was no shortage of memes on social media as fans and critics responded to the news of potential discipline. Some opted for the tried-and-true Gifs and images that featured characters from The Office. Others went in search of classic videos from SNL.

One such example was a beer commercial that featured Chris Farley and Adam Sandler. The comedian/actor in Sandler had a video camera in hand during this fake advertisement, and the users on Twitter saw a striking resemblance between him and the Patriots' staffer.

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Will the league's discipline include fines, the loss of a draft pick, or something else not mentioned by Schefter's report? That answer has not been provided just yet, but there are some fans/critics that are thinking outside of the figurative box. In fact, one even posed a very unique idea for the punishment.

One of the dominant storylines in recent years is that opposing fanbases believe that Patriots receive a little bit of extra "help" from the referees. Whether it's a controversial offsides penalty or the lack of a holding call, those that root against New England believe there are plenty of examples of the referees giving Brady an extra advantage.

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Jokes and critiques aside, there were some users on social media that had some serious questions about the punishment. Specifically, they wanted to know what would be taken into account by the league. The Patriots have dealt with controversy in the past, so would that be a factor?

One of the incidents that could be considered is "Spygate." Back in 2007, the league disciplined the Patriots for filming the New York Jets' defensive signals during a September game. There were also allegations of other filming incidents. Belichick was fined $500,000 for Spygate while the Patriots were docked $250,000. The team also lost a first-round pick in the 2008 NFL Draft.

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As many fans on social media said, there was an expectation that the NFL would take away one or more draft picks from the Patriots while also handing down some fines. Although that has not been determined just yet by the league. There is also a belief that the punishment could be even more severe.

Some fans, however, don't expect the league to make a big deal out of this alleged filming incident. Instead, they are waiting for notification that there would be a very small punishment. A "slap on the wrist," as some opted to say.

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While fines and draft picks became the top talking point on Twitter, these potential punishments were not the only ones mentioned by football fans. There were many others that had some very unique ideas for the discipline. In fact, they wanted the league to step in and punish the Patriots on Saturday night.

The reason for this timing is that New England will be hosting the Tennessee Titans during an AFC playoff battle. The Titans fans are nervous about this matchup, and they want to gain an advantage that would help them move on to the Divisional Round.

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