Belichick says he wasn’t aware of Bengals video
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick says neither he nor his coaching staff has watched any video footage shot by an in-house production team now at the center of an NFL investigation for inappropriately filming the Cincinnati Bengals’ sideline at a recent game.
Meanwhile, the NFL hopes to move quickly toward making a determination about whether to punish the Patriots for their admitted violation of league policy. According to one person familiar with the deliberations, a resolution is possible as soon as this week.
Belichick said during a conference call Tuesday he was not involved and had no knowledge of what took place during Sunday’s Bengals-Browns game in Cleveland. Belichick said he wasn’t informed of it until Monday afternoon.
“I personally have never viewed any video footage at all, anything that those production people have done, other than what’s shown on public television or something like that,” Belichick said.
In a statement posted on Twitter and the team website Monday night, the Patriots said a three-person crew producing a web series titled “Do Your Job” “inappropriately filmed the field from the press box” as part of a feature on the scouting department. The filming took place “without specific knowledge of league rules,” the statement said.
An NFL spokesman declined comment. Bengals coach Zac Taylor confirmed during a news conference Monday that the league was investigating the crew’s activities.
The Patriots’ statement also said that while they were granted credentials for the crew from the Browns, “our failure to inform the Bengals and the league was an unintended oversight.” When