A couple of weeks ago, the New England Patriots had the whole NFL world in a state of confusion as it was revealed that a camera crew hired by the team was caught filming the Cincinnati Bengals sideline. This was a big story because of the Patriots' history of bending the rules. You're not allowed to film a team's sideline and fans were outraged by the Patriots' alleged brazen attempts at getting ahead of the competition. Immediately after the news came in, the Patriots made sure to calm fans down by saying the cameraman didn't know better and that they were hired by the media team, not the football operations team.
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According to Pro Football Talk, the NFL did a thorough investigation into the matter and revealed that the video crew had absolutely zero links to the team's football operations. This means the Patriots are in the clear although they can still face punishment for the video crew's actions. The crew's actions are still against the rules regardless of intention. However, since the football operations weren't involved, the punishment will be way less severe.
If you're a Patriots fan, this is great news as this means your team will enter the playoffs with a clean slate. They take on the Tennessee Titans in the AFC Wild Card round on Saturday.
