Some within the Steelers organization, as they interacted with league IT people during the situation Thursday, were under the belief that the issue stemmed from how the power is carried to the sidelines.
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Except they were at the home of the twice-convicted New England Patriots.
But after the game, the Patriots said they had headset issues as well.
Receiver A.J. Green agreed to a contract extension on Friday that runs through the 2019 season, the last big thing the Cincinnati Bengals needed to accomplish before their season opener. You’re like, “What? The headsets?”
“They told us they were on the verge of shutting it off, but then I guess they got it working”.
NBC’s NFL Kickoff, which saw the New England Patriots beat the Pittsburgh Steelers 28-21, brought in 27.4 million viewers, making it the second most-watched NFL Kickoff game in the event’s 14-year history. The incidents have fed suspicions around the league that there is a nefarious explanation any time something goes wrong in New England.
“We had to switch headphones a couple of times”, Patriots coach Bill Belichick said. “Writing about warm drinks and trash cans, stuff like that”.
“It happens quite a bit”, Philbin said after Friday’s practice.
In a statement released Thursday night, National Football League spokesperson Michael Signora said that the headset issue stemmed from a power problem inside Gillette Stadium. “The Patriots had nothing to do with it”. Deflated footballs are easier to throw and catch.
But the Patriots, who have been at the centre of the recent NFL Deflategate controversy, are guilty of no impropriety whatsoever, according to a league spokesperson. A federal judge ruled last week that Brady’s suspension was not permitted by the collective bargaining agreement. That’s Real Deal Holyfield right there. “It has been going on for a long time”, he said.
“It’s rare that I’ve gone through an National Football League game that there was not a problem with the headset”, Browns coach Mike Pettine said, noting there’s often dead zones in certain spots on the sideline.
But others weren’t willing to blame the problem on the Patriots. Luckily, the Steelers won’t be filing a complaint with the NFL.
But that doesn’t mean he doesn’t try to find someone to blame. “I’m not indicating nothing”, Tomlin said. That tells you everything you need to know about the Patriots.
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“It’s easy for someone to make accusations, and then the media gets a hold of stuff,” Miller said. Probably. Also considering the Patriots once again have a poor run game only managing 80 yards on the ground for the game, it shouldn’t be hard for defenses to start keying in on Brady.
