FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick said neither he nor his coaching staff has watched any video footage shot by an in-house production team at the center of an NFL investigation for inappropriately filming the Cincinnati Bengals’ sideline at a recent game.
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 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 confronted, the team said the crew “immediately turned over all footage to the league and cooperated fully.”
The Patriots said the purpose of the filming was for an illustration of the work team advance scouts do while on the road. The team said it accepts full responsibility for the crew’s actions.
New England was fined $250,000 and lost a first-round draft pick in 2007 for violating NFL rules against using video to steal signals in a scandal dubbed Spygate. Belichick also was fined $500,000.
Spygate fueled a distrust of the Patriots that persisted when the team was accused of illegally deflating the footballs used in the 2015 AFC championship game.
The punishment by the NFL in that case also was severe. Quarterback Tom Brady was suspended four games, and the team was fined $1 million and docked another first-round draft pick.
The Patriots (10-3) visit the Bengals (1-12) on Sunday.
