New England Patriots could be fined, lose draft pick for illegally videotaping Cincinnati Bengals, per report
An NFL investigation into the New England Patriots' illegal videotaping of the Cincinnati Bengals in December is nearing completion, according to the Boston Globe.
The article says "league observers still expect the Patriots to receive punishment — potentially a fine up to $500,000 and a loss of a mid- or late-round draft pick — because they have a history with illegal videotaping."
The Globe reported that NFL Security completed its final interview with a Patriots employee and next will write up its report, which eventually will go to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.
"The Patriots have cooperated with the NFL, and stated that the incident was an honest mistake by a video producer working for Kraft Sports Productions," the article read. "The producer, Dave Mondillo, has been suspended by the organization. The Patriots contend that Bill Belichick and the football operation did not have any involvement."
The Cincinnati Enquirer reported last month that the "investigation into the motive behind the incident remains a fluid situation."
“Our responsibility is to make sure we are being extremely thorough. We have a responsibility of 31 other clubs, we have a responsibility to partners and we have a responsibility to fans to understand all of what happened,” Goodell said.
A Bengals source told The Enquirer that they believe the Patriots were stealing signs from the Bengals sideline.