Patriots possibly in another spygate against Bengals

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000001086298/article/bengals-nfl-investigating-if-patriots-filmed-sideline

Bengals: NFL investigating if Patriots filmed sideline
By Around The NFL staff
Published: Dec. 9, 2019 at 04:30

Bengals: NFL investigating if Patriots filmed sideline

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By Around The NFL staff NFL.com
Published: Dec. 9, 2019 at 04:30 p.m.
Updated: Dec. 9, 2019 at 06:39 p.m.

Cincinnati Bengals coach Zac Taylor said Monday that the NFL is investigating if the Patriots had a videographer film the Bengals sideline from the Cleveland press box during Sunday’s game.

“I’m aware there was an incident, but I know the league is investigating it,” Taylor said when asked at the end of his press conference. “I’ve got no comment.”

Taylor had no comment to follow up questions on the matter. NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported the league currently has yet to comment.

NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported, via a source informed of the Patriots’ situation, that New England reached out to the Browns for a credential for a videographer to shoot a behind-the-scenes piece on an advanced scout as part of their “Do Your Job” video series.

Patriots coach Bill Belichick said Monday on WEEI that he has “absolutely nothing” to do with the production of the video series.

“I heard about this and evidently this is our production people on the TV show that were there and I have absolutely nothing to do, we have absolutely nothing to do with anything that they produce or direct or shoot,” Belichick said. “I have never even seen any of their tapes or anything else. This is something that we 100 percent have zero involvement with. This is something you’d have to talk to the production people about and what they were doing, or whatever it was. We have never seen anything that they’ve shot, other than what has come down on TV.”

Belichick added: “As I understand it, they were videotaping him to show kind of what an advanced scout does, or something like that.”

Pelissero reported that a Bengals scout noticed the recording in the press box and alerted a Cincinnati executive, who alerted NFL security. Security then spoke with the Patriots staffer and obtained the video.

“What really drew the interest of the Bengals is the fact they were shooting into the bench area,” Pelissero said on The Aftermath. “I have spoken with several people familiar of what was in that tape, including one person who has seen that tape, and said it included video of the Bengals coaches making signals and then panning out into the field.”

Belichick added his scouting department is aware that it is against NFL rules to film opponents.

“A scout can’t film the opponents, as an advanced scout,” Belichick said. “Our video people are not even allowed to point the camera at our opponents during pregame warmup or their side of the field or anything else to test out their equipment. They 100 percent know, all of our scouts, all of our video people and everything, absolutely know what that is. Again, I have nothing to do with the TV production shows. I have no idea what they do, what their projects are or anything else.”

The Patriots play at the Bengals this Sunday.