As the “Deflate-gate” controversy hits the two-week mark, the Ravens have been mentioned by some as a catalyst for the NFL’s investigation into the New England Patriots’ deflated footballs use in the AFC Championship.
FOX Sports reported last week that it was the Ravens who tipped off Indianapolis about the condition of New England’s footballs, but head coach John Harbaugh took the opportunity Sunday to deny any involvement in blowing the whistle. Harbaugh was part of NBC’s Super Bowl coverage as a guest analyst and addressed the biggest storyline of the last two weeks.
“I heard all that, I couldn’t believe it when I heard it,” Harbaugh said on NBC’s pre-game show in Arizona. “It’s ridiculous, it never happened, [and] I never made any call. Nobody in our organization made any call. As a matter of fact, just to make sure I had all the facts, I called up [Colts head coach] Chuck Pagano and asked him, ‘Did anybody else in our organization tip you off about deflated footballs?’ He said, ‘No way.’”
Reports have indicated the Patriots believe Harbaugh and the Ravens were the ones who alerted the Colts after not taking too kindly to Patriots quarterback Tom Brady’s suggestion that they learn the rulebook after New England’s 35-31 playoff win three weeks ago. Baltimore struggled to adjust to the ineligible receiver strategy the New England offense used in the divisional round, which prompted disenchantment from Harbaugh during and after the game.
Harbaugh denied having any knowledge or concerns about the footballs just a few days after the conference championship game.
“We did not notice anything,” Harbaugh said in a conference call on Jan. 21. “We never had a ball that they were using on offense, so we don’t know anything about that in our game. We didn’t have a chance to handle any of their offensive footballs. As far as the kicking balls, you know, it was 20 degrees outside. The balls were softer. Our guys told us during the game, and I just chalked that up to the fact that it was cold. Both teams were kicking the same kicking balls, so I didn’t really think anything of it during the game.”
The NFL will not announce the findings of its investigation until after the Super Bowl, which created plenty of scrutiny for Brady and Patriots head coach Bill Belichick in the buildup to the game.
