With the publication of an early morning exposé today, ESPN resurrected what for many had never actually gone away—the notion that the New England Patriots organization has a rampant history of “pushing the envelope” that goes back at least as far as Bill Belichick’s inaugural season as head coach.
And the Pittsburgh Steelers had been as big a target as any, even if, publically and privately, the team brass had moved on.
According to the report of Dom Van Natta Jr. and Seth Wickersham, the Patriots had filmed at least 40 games over the span of seven seasons leading up to the breaking of Spygate early in the 2007 season, when former Patriots coach Eric Mangini, then the head coach of the New York Jets, alerted his owner, Woody Johnson, to the taping of signals.