INVESTIGATIVE REPORT CONCERNING FOOTBALLS USED
DURING THE AFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME ON JANUARY 18, 2015
















By:
PAUL, WEISS, RIFKIND, WHARTON & GARRISON LLP



Theodore V. Wells, Jr.

Brad S. Karp

Lorin L. Reisner



Dated: May 6, 2015


TABLE OF CONTENTS

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .......................................................................................................... 1

INVESTIGATIVE ACTIVITIES .................................................................................. 22
I.

Scope of Investigation........................................................................................... 22
A.
Witnesses Interviewed .......................................................................................... 24
B.
Materials Reviewed .............................................................................................. 29
C.

Expert Consultation .............................................................................................. 31
D.

BACKGROUND ............................................................................................................. 32
II.

Rules and Practices Regarding Footballs Used in NFL Games ............................ 32
A.

Playing Rule 2 ........................................................................................... 32
1.

Guidelines Concerning the Preparation of Footballs ................................ 33
2.

Pre-Game Review of Footballs by NFL Game Officials .......................... 36
3.

Ball Preparation Process Used by the New England Patriots ............................... 37
B.

Preparing the Shape and Surface .............................................................. 38
1.

Setting the Inflation Level ........................................................................ 39
2.

Selecting Footballs For Game Use ........................................................... 41
3.

Role of Jim McNally ............................................................................................. 42
C.
EVENTS SURROUNDING THE AFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME .......................... 44
III.

Pre-Game Events .................................................................................................. 44
A.

The Colts Communicate Concerns about
1.
Patriots Game Balls Prior to the AFC Championship Game .................... 44

The Officials Prepare for the AFC Championship Game ......................... 46
2.

The Patriots Prepare and Select Game Balls............................................. 49
3.

Inspection of Game Balls by Referee Anderson ....................................... 50
4.

Anderson and Other Officials Cannot Locate the Game Balls ................. 54
5.

The Game Balls are Taken to the Field by McNally ................................ 57
6.

Events During the First Half ................................................................................. 63
B.

Events During and Following Halftime ................................................................ 66
C.

Post-Game Testing of Game Balls ........................................................................ 72
D.
COMMUNICATIONS BETWEEN JASTREMSKI AND
IV.
MCNALLY PRIOR TO THE AFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME ............................... 74
McNally Labels Himself the Deflator ................................................................... 75
A.
ii

Communications About Inflation and Deflation................................................... 75
B.

Brady‟s Dissatisfaction with Game Balls During the Jets Game ............. 75
1.

The “Alternate” Explanation Offered by
2.
Jastremski and McNally for the October 17 Messages ............................. 83

Additional Deflation Reference by McNally ........................................................ 87
C.
McNally Requests and Receives Items
D.
Autographed by Brady, Sneakers and Apparel ..................................................... 87

Items of Value Received by Jastremski from Brady ............................................ 89
E.

INITIAL INVESTIGATIVE STEPS AND POST-GAME EVENTS ........................ 95
V.

NFL Security Interviews McNally ........................................................................ 95
A.
McNally Speaks with Schoenfeld and Jastremski ................................................ 96
B.
Media Reports ....................................................................................................... 97
C.

Patriots Personnel Begin Asking Questions ......................................................... 99
D.

The NFL Commences a Formal Investigation and Notifies the Patriots ............ 100
E.
COMMUNICATIONS FOLLOWING THE AFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME ...... 101
VI.

January 19, 2015 ................................................................................................. 101
A.

Jastremski Learns of Early Media Reports and Contacts Brady............. 102
1.

Jastremski Calls McNally after Brady .................................................... 103
2.

Brady Checks in on Jastremski and Asks to Meet in QB Room ............ 104
3.

Jastremski Speaks Again with Both McNally and Brady ....................... 106
4.

January 20, 2015 ................................................................................................. 108
B.

Jastremski and Brady Continue to Speak by Phone................................ 108
1.

Jastremski Calls McNally ....................................................................... 109
2.

January 21, 2015 ................................................................................................. 109
C.
SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE AND ANALYSIS ............................................................ 110
VII.

Analysis of the Halftime Data............................................................................. 113
A.

Experiments and Game Day Simulations ........................................................... 115
B.

Consideration of Statements Made and
C.
Experiments Conducted by the Patriots .............................................................. 119

Tests on the Time Needed to Deflate Footballs with a Needle........................... 121
D.
iii
CONCLUSIONS REGARDING THE GAME BALLS
VIII.
USED BY THE PATRIOTS IN THE AFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME ................. 121
THE KICKING BALL ISSUE .................................................................................... 132
IX.

Preparation of Kicking Balls ............................................................................... 132
A.

Pre-game Activities at the AFC Championship Game ....................................... 133
B.

The Removal and Retrieval of “K-Ball #1” ........................................................ 135
C.

The Attempted Reintroduction of “K-Ball #1” ................................................... 137
D.

Conclusions ......................................................................................................... 138
E.

1
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
On January 18, 2015, the New England Patriots and Indianapolis Colts played in
the AFC Championship Game at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts to determine
which team would advance to Super Bowl XLIX. During the first half of the game, a question
was raised by the Colts concerning the inflation level of the footballs being used by the Patriots.
As a result, at halftime, members of the officiating crew assigned to the game, overseen by a
senior officiating supervisor from the National Football League (the “NFL” or the “League”),
tested the air pressure of footballs being used by each of the Patriots and the Colts. All eleven of
the Patriots game balls tested measured below the minimum pressure level of 12.5 pounds per
square inch (“psi”) allowed by Rule 2 of the Official Playing Rules of the National Football
League (the “Playing Rules”) on both of two air pressure gauges used to test the balls. The four
Colts balls tested each measured within the 12.5 to 13.5 psi range permitted under the Playing
Rules on at least one of the gauges used for the tests.
On January 23, 2015, the NFL publicly announced that it had retained Theodore
V. Wells, Jr. and the law firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison (“Paul, Weiss”) to
conduct an investigation, together with NFL Executive Vice President Jeff Pash, into the
footballs used by the Patriots during the AFC Championship Game. The investigation was
conducted pursuant to the Policy on Integrity of the Game & Enforcement of Competitive Rules.
That Policy provides that “[a]ctual or suspected competitive violations will be thoroughly and
promptly investigated.”1 This Report is the product of that investigation. It was prepared
entirely by the Paul, Weiss investigative team and presents the independent opinions of Mr.
Wells and his colleagues.

1
Under the Policy, the “standard of proof required to find that a violation of the competitive rules has occurred”
is a “Preponderance of the Evidence,” meaning that “as a whole, the fact sought to be proved is more probable
than not.”
2
The primary topic of the investigation has been the circumstances surrounding the
use by the Patriots of footballs inflated at below-regulation air pressure levels during the AFC
Championship Game, including whether Patriots personnel were involved in deliberate efforts to
circumvent the Playing Rules. The investigation also has involved an assessment of the
circumstances surrounding a possible attempt by the Patriots to introduce to the playing field a
non-approved kicking ball during the AFC Championship Game.
For the reasons described in this Report, and after a comprehensive investigation,
we have concluded that, in connection with the AFC Championship Game, it is more probable
than not that New England Patriots personnel participated in violations of the Playing Rules and
were involved in a deliberate effort to circumvent the rules. In particular, we have concluded
that it is more probable than not that Jim McNally (the Officials Locker Room attendant for the
Patriots) and John Jastremski (an equipment assistant for the Patriots) participated in a deliberate
effort to release air from Patriots game balls after the balls were examined by the referee. Based
on the evidence, it also is our view that it is more probable than not that Tom Brady (the
quarterback for the Patriots) was at least generally aware of the inappropriate activities of
McNally and Jastremski involving the release of air from Patriots game balls.
Based on the evidence, the investigation has further concluded that that there was
no deliberate attempt by the Patriots to introduce to the playing field a non-approved kicking ball
during the AFC Championship Game. Although Patriots personnel provided a kicking ball to
game officials that did not have the distinctive inspection mark of the referee, we find that the
Patriots personnel involved believed the ball to be authentic and appropriate. We do not believe
that there was any attempt by Patriots personnel, including Patriots kicker Stephen Gostkowski,
to deliberately circumvent the rules by offering the kicking ball for play.
3
We do not believe that the evidence establishes that any other Patriots personnel
participated in or had knowledge of the violation of the Playing Rules or the deliberate effort to
circumvent the rules described in this Report. In particular, we do not believe there was any
wrongdoing or knowledge of wrongdoing by Patriots ownership, Patriots Head Coach Bill
Belichick or any other Patriots coach in the matters investigated. We also do not believe there
was any wrongdoing or knowledge of wrongdoing by Patriots Head Equipment Manager Dave
Schoenfeld.
In reaching these conclusions, we have considered, among other things, the
following facts that we believe are established by the evidence for the reasons detailed in this
Report:
1.
Rule 2 of the Official Playing Rules of the NFL requires that footballs used during
NFL games must be inflated to between 12.5 and 13.5 psi. In particular, the rule
states that “[t]he ball shall be made up of an inflated (12½ to 13½ pounds)
urethane bladder enclosed in a pebble grained, leather case (natural tan color)
without corrugations of any kind.”
2.
Several hours before the AFC Championship Game, Jim McNally, the Patriots
employee responsible for delivering the Patriots game balls to the game officials
for pre-game inspection, brought the balls into the Officials Locker Room at
Gillette Stadium. At or around that time, McNally told the referee, Walt
Anderson, that Tom Brady, the Patriots quarterback, wanted the game balls
inflated at 12.5 psi. McNally has been employed by the Patriots as a seasonal or
part-time employee for the past 32 years. His work for the Patriots during the
2014-15 NFL season took place only on a part-time/hourly basis on days on
which the Patriots had home games. His legitimate job responsibilities as
Officials Locker Room attendant did not involve the preparation, inflation or
deflation of Patriots game balls.
3.
During the pre-game inspection, Anderson determined that all but two of the
Patriots game balls delivered by McNally were properly inflated. Most of them
measured 12.5 psi. Two tested below 12.5 psi and Anderson directed another
game official to further inflate those two game balls, which Anderson then
adjusted to 12.5 psi using a pressure gauge. Most of the Colts game balls tested
by Anderson prior to the game measured 13.0 or 13.1 psi. Although one or two
footballs may have registered 12.8 or 12.9 psi, it was evident to Anderson that the
Colts‟ inflation target for the game balls was 13.0 psi. No air was added to or
4
released from the Colts game balls pre-game because they were all within the
permissible range.
4. When Anderson and other members of the officiating crew were preparing to
leave the Officials Locker Room to head to the field for the start of the game, the
game balls could not be located. It was the first time in Anderson‟s nineteen
years as an NFL official that he could not locate the game balls at the start of a
game. Unknown to Anderson, and without Anderson‟s permission or the
permission of any other member of the officiating crew, McNally had taken the
balls from the Officials Locker Room towards the playing field. According to
Anderson and other members of the officiating crew for the AFC Championship
Game, the removal of the game balls from the Officials Locker Room by McNally
without the permission of the referee or another game official was a breach of
standard operating pre-game procedure. According to Anderson, other members
of the officiating crew for the AFC Championship Game and other game officials
with recent experience at Gillette Stadium, McNally had not previously removed
game balls from the Officials Locker Room and taken them to the field without
either receiving permission from the game officials or being accompanied by one
or more officials.
5.
Based on videotape evidence and witness interviews, it has been determined that
McNally removed the game balls from the Officials Locker Room at
approximately 6:30 p.m. After leaving the Officials Locker Room carrying two
large bags of game balls (Patriots balls and Colts balls), McNally turned left and
then turned left again to walk down a corridor referred to by Patriots personnel as
the “center tunnel” heading to the playing field. At the end of the center tunnel on
the left-hand side, approximately three feet from the doors that lead to the playing
field, is a bathroom. McNally entered that bathroom with the game balls, locked
the door, and remained in the bathroom with the game balls for approximately one
minute and forty seconds. He then left the bathroom and took the bags of game
balls to the field.
6.
In the weeks and months before the AFC Championship Game, McNally
periodically exchanged text messages with the Patriots equipment assistant
primarily responsible for the preparation of the Patriots game balls, John
Jastremski. In a number of those text messages, McNally and Jastremski
discussed the air pressure of Patriots game balls, Tom Brady‟s unhappiness with
the inflation level of Patriots game balls, Jastremski‟s plan to provide McNally
with a “needle” for use by McNally, and McNally‟s requests for “cash” and
sneakers together with the “needle” to be provided by Jastremski. A sports ball
inflation needle is a device that can be used to inflate a football (if attached to an
air pump) or release air from a football (if inserted alone into a ball).
For example, on October 17, 2014, following a Thursday night game between the
Patriots and the New York Jets during which Tom Brady complained angrily
about the inflation level of the game balls, McNally and Jastremski exchanged the
following text messages:
5
McNally:
Tom sucks...im going make that next ball a fuckin balloon
Jastremski: Talked to him last night. He actually brought you up and
said you must have a lot of stress trying to get them done...
Jastremski:
I told him it was. He was right though...
Jastremski:
I checked some of the balls this morn... The refs fucked
us...a few of then were at almost 16
Jastremski: They didnt recheck then after they put air in them
McNally:
Fuck tom ...16 is nothing...wait till next sunday
Jastremski: Omg! Spaz
On October 21, 2014, McNally and Jastremski exchanged the following text
messages:
McNally:
Make sure you blow up the ball to look like a rugby ball so
tom can get used to it before sunday
Jastremski: Omg
On October 23, 2014, three days before a Sunday game against the Chicago
Bears, Jastremski and McNally exchanged the following messages:
Jastremski: Can‟t wait to give you your needle this week :)
McNally:
Fuck tom....make sure the pump is attached to the
needle.....fuckin watermelons coming
Jastremski: So angry
McNally:
The only thing deflating sun..is his passing rating
The next day, October 24, 2014, Jastremski and McNally exchanged the
following messages:
Jastremski:
I have a big needle for u this week
McNally:
Better be surrounded by cash and newkicks....or its a rugby
sunday
McNally:
Fuck tom
Jastremski: Maybe u will have some nice size 11s in ur locker
McNally:
Tom must really be working your balls hard this week
6
On October 25, 2014, McNally and Jastremski exchanged the following
messages:
Jastremski: Size 11?
Jastremski: 2 or 3X?
McNally:
Tom must really be on you
McNally:
11 0r 11 half......2x unless its tight fitting
Jastremski: Nah. Hasn‟t even mentioned it, figured u should get
something since he gives u nothing
On January 7, 2015, eleven days before the AFC Championship Game, McNally
and Jastremski discussed how McNally would have a “big autograph day” and
receive items autographed by Brady the following weekend, before the playoff
game against the Baltimore Ravens. McNally and Jastremski exchanged the
following text messages:
McNally:
Remember to put a couple sweet pig skins ready for tom to
sign
Jastremski: U got it kid...big autograph day for you
McNally:
Nice throw some kicks in and make it real special
Jastremski:
It ur lucky. 11?
McNally:
11 or 11 and half kid
On January 10, 2015, immediately prior to the game between the Patriots and the
Ravens, in the Patriots equipment room with both Brady and Jastremski present,
McNally received two footballs autographed by Brady and also had Brady
autograph a game-worn Patriots jersey that McNally previously had obtained.
7.
In addition to the messages described above, before the start of the 2014-15
season, McNally referred to himself as “the deflator” and stated that he was “not
going to espn……..yet.” On May 9, 2014, McNally and Jastremski exchanged
the following text messages:
McNally:
You working
Jastremski: Yup
McNally:
Nice dude....jimmy needs some kicks....lets make a
deal.....come on help the deflator