Bill Cowher Has An... Interesting Take On Patriots Scandals
Steelers Hall of Famer Bill Cowher refused to dig into the Patriots' cheating scandal in his latest book Heart and Steel. However, he did speak with The Athletic's Ed Bouchette as to why he leaves the scandals alone. It's...interesting.
"It's only cheating if you get caught," Cowher said. "Like any player, if you're going to hold him, don't get caught. If you get caught, you're wrong. If you don't, you're right. I always thought we never lost the games to New England because of Spygate. If he got the calls because we didn't do a very good job of making sure we signaled those in, that's on us. It's not on him. Because we're always looking for competitive edges, I think, as any coach. Whether it's someone's stance, someone's split, someone's formation (that tips off a play). You're looking at someone's eyes. How are they coming out of a huddle? You're always looking for those little things that give you a competitive edge, and that to me is what that was."
Our takeaway:
They're all cheating. What better proof do we need that Spygate is just the tip of the iceberg than an opposing coach telling us he couldn't care less about it? The Steelers were likely doing their fair share of cheating -- just not enough to take down Bill Belichick.
Can you argue they're just better cheaters? Sure, but that's sports. Athletes in every sport will find ways to win, whether by using steroids or stealing signs.
We've witnessed cheating in all sports, and then we attack the champions for finding what Cowher calls a "competitive edge." "How dare they cheat!" we cry, aghast. Meanwhile, a former Steeler is telling us (without telling us) that they cheated too.
And he brings up a solid point: Teams that don't do enough to prevent other teams from cheating simply aren't doing enough. That's a solid way to look at this whole scandal.
Bill Cowher comes across as a "no excuses" type of guy during this interview, and it's a solid look.
The Patriots are still massive cheaters, though.