The New England Patriots seem to always find themselves in trouble with the NFL and this past season was no different. The NFL is now penalizing the Pats for filming the Cincinnati Bengals sideline in week 14 of the 2019-2020 season.
According to ESPN, the Patriots will be hit with a $1.1 million fine for the offense. The Robert Kraft owned franchise will also forfeit their 2021 third-round pick and Patriots’ TV crews will not be permitted to film any games this season.
Yahoo Sports reports that the $1.1 million fine is more than the much more publicized “spygate” scandal from 2007 where the Patriots filmed the New York Jets sideline. The total fine in “spygate” was $750,000 according to Yahoo Sports.
The NFL also banned Patriots Supervising Producer Dave Mondillo who was caught red-handed in the latest scandal. The Patriots defense was that they were filming a documentary and they neglected to inform the Cincinnati Bengals that they were doing so.
This news comes as the Patriots reached a deal with former MVP quarterback Cam Newton. Newton signed a 1-year $7.5 million contract with the Patriots and is now the favorite to start this upcoming season, the team’s first full season without future Hall of Famer Tom Brady since 2001.
