Along with the DeflateGate and Spygate scandals that previously rocked the New England Patriots organization, there was also another shady scandal that the Patriots were rumored to be involved in a few years back. For whatever reason, some people believed that the Patriots were bugging the visitor locker room at Gillette Stadium. Specifically, one opposing team’s quarterback that thought there might be some truth to this was Peyton Manning. Back when he used to play for the Indianapolis Colts, it was rumored that he didn’t feel safe having discussions about the game in the locker room. Apparently, he had some conversations with former Patriots players that led him to believe the Colts’ plays and strategies during the game could be compromised.
Manning’s former coach, Tony Dungy, went on the Dan Patrick Show this morning and confirmed these rumors. “I know that that is very true, and, you know, as Peyton talked to guys who played for the Patriots, some of the guys who came over—whether it’s true or not he treated it as true. We didn’t have a lot of strategy discussions inside the locker room there.” Back when the story first came out, it was said that Peyton preferred to have conversations with the offensive coordinator in the hallway just to be safe.
Before Patriots fans get all up in arms, these are just rumors that have never been proved and there is no hard evidence against the team. But there was something that caused Peyton and Coach Dungy to take precautions whenever playing in New England. And as Dungy added, “Peyton takes everything to the nth degree.” I’m curious to know if he’s still paranoid to this day when playing against Tom Brady.
