NFL finds that 11 of the 12 balls used by Patriots were deflated

The Patriots were accused earlier this week of deflating balls on purporse inorder to gain a competitive advantage.

A report from ESPN's Christ Mortenson confirms suspicions of the worst.

ESPN:

The NFL has found that 11 of the New England Patriots' 12 game balls were inflated significantly below the NFL's requirements, league sources involved and familiar with the investigation of Sunday's AFC Championship Game told ESPN.

The effect of this on the game is highly debatable, just ask Colts tight end Dwayne Allen.

@NFLonFOX not a story. They could have played with soap for balls and beat us. Simply the better team. We have to continue to build! #BTM
— Dwayne Allen (@Dallen83) January 21, 2015

However, the effect on the Patriots reputation, already caught for one offense back in 2007, is devastating. Were you hoping the Pats would win a Super Bowl and shut up the spygate haters for all? That's now out the window with these latest accusations of cheating.

The NFL says they will wrap up the investigation in a few days, hopefully their conclusions will provide a lot more clarity to a confusing situation.

The controversy started when Colts linebacker D'Qwell Jackson intercepted a Tom Brady pass and reported that the ball seemed a little funny. That made it all the way to the NFL, who is taking the matter seriously. Mortenson's source described the league as "disappointed ... angry ... distraught," over the matter.

The 12 game balls for each time are inspected by the referee before each game, any alterations would have to take place afterwards by an NFL appointed ball boy. Many things can cause a ball to deflate, but the coincidence of 11 of 12 is, of course, concerning.