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Recent accusations by the New York Jets that the New England Patriots were stealing their signals through use of a video camera have raised questions as to the prevalence of such actions league wide.

 

The Jets aren’t the only divisional rival expressing concern. The Boston Herald is reporting that the Buffalo Bills have begun analyzing recent Bills-Pats games for any disturbing trends.

 

Worried about your Miami Dolphins becoming a victim?

 

Rest easy, assures Senior Vice President of Media Relations Harvey Greene.

 

While Greene obviously won’t comment on an active league investigation, nor would he get into specifics as to what the Dolphins do to prevent spying, he was able to confirm that the Dolphins actively take steps to deter unwanted eyes from prying.

 

“We wouldn’t want to disclose to other teams what we do (because) it is a competitive disadvantage,” said Greene.

 

Greene did say that the team actively employs several “self scouting” techniques as a preventive measure. He also cited some of the obvious countermeasures, such as coaches covering their mouths with their playsheets to avoid having their lips read as they speak into their headsets.

 

While the Jets decided to file a complaint with the NFL against the Patriots, Greene suggested that the Dolphins might not necessarily choose to follow the same course of action should they discover spying.

 

Understandably, Greene didn’t want elaborate publicly on what alternatives would be considered as anything he might say could be used by an opponent to gain an advantage.

 

In many sports, including football, teams often take steps to deter spying. On game days, it is common to see teams use two guys to send in hand signals to the players on the field. One guy gives the real signal; the other guy is a decoy.

 

Another common technique is to use dummy colors or numbers to fool the other team. This is a common practice in situations where a former player or coach has recently joined the opposition.

 

In 1997, the Patriots were accused of stealing signs from Dan Marino in a playoff game that the Dolphins lost 17-3.